Chapter 3

A few days later

Jennie Orlando

'Getting married so soon <3'

A huff tore through my throat as I read another message from Ciara. She had been sending pictures of her engagement ring to my inbox for the last eight days, but unfortunately for her, I wasn't mad about it. She could keep her stupid ring if that was all it took to make her feel pretty.

My phone screen lit up with a text. Of course, it was from him. From the man who had taken me in bed like no one had ever before. The one who had so coincidentally turned out to be the father of my cheating ex-boyfriend.

'Let's meet. Send me your address. I'll send my assistant to pick you up.'

My lips curled up in a smile. Finally! The moment that I had been waiting for. Justin was going to pay for wasting my time all these years. And Ciara? She was going to crawl to my feet and beg me for forgiveness.

I checked myself in the mirror to be sure I looked great, and just as always, I looked gorgeous. Black dresses had always been my most favourite, and this one wasn't an exception. It hugged my body in all the places I wanted it to, bringing out my ever sexy shape. Mild makeup, black lipstick, and my lengthy hair cascading down my shoulders. Damn it! I was one hell of a beauty, and I was proud of myself for that.

A black Lamborghini Aventador was already waiting in front of my gate by the time I got outside. A man in black suit stood beside it.

"Good evening, Miss. Mr. Maverick asked to pick you up."

Maverick's text came in. He had sent me a picture of the car in front of me with a caption, 'That's the car that'll pick you up'.

"Alright, let's go," I glanced up at the man and said.

After the incident at the club a few days back, I had been stalking his social media accounts, monitoring his lifestyle, both the previous and the present one. And it was safe to say that he was the perfect revenge tool I needed to get back at those bastards who wronged me. Mr. Maverick Hughes.

"We are here." My thoughts were disrupted by the man's voice. That was fast.

My jaw almost reached the ground as I stepped out of the car and saw the tall building in front of me. It was the most popular restaurant in the country.

Admittedly, I had been to several classy restaurants to meet with my company's clients, but it was my first time in a place like this.

"This way, please."

I barely took in the ambiance of the environment when the driver walked past me, and I followed.

My heart pounded as we strode to the elevator. I didn't have the time to admire the beautiful interior decor of the restaurant.

We got off at the eighth floor, and he led me into a large dining room. It looked like the regular wealthy home's dining room, but a bit different. It was classier.

My eyes scanned the place briefly, and I spotted him. Sitting on one of the chairs arranged around a long table, sipping a red wine.

"She's here, Sir," the driver announced.

"Leave us, Mathew," he lifted his gaze, eyes on me.

Mr. Mathew left as he demanded.

"It's been a while, Mr. Maverick," I managed to put on a smile, looking straight into his eyes even though I was already feeling like jelly with nervousness. From my observation of his social media presence, and his history, I figured that he did not like weak people, especially women.

"I'll have a seat here," I sat in front of him since it didn't look like he was going to ask me to do it anytime soon.

He stared. Eyes unreadable, but I still noticed the flicker of surprise in them.

"Thank you for inviting me. I thought you were never going to text me," I said confidently, making eye contact with him. I had ample experience talking to wealthy businessmen like him.

"What's your name again?" He asked after a long silence.

"First things first..." I paused, then picked up my purse and opened it, revealing the stack of cash arranged there. I had withdrawn the cash for a different purpose, but since I was coming here earlier, I had to take it with me.

I counted twenty thousand dollars from the money and dropped it on the table, pushing it gently to his side.

"The payment for your service," I looked up at him, and he had his eyebrows raised, staring straight at me.

"Excuse me?" He batted his eyelashes.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Maverick, but I'm a woman of my word," I said, not shying away from his gaze.

"Wow... You are interesting."

My stomach sparked up with excitement.

He crossed his arms in front of him, reclining on the chair. "I underestimated you, you know? I never imagined you would..." he paused, exhaled touching the money, a smug smirk displayed on his lips. Obviously, he did not need it. But the money was a symbol of the promise that I had made, and the key to getting him to trust me.

"You are really interesting," he said again, reaching for the glass of wine on the table. "I like your... What should I call this?" He raised a brow. "I admire people who stay true to their words,"

"Thank you for that, Mr. Maverick," I gave him a small smile instead, tamping down my emotions.

"Forgive my manners. Let's eat," he said out of the blue after giving me a long stare.

"Thank you, Mr. Maverick. But can we talk about why I'm here?" I declined politely, and again, he stared at me in disbelief. It seemed as though I kept shocking him with every single action of mine, and I loved it that way. Men like him should be more shocked.

"Oh... right," he nodded. A heavy silence thickened around us, his eyes gazed down at me. The silence dragged on for longer, sparking up my curiosity, then he spoke. "Jenni, let's get married."

I choked on my spit, my eyes widened in shock. "Huh?"

"You've been stalking me on almost all social media platforms. Weren't you doing that because you are interested in me?"

I froze, my eyes widening in shock. Wait... how had he found out about that?

"I don't care whatever your reason for stalking me is. If it's because of my money, I don't mind because I have lots of it..." He paused, and leaned close. "I find you interesting, and if you are single, we could get married. So, what do you say?"

I swallowed nothing, slowly curling my nails into my palms. This was what I had wanted. I was going to make the proposal to him somehow, but it felt weird.

"If you are interested, we could register our marriage right away, and start preparation for our wedding as soon as possible," he added. With every single word from him came a bigger shock.

"M...Mr. Maverick..." I had not expected to feel this way, knowing that it was me who had wanted this from the get-go. I was suddenly rendered speechless...