Chapter 2: Fake Marriage

Words : 2090 Updated : Feb 19th, 2024

Indeed, gold shone wherever it went. As long as a man was handsome enough, he never had to worry about being favored by women. Marty had made a small suggestion, and Eileen lit up immediately, proposing to marry him. Surprised? Unexpected? Well, not to him. "I accept!" Marty thumped his chest proudly. "I'll be as dedicated to you as I am to my job!" Eileen's father, Paddy, was completely stunned. He glared at Marty, trying to wrap his head around the situation. Had this kid been planning this all along? And seriously, comparing his daughter—the most beautiful woman in the River Chamber of Commerce—to a job? Eileen understood perfectly, though. On the drive back, Marty had mentioned that finding a job was harder than finding a girlfriend and that he'd cherish his job like a girlfriend. "Marty, I'm only doing this because I'm following your advice. Let's be clear—you're just for show. Once this situation is resolved, I'll have no hesitation in dumping you," Eileen said bluntly. Marty thought to himself that maybe she wouldn't want to dump him when the time came. Out loud, he said, "That's fine. It's a husband's duty to share his wife's burdens." He was already throwing around words like "husband and wife." Eileen found it shameless, and Paddy looked at Marty with disdain. It was ridiculous, but what could he do? This was the best option to protect his daughter's future. Paddy sighed. "I'll spread the word that my daughter is getting married. The wedding will be this Sunday." It was Monday, which left them only six days. And just like that, an absurd marriage was set. "Dad, I have things to do at the company. I'm heading back to work," Eileen said. "Alright, go ahead," Paddy replied with another sigh. As they left, Marty turned back before descending the stairs and said, "Goodbye, Father-in-law." Paddy nearly cursed. This kid! Could he be any more familiar? They barely knew each other, and now he was calling him father-in-law. After Eileen and Marty left, Paddy pulled out his phone and called his uncle, Phil Letherdale, the head of the Letherdale family. He explained that Eileen already had a boyfriend and was preparing to get married. "What?!" Old Letherdale roared in fury. "Are you doing this on purpose?" Paddy remained calm. "I can't sacrifice my daughter's happiness." "You fool! Do you have any idea how disastrous this could be?" Of course, Paddy knew. Recently, the Santee family had been launching commercial attacks against the Letherdale family, and with the family's shaky foundation, they were losing the competition. Phil had been forced to make a deal with the Santee family. They demanded that the Letherdales hand over Allure Group, and only then would they stop their attacks. Phil had agreed to their terms, but Allure Group wasn't technically a Letherdale family business—it was Eileen's. Phil had no legal right to decide its fate. So, he came up with a plan: marry Eileen to Gregory Santee, the heir of the Santee family, and by marriage, Allure Group would fall under their control. Paddy hadn't told Eileen the full story. He didn't want to burden her with it. "You refusing this marriage is the same as refusing to hand over Allure Group!" Phil yelled. "The Santee family will crush us!" "Isn't there another way?" Paddy asked, though he already knew the answer. "We can't beat the Santees. You have to revoke this decision. Eileen must marry into the Santee family. If you don't fix this, I will!" With that, Phil hung up angrily. Paddy sighed deeply, then clenched his fists. "I won't compromise. If I can't even protect my daughter's happiness, I don't deserve to be her father." Back at the office, Marty received a transfer order from HR. He had officially been appointed as Eileen's personal driver and was even given his own office. His colleagues in the motor pool were green with envy. "That guy's only been here a month, and he's already Ms. Eileen's private driver?" "I've been here for over a year and haven't even seen Ms. Eileen!" "Is it just because he's good-looking? Is this really a world where looks matter that much?" Eileen, generous as always, handed the car keys to Marty for safekeeping. Marty, claiming he needed to refuel the car, took her Maserati for a spin. He parked in front of Wild Wave Bar. At that time of day, the bar wasn't open yet. "Sir, we're not open," a server said, stopping him at the entrance. Marty pulled out a black card, and the server's attitude immediately shifted. "My apologies, sir. Please, come in." Marty went up to the third floor and pushed open the door to a private room that wasn't available to the public. "Boss! Please, have a seat!" The man sitting on the sofa, who had looked imposing moments before, softened his demeanor and spoke with respect. This man was Stan Warth, the owner of Wild Wave Bar. Marty sat down and got straight to business. "Old Letherdale is trying to marry off Eileen to the Santee family. Looks like your intel was right. The Santee family is putting pressure on them." Stan nodded. "Are you planning to help the Letherdale family fight the Santee family and expose the River Chamber of Commerce behind them?" "Yes," Marty replied. "It's the only lead I have to investigate my father's disappearance." "I'll keep a close watch on the River Chamber of Commerce. Also, here's some insider information I gathered about the Santee family. You might find it useful." Stan handed Marty a stack of documents. Marty flipped through the pages, nodded, and said, "Thanks for your hard work." "Don't mention it, boss. Without you, I wouldn't be where I am today. I'd go through fire and water for you." Marty patted Stan on the shoulder and left. Becoming the son-in-law of a wealthy family felt surreal, but he knew it wouldn't be easy. Marty had already done his research on the Letherdale family. Their wealth had been built by Eileen's grandfather, who had passed away years ago. Eileen's father, Paddy, should have inherited the business, but Phil had used his influence to take control. Phil had been squeezing Paddy's family out for years, and now, he wanted to secure his power by marrying Eileen into the Santee family. If Marty wanted to enjoy this "free ride," he needed either Paddy or Eileen to take control of the Letherdale family. That was his plan. Later, as Marty was about to clock out, he received a call from his mother. "Hey, son. After work, head to Century Hotel. Your cousin-in-law got promoted, and he's treating the family to dinner there." "Got it, no problem." After the call, Marty went to Eileen's office. "Hey, honey…" "Don't call me honey," she replied coldly. "Ms. Eileen, my family's having a dinner tonight. Why don't you come with me? You'll have to meet them sooner or later, right?" "Alright," Eileen agreed. "They'll have to meet me eventually." "Great!" Marty grinned. "When they see that I've snagged a girlfriend who's both gorgeous and wealthy, they'll be so jealous their eyes will pop out. It's going to be awesome!" Eileen felt exasperated. So that's why he wants me to go? Just to show off to his relatives? How typical. It confirmed what she already knew—Marty was small-minded, vain, and completely shameless. But on second thought, maybe this was a good thing. The more shameless he was, the less guilty she'd feel when she eventually dumped him.

Chapter 2: Fake Marriage

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