Page 3 of Enemies to Wife
"After finding you at the Agency it seemed fitting, almost poetic that you would be the one to fix what you wrecked. It had to be you, there was nobody else," Sebastian continued. "And make no mistakes my dear wife, I intend to make the next six months of your life a living hell. I am going to make you earn every fucking penny of what I am paying. And if you breach even one of the terms of the contract, I will destroy you. I almost hope you do." My breath caught in my throat as Sebastian stepped back with the smug look on his face.
I looked up at Davis, who had been quiet the whole time. His face was a picture of passiveness, like he hadn't seen a thing. It was clear that I was alone. And I was stuck. I looked back at Sebastian in defeat. Sebastian nodded, clearly seeing that I was beat.
"Good," he said, wiping the remains of the blood from his lip. "Now be a good girl and go and get tidied up so that I can introduce my wife to my friends." I didn't know what had happened to Sebastian these four years, but he wasn't the same guy I knew in college. This man was someone who was so much more dangerous. Was I really meant to spend the next six months with this man? Something told me that I wasn't going to survive the weekend.
Chapter 3
Lily
I stormed off, avoiding the urge to turn back and look at Sebastian. But I knew I needed to get away from him, from the situation, from everything. I needed to figure out what the fuck I was going to do. The manor loomed ahead of me, a grand old building that reeked of old money and extravagance. I felt so out of place as I pushed through the large wooden doors, my heels clicking on the polished marble floor. The foyer was filled with people, all dressed in their finest. Designer gowns, tailored suits, and sparkling jewels adorned the elite crowd. Laughter and chatter echoed off the high ceilings, mixing with the soft strains of classical music. Even in the beautiful, but now very tainted, dress I felt like a fish out of water. I kept my head down as I navigated through the throng, searching for a bathroom. The decor was opulent, with gilded mirrors, antique vases, and priceless works of art lining the walls. It was a far cry from the dingy flat I called home, a reminder of the world I didn't belong to.
Finally, I found a bathroom, slipping inside and locking the door behind me. I leaned against the cool marble sink, trying to calm my racing heart. The bathroom was larger than my entire now former flat, with a clawfoot tub, plush towels, and a vanity stocked with expensive toiletries. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, my carefully applied makeup smudged from my tears. I looked like a child playing dress-up, a cheap imitation of the women outside. I didn't belong here, and I knew it. I pulled out my phone, hands trembling, and dialled Jade's number. She answered on the second ring.
"Lily, where are you? The car should have dropped you off by now." Jade's voice was sharp as usual.
"Did you know?" I asked, ignoring her question.
"Know what?" I could tell by her tone that she was taken aback.
"Did you know who the client was?"
"Of course we did." Jade even sounded offended. "We don't take on new clients without a full background check, you should know that."
"But did you know who he was to me?" I was already suspicious when they had told me the client wanted to remain hidden.
"To you?" Jade asked. "Wait, do you have prior relations with Mr Lynch?" I let out a laugh that was bordering on hysterical.
"Prior relations?" I laughed again. "Strangely if I had agreed to that then my life wouldn't have been the shit show it is now. Jade, Sebastian is the reason I was expelled from Regents."
"Oh," Jade said, her voice faltered a little. "Lily, I had no idea. The client, Mr Lynch, never disclosed that he knew you." I believed her. Jade was a hard ass, but she wasn't evil.
"Jade, I can't do this. I can't spend six months with the man who ruined my life." Jade sighed heavily.
"Lily, you don't have a choice. You signed the contract, and you know what that means." My stomach twisted as she spoke. "If another contract gets cancelled, you'll have to pay back every penny the agency has spent on you." I squeezed my eyes shut, panic rising in my chest. I hated this; I hated that I was in this position.
Despite being with the agency for the last three years I had never actually had a complete contract. Each time something had happened, and the client had cancelled. At first the agency had simply said that it sometimes happens, but after the third or forth time I could tell that they were getting annoyed about it. I had even had a call with the owner, Miss May, herself. After this last contract came in, I was warned that they couldn't lose any more money on me. This was my last chance. I knew that when I signed the contract, but what were the odds that the one contract that went through was this one?
"Jade?" I asked as something occurred to me. "What does the file say on Mr Lynch? Like what does he do for a living?" I heard tapping on the other end.
"There isn't much obviously," she replied. I knew that not all of the clients were upstanding members of society; I mean there was a reason why the whole agency was so discreet. "All I have is that he is the CEO of Lynch Pin Industries. First time client. No previous marriages, no children." Lynch Pin Industries, I knew they sounded familiar, but I wasn't sure what they did. But I was sure that Sebastian was studying something to do with computer science in university.
"Why, what are you thinking?" Jade asked.
"I don’t know if I am being paranoid, or something," I started. "But I am starting to wonder if Sebastian had something to do with my bad luck these last few years."
"You think that he has been sabotaging you?" Jade didn't sound too convinced.
"Jade, I was kicked out after I rejected Sebastian," I said.
"I'm sorry, what?" Jade certainly sounded interested now.
"He asked me out, and I went on a couple of dates with him. But then I said I wasn't interested. He didn't take it too well." That was an understatement. Sebastian had been very persistent after I had turned him down. He would turn up outside class, try and give me expensive gifts, at first, I wasn't too concerned. A guy like him had no shortage of opportunities. But when I started finding threatening letters in my dorm room, promising me all sorts of horrible things I knew I had to protect myself. Could he really have been that obsessed that he continued to destroy my life these last few years. I wanted to think that I was being dramatic, but the way Sebastian spoke to me outside, wasn't the words of someone who had fond feelings.
"I can look into it," Jade said. "But it's going to take time. And if it is a coincidence then you really can't risk this contract, Lily." I knew she was right, but I felt sick anyway. "You are going to have to continue as planned until we can get proof of anything else, if there is something." I looked at myself in the large wall length mirror and tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to spring up. I nodded at myself.
"Okay," I said, trying to sound strong.
"Lily, I know it’s hard, but use this time. You are at the party with his friends, right?" Jade asked. "See if you can get more information on him from them. And we all know that men talk more in the bedroom." Oh god, I was going to have to sleep with him. Could I do it? I really didn't have a choice. And he had already said something about sharing me. I remembered seeing in the contract that there would be a possibility of kink related activities. Jade must have taken my silence for compliance as she spoke again.