章節 18: Chapter 18

Her eyes stared at the red numbers as they gradually added one at a time, anxiously waiting for it to stop at the very top.

This time, nobody dared stop her at the entrance, and she did not have to pretend to have an appointment with the head of the company.

"This way, Ms. Morgan." A man greeted her as soon as she stepped into the building grounds.

It was like they were already anticipating her arrival. And just like that, she was on the way to meet the man she would soon marry.

She could not understand why they had to meet in his office. But he insisted, and she guessed she had no choice.

"Ms. Morgan. Please follow me." The secretary that she had seen met before smiled at her, ushering her to a large office with one massive rectangular desk and chairs surrounding it.

"Ms. Morgan, please take a seat." Another man greeted her by the door, guiding her to one empty chair at the other side of the table.

She could only see a single folder on the mahogany surface, nothing more. And so far, there was no sign of Damon yet.

"I am Mr. David Anderson. I will be your legal counsel. I will handle your interest and assure you understand your rights in this binding contract." The man introduced himself, offering his hand to her.

After the formal introduction, they sat, and he explained why he was presenting her in the meeting. "So, feel free to ask me if you have any questions."

"Wait!" She expressed, quite confused as she processed the situation. "Why will you represent me when I did not hire you?"

"Damon learned that you signed the prenup without a lawyer present. He did not feel right that nobody was there to represent your interest." Mr. Anderson explained to her.

She remembered the lawyer came to the hospital with the papers. He asked if she wanted a lawyer present, but she thought she could not afford one.

Therefore, she just let him explain what was on the contract, and afterward, she signed it after reading a few bits and pieces of what was on the documents.

"Therefore, he asked me to be your lawyer. Don't worry. I am taking this case as pro bono. So, you don't have to pay me." He quickly added as if he could sense her concern.

"And yes, Damon is my friend, but I am here purely for your interest and not his." Then he seemed to read and answer her unspoken question.

"Why are you doing this, and why would he do that?" She still felt unsure about their motives as she looked at him.

"Because he doesn't think it is fair that you did not have a say in the agreement. And I agree." He opened the folder and checked the first page.

She could assume that it was probably the papers she had signed. "Are you saying I can still have a say in the arrangement?" She was completely surprised by this news.

Honestly, she never thought of him as a fair man. He did sabotage her marriage to his brother. Therefore, how could she even think of him as a good man?

However, even if she hated him, she could not blame him for what happened since she was equally at fault. As they said, it took two to tango. It would not have happened if she had said no.

"Yes. So, I am here to discuss the contract." David tapped on the paper before him, emphasizing its content.

"If you have anything you want to change, we can discuss it with Damon and arrive at a more amicable arrangement that both parties could agree on." He clarified to her.

For the first hour, David read and discussed Damon's demands. Most of his requests were reasonable. In truth, she did not find any objections to it.

But, of course, there were a few that she wanted to renegotiate. As David discussed earlier, she had a right to express her wishes in this arrangement.

"Ok. Let me call Damon and his lawyer to finalize this contract." David placed down his pen after taking notes of her amendments to the present conditions.

After another half an hour of debate, they finally arrived at a more reasonable proposal they could agree on.

Somehow, she felt more relaxed this time, knowing she had a say in this marriage, unlike before. But still, it had not taken away her nervousness about the outcome of this marriage. Anything could still happen.

But at least she had a better grasp of the situation. She had gained some control of the arrangement compared to before.

"If you have any further questions, here is my card." David handed her a piece of cardboard before he said goodbye, leaving her with her fake fiancee.

She was only marrying him for Oliver's sake, nothing more. They both know that love would have nothing to do with this union.

She was about to stand up and leave when he stopped her. "Before you go. I have one more thing to discuss with you."

Suddenly, he pulled a white envelope out of his pocket and tossed it on the desk until it landed before her. She stared at it for a mere few seconds before her fingers dared to touch it.

"What is this?" She asked, curious at what could be inside the thin envelope.

"It is Oliver's test result." He declared without waiting for her to check the content. "I guess you were telling me the truth."

Of course, she was.

But she already suspected he would not take her word for it. After all, he always suspected she was nothing but a gold digger who was after their money.

Now, it seemed she had proven that point when she came to beg him for money for their child. But at that moment, she did not care what he thought of her.

Suddenly, she did not mind if the world branded her a slut, a whore, or a gold-digging bitch. She was only doing this for her child. And his welfare would be her only priority.