In truth, if Maggie wanted kids, I would happily have them with her.
“What happened?”
“Before I could say anything, she told me she was marrying someone else.”
“Did she know you were heading in that direction?”
Evidently not. “I felt like we needed to at least live in the same zip code before we plotted every detail of our future.”
“You don’t love her,” he assures me. “If you loved her, you’d move heaven and earth for her.”
How little he knows. I literally moved all sorts of the earth for her to build this complex. I even called it the Magpie while it was in process.
“I was ready to give it a try.” I sigh. I need to change the subject. “I was hanging out with one of your buddies at the Queen Diva show tonight.”
“Who?”
“Nate Lancaster and his wife, Cecelia.”
“Cool. What were they doing in Vegas?”
“Looking for another high-end card game. He wants me to put together a group of players like I did at your wedding.”
“Nice. Count me in. That was a great game. Nothing like playing poker with a bunch of math geniuses. They don’t care about bluffs; they just figure out the cards.”
“No shit. I was thinking twelve players including you and maybe Mason Sullivan from your office. Plus, Nate mentioned Jackson Graham and Landon Walsh.”
“That’s five people so far—or will you play and make it six?”
“You all are too good for me. I’ll just make sure you don’t make a mess of my hotel.”
“You know who was doing well that weekend is Mia Couture. She’s a badass poker player.”
“I also think Viviana Prentis would be good.”
“I love it. That’ll get your mind off that other woman.”
“Sure. I’ll put it together. Watch for the invite.”
“No problem. Hey, did you hear Maggie and Alex are getting married?”
“I thought Alex was gay.”
“So did I.” He takes a big breath. “Our parents have talked about the two of them marrying since they were little. I guess the pressure finally got to them. Who knows what Maggie is doing.”
“It’s not like she has to marry the guy.”
“Something hinky is going on, but I’m not sure what. Mother makes everyone cower, and I’m sure she’s bullied her way into the middle of this. The way she operates it’ll probably be the society event of the year. Make sure you’re there, and maybe you can bring this mysterious woman you’re all hot and bothered about.”
Unlikely. “Sure. It’s now four-nothing with three minutes left. I’m going to bed. I have to be up at five tomorrow.”
“Got it. Catch ya later.” Christopher hangs up.
Lying in bed a little while later, I keep thinking about what he said—that her mom put pressure on them to marry. I need to get to the bottom of this.
Chapter 5
Maggie
It’s morning, but I don’t want to get out of bed. I can see the sun shining through a crack in the curtains. To hell with this beautiful day.
My phone vibrates on the side table. I don’t want to know who’s calling. They can leave a message.
A great sigh rushes from me. Today I have a long laundry list of things to accomplish, plus quite a few things my mother wants me to do—#1 being get excited about getting married. Ugh.
If I have any hope of standing upright today, I should focus on the Foundation. That’s work I can be proud of, and I need to remember that without Reinhardt Corporation, there’s no Reinhardt Foundation. So I’m making the right choice. The Foundation recently adopted a nonprofit in San Francisco, and I’m working with their director to expand one of their student programs across the nation. I have a teleconference meeting in two hours.
But that’s a while from now. I’ll get ready later. I turn the television on and stare at it. Boring.
I don’t want to go downstairs. My mother is likely lurking nearby, as she always is when she wants something from me. Right now she wants an obedient daughter—someone who will go along with her plans and not complain. Well, I’m not there.
So thankfully I have everything I need in my bedroom. It’s bigger than most apartments with a sitting room/office, plus a mini fridge and a stash of snacks. I don’t have to see anyone for a while.
There’s a subtle knock at my door. I’m sure it’s my mother, though she’s not usually subtle. She wants to meet with dressmakers next week, and she wants me to go to the gym and primp for a photoshoot. She wants to meet the caterer and walk through the wedding venue with the planner. I want to curl up and hide in my bed.
The knock becomes more insistent. I’m surprised she hasn’t barged right in. When I hear it a third time, I’m over it.
“Come in,” I bark.
“Sorry about this,” Alex says as he opens the door.
“Oh, hey. I thought you were my mother.”
“I don’t look that good in a bob,” he teases.
I can’t help but smile. “Or a St. John knit suit.”
“You’re right. I don’t have the bust or the hips.”
I grin. “What brings you here?”
“Wedding planning.” He lies down on the bed next to me. “I’m sorry you’ve been dragged into this.”
I gaze at him. Alex and I have been best friends since elementary school. “You were dragged into this, too.”
“Well, that’s true,” he agrees.
“It’s going to be such an ‘advantageous marriage’, though.” I use air quotes since this is what our parents keep telling us.
“You know, it won’t be that bad,” Alex tells me. “At least we like each other and enjoy hanging out together.”
“I know. I just wasn’t prepared to completely sacrifice my personal life for the family business.”
“It’s not like this is the first arranged marriage for either of our families. Maybe it’s because I know my father would blow a gasket if I married a man, but I kind of like the idea of being married to my best friend.”
“But that’s just it,” I tell him. “You’re not supposed to be married to your friend for business reasons. It’s supposed to be a kind of love you and I are never going to have.”
He shrugs. “At least you’re not pregnant.”
My stomach turns. I will never have a family. “We have to figure this out.” I sit up in bed and mute the television. “What do you see for our married life?”
“I guess I just thought we’d have a marriage on paper, separate bedrooms, and our own lives.”
The fact that he seems even remotely okay with this makes me more depressed than I already am.
“We can refuse, if we do it together,” I reason. “There has to be a way to get my mother to be more flexible about the will requirements.”
Alex looks down for a moment, and when he looks back up at me, his face has changed. “You have to help me, Maggie. I have no other options. I know your mother wants this, but my father wants it too. If I don’t marry you, I will lose my inheritance and financial support. I have absolutely no skills. I’m an expert at going to spas and being pampered. I’m great at giving a blow job, but I can’t legally be paid for that.”