Chapter 14 - Arranging a wedding

"Joanna Charleston, will you marry me?" Sherman had a confident smile on his face and dreaming eyes as he asked the question. He had never been rejected or denied anything in the past ten years – except of course the personal information he asked the secretary of the university for.

"Marry you?" Joanna felt her mouth drop and her eyes blink rapidly, but she was no longer in control of her body, even her thoughts started to rebel.

In front of her was the famous actor Macaroy Sherman asking her to be his wife. Not only that, but he was trying to blackmail her into doing it. Before she lost her memories of that night, Macaroy Sherman would probably have been the only person in the world, who could have made her lose her senses completely and agreed to something this outrageous, without her logical mind objecting. But with her present knowledge, she viewed him in quite a different light.

"Excuse me, but what exactly did you imagine I would answer? Because from where I see it, we have almost nothing in common. You refuse to give me the answers I seek. And then of course there is a great age difference between us." Joanna wondered if she should continue the list, but stopped in case he wanted to argue against her points.

"I see what you mean, still we have something in common: Our ambition, our thirst for knowledge, and love for theatre." Sherman was making a crocked confident smile.

"I have much in common with my friends as well." Joanna crossed her arms.

Macaroy shook his head and smiled. "But not all of the three?"

"No?" Her eyebrows moved closer to each other.

"You see, that is the problem. You need all of them," he said with a confidence that didn't allow for any feelings of doubt.

"Hmm," Joanna wondered if he could be right. Ambition, knowledge and the arts were all important to her, and if her partner didn't have them all, she didn't know if the relationship would succeed. "I agree with your arguments – but why should I choose you over someone else?"

"You can't find anyone better. Besides, I have enough influence to make you matter in the world. I can help you on your way to a more comfortable life with the time and money to seek knowledge and the power to obtain fame in any field."

Joanna nodded as she considered her options. If she had ever been anything it was considering and ambitious. She did see some advantages to marrying Macaroy Sherman, though it was a dangerous game to play if it backlashed.

"We have to set some rules; You will do your best to tell as few people as possible that we're married. I will keep my apartment. My life will continue almost as if you weren't in it, meaning that I can have a relationship if I so desire. And you will tell me what memories I'm missing."

Sherman nodded all through the listing. "With all those demands what benefits will I have?"

"We will have to debate that further, I suppose," Joanna said with her most businesslike voice. "What do you want from… a wife?"

Sherman considered for a moment. "Someone to join me for social events – we can talk about that further into the future. Someone to be my companion, to watch movies and plays with, to share my life with. And of course, someone to be intimate with."

Joanna considered this last part the most. It wasn't that she didn't want to, but it was a big thing to commit to, she thought as she looked Sherman up and down. But then again, she might already have committed to him in this way, so it was not like it was something new and scary. Besides, she did want him though she tried to deny it.

"Alright. Let's begin the preparations."

Sherman smiled and lifted his eyebrows seductively. "May I?" he asked and reached for her hand.

Joanna considered a moment longer because if someone noticed this ring, they would without a doubt presume it was an engagement ring. Which is was, but she wasn't sure she wanted people to know. But if she didn't accept it… "Go ahead." She let him take her hand and slide the ring onto her finger. It fitted perfectly, she wondered if he had known her ring size when he bought this ring, or if it was just a lucky guess. It must have been luck, for not even Joanna herself knew her ring size.

Mina was feeling a sense of distress as she returned to her apartment uptown. She had always admired Macaroy Sherman for his work, but she had been greatly disappointed when she met him. She no longer knew, where she had him and suspected that he could do anything and that Mina could in no way predict what he would do.

She changed into some more comfortable clothing - a long flowy dress with a floral pattern – as she grabbed a bowl of cereal with milk and honey.

She decided to send Joanna a text to find out how the meeting went, as the feeling of uncertainty was unbearable.

Text to Joanna: Hey Sweety, how did it go? Text me as soon as you get this, will you?

Mina's leg moved up and down as she waited for a reply but after ten minutes, there still wasn't any. She got up to take a walk, and finally, finally, the text arrived.

Mina grabbed her phone immediately as she fumbled to turn it on, she saw her screen light up.

Text to Mina: We met in the orangery, but… this is one of those big subjects, I think we better talk about.

Mina felt the sense of distress heighten. There was something bad coming. She answered right away with a.

Text: Okay. I can talk now…

Her phone rang a second later.

"Hey sweety," Mina tried to sound delighted and not let Joanna know about her nerves through her tone.

"Hey, Mina… I have some big news to tell you – though I don't entirely know how. I considered keeping it a secret from you but… I don't think I can."

"What is it?" Mina could no longer hide her worried tone.

"You better sit down… This is a shocker."