39. Marriage Contract

"How do you know who I am?" Athena asks.

Saskia rolls her eyes. "My brother has mentioned you, how else? He might be able to keep you a secret from our mother, but he was never good at keeping secrets from me. I could tell there was a reason he was distracted the last time he came to meet my mother and me, so I went through his phone when I got the chance, uses the same password since he was a teen, and I find he was flipping through images and profiles of you."

Does Gabriel creep on her on social media? It doesn't seem like a pass time that fits Gabriel's image. How long has he been doing this? She hasn't posted anything to her social media online since she left the entertainment industry, and her agent going ballistic about it.

"When was this?" she asks.

"Last time he left Luxe City, I believe, it wasn't that long ago."

Before Athena cured her amnesia. Gabriel had left the city saying he was going on a business trip, but Athena later found out it was to meet Verona. So, he met his mother and sister as well, it seems the entire immediate family was there for this meeting.

They really are trying to arrange a political marriage between Gabriel and Verona. In this day and age.

"Well, I'm sure whatever you heard or read isn't as true as it seems. I'm just an employee working for Gabriel, and he has extended his help to me when dealing with my family a few times, our relationship is nothing more than that," Athena says.

Saskia raises a brow in question at her. "Who are you trying to convince here?"

"I can show you where Monroe Towers is, you actually aren't that far from it." Athena decides to ignore her remark, covering up her embarrassment with a tight smile. At a fast pace, she leads Saskia back out through the park and onto the busy street, walking down the sidewalk until she reaches a block from Monroe Towers.

"If you keep going straight this way, you'll see it on your right, and I think Gabriel might still be there, but I would check with the receptionist to make sure he doesn't have any guests still," Athena almost sneers. "It was great meeting you, I'm sure I'll see you around soon."

She walks away without another word, wanting to escape the situation as quickly as possible. She is confident that Saskia is capable of finding the building on her own and she helped her enough as a proper employee of Monroe Group should.

Pulling out her phone to check the time, she forgets she put it on silent, seeing 10 missed calls and a handful of messages from Gabriel. She rolls her eyes at his desperate attempt of getting a hold of her, no doubt wanting to fill her head with more empty words.

Pressing his name on her phone, she dials his number.

"You'll be interested to know that I just ran into someone claiming to be your sister, she was looking for your office so I made sure she can find it," she says before Gabriel can say anything.

"Athena, let me just explain-"

"I also told her to make sure the receptionist checks that there are no lingering guests in her office, I wouldn't want someone as dear as your sister to witness such a scene as I did, possibly worse."

"Verona has already left; I sent her home."

"Oh, goodie, no doubt shucked her off in a fancy car with her driver, back to the nice cozy mansion you bought and readied for her. Hmm?"

Athena knows she is being petty and uncalled for, but she can no longer control her irritation. There is nothing romantic going on between her and Gabriel. Although he confessed his feelings and interest in pursuing her, she never responded similarly.

So, why the hell am I so bothered? I really hate myself right now.

In her past life, she was known for getting overly emotional when it came to small and insignificant things like this, but that was due to her crippling anxiety and insecurities about her past failures in life, always sitting at the bottom and never climbing higher no matter what she did.

Now, she doesn't have to live like that anymore. She has been sent a blessing and a curse and given the chance to start at the top. She needs to make sure she doesn't do anything to fall back down again and hit rock bottom. The first step to ensuring she lives a peaceful, drama-free life from now on is to eliminate her bastard father and scheming stepsister from her family and get back everything that rightfully belonged to the past Athena – and her.

Gabriel Monroe blew into her life as another blessing but is quickly turning into her curse, hanging over her and threatening everything she has done since arriving in this strange and unfamiliar situation. Other than her attendant at home Margaret, she had to navigate through everything on her own.

Leaving a life where she had nothing and entering one where she had everything, she wasn't about to let some spoiled princess and her tyrant father take it all away from her before she even has the chance to enjoy it.

Gabriel remains silent.

"I'm not sure what you want me to say, I've made our relationship very clear." With that, she hangs up on him, leaving Gabriel standing in utter shame, unaware of Saskia loitering in the corner, having witnessed their exchange from start to finish.

Hmm, no wonder he was so distracted during dinner last time.

"Wow, Gabe, you're really terrible at courting women aren't you?" Saskia snickers, slipping out from behind the wall post. "Why didn't you run after her and try to explain? She doesn't strike me as the kind of girl to care about such boring things."

Only Saskia would think the torment of her brother is boring.

"What are you doing here?" he grumbles at her. "Do you have anything with Verona being here as well?"

Saskia shakes her head and takes a seat on his couch, stretching herself out to lie down.

"As entertaining as your life seems to be now thanks to her, it sadly wasn't me. I was just in the city with some friends over the weekend and thought I'd stop by your work, and maybe catch a glimpse of this girl you've been obsessing over so much. Little did I know that the moping girl wandering the park was the one I was looking for."

"What are you talking about?" he asks.

"I was walking through the park a block away from here and there she was, just sitting there looking like she was about to burst into tears. I was lost looking for your building and she offered to bring me there, and I could tell right away she is the girl you're madly in love with."

Gabriel scoffs and returns to his desk to rest his head on his hands.

"Stop spitting nonsense before someone hears you," he says.

Saskia rolls her eyes and sits up to drill him with a glare.

"You've never once gone against what Mom has asked of us, you've literally lived your life as her and Dad's slave just to run this company, yet you turned down a marriage proposal from a prestigious family handpicked by Mom. You don't just admire this girl."

He can't deny that she has a point, and his feelings for Athena have just continued to grow day by day, despite her rejecting him from the start.

"I've made out relationship clear."

Yes, indeed you have. So, why I can't stop these feelings from growing?

"Is there any other reason you've come here, or is this it?" Gabriel sighs, flipping open his laptop to resume his work although his mind is in complete shambles.

"What are you helping Athena with?"

"What?" he asks shocked.

"She said the relationship between you two is mutual, but she clearly isn't referring to your romantic relationship. She also mentioned that you helped her a few times with her family, so she is working for you to return the favour."

Athena confessed that to her. Just because she said she is my sister?

It seems Athena really doesn't think much of their relationship other than a business transaction.

A business transaction… that's it!

"I got it," he mumbles to himself.

"What was that? Why do you look so excited suddenly?"

Slamming his laptop closed again, he rushes to turn and grab his coat, throwing it on in a haste.

"Where did you last see Athena?" he asks his sister.

Saskia cowers into the couch. "What the hell got into you?"

"Just tell me, where did it look like she was going when you left her?"

"I-I don't know, downtown I think."

Gabriel gives her a quick kiss on the cheek in farewell and runs out the door, not bothering to lock his office as he does every time he leaves, the important documents scattered across his table still visible.

Stopping at the reception desk, he asks her to send someone from the top floor to clean his office before dashing out the door again, several eyes staring after him.

Toward downtown…she must be going back to the hotel.

Gabriel grabs his phone out of his pocket and dials Julian.

"Meet me back at the Casino. Do you still have eyes on Athena?"

Sounding flustered Julian slowly responds. "Is everything alright? She just came back to the hotel but she doesn't look happy."

"Just get to the office," Gabriel says and hangs up, speeding off onto the street. He meets Julian in his office shortly after.

"What is this about, Gabriel?"

Ignoring him Gabriel walks over to his desk and takes out a stack of his letterheads before handing one over to Julian.

"You have experience with court official documents, correct?" Gabriel asks.

Julian looks at him, confused. "What kind of court documents?"

"Marriage contracts, or even business contracts, whichever."

Has this man finally lost it? Julian thinks as he gives Gabriel an odd look.

"What in the world would you want me to do with a marriage contract, and why the letterhead? Does this have anything to do with your mother and Miss Verona?"

"I want you to make one, and make it look official. Stop asking questions and just do it, we don't have much time," Gabriel demands.

"Can I at least know who this marriage contract is going to be between, so I can incorporate that into the wording? This better not be a marriage contract between you and Miss Verona. I thought you were trying to do anything to break your mother's fantasy of you two getting married?" Julian asks. He has a terrible feeling about this, but he sits down and takes out his laptop anyway to start writing everything up.

"That's exactly what I'm doing, the marriage contract is for me and Athena."

"Oh, that makes sense – what?! Have you gone insane?" Julian cries.

Gabriel simply shakes his head. "My head has never felt more clear and my heart never more determined."

"Do you honestly think she is going to fall for this?" Julian asks with a look of disbelief.

"Yes, she will. She is going to have no choice."

Julian eyes him suspiciously.

"What have you got planned, Gabriel?"