DARING

Laleen was too shocked to speak. She stared at him wide-eyed as her heart skipped a beat. Shane's expression remained lazy yet void of any form of humor.

"You... What?" She couldn't help asking again her words barely coming out in whispers.

His reaction was to arch his brow at her. Tipping his chin towards the file at the table he encouraged, "Open it"

With slightly trembling hands and yet a bubbling sense of curiosity, Laleen reached for the file and opened it.

The first thing she saw made her raise her eyebrows. She looked back at him suspiciously. 

"Contract marriage?" She questioned, quite stunned.

The mere mention of the words made Shane's lazy expression turn completely sour. 

"I bet you can read" He responded with an agonizing look on his face. He looked very much against the idea as if it was some form of death sentence.

Noticing this, Laleen almost wanted to laugh. But alas, there was something more important at hand.

She returned her attention to the paperwork in her hands. Her eyes swept through line after line and then suddenly paused.

Raising her head, she voiced, "There's something wrong with this contract"

Shane's reaction was to massage his temple in annoyance. Why the hell was she reading it? She should just take the money and leave.

"What is?" he replied, not bothering to hide his annoyance.

With squinted eyes, she returned her eyes to the paper and read, "It says here that you're allowed to terminate the marriage at any time and without cause...,"

"Yes, it does " Shane replied blandly.

Huh? That's insane! Laleen screamed in her head.

"Doesn't that mean that you could divorce me whenever you like for absolutely no reason and I would have absolutely no say in it?" She questioned though she already knew the answer.

"Not just that, you must also seize to have anything to do with me and you'll be forced to disappear from my life entirely" He added terrifying her even more.

Slowly her face broke into a sneer much to Shane's amusement. Marriage had been a topic she always tried to avoid. No way was she going to get married just to divorce later. And whenever he wanted? Hell, no!

"This is out of the question" she finally murmured pushing the file back to him as far as possible.

Shane's lips curled slightly upwards as he felt relief wash over him. Excellent.

"Now about your flight tickets, I already have them booked..." Laleen quickly interjected cutting him short.

"But do we have to get married for real? Couldn't we just fake it? Not like anybody would know unless we tell them" 

In her head, she was making sense. They could pretend to be married for a while. Not like they'll be invading their houses to find out.

Even her neighbors who knew of her engagement never met her groom if she remembered her mother's words correctly.

Meaning it was perfect. That's what they should do.

How smart of me! She internally praised herself. 

Staring suspiciously at Shane, she couldn't help wondering if he was dumb.

How was it that he never thought of this? 

"You're supposed to be rich and powerful. Can't you arrange for fake wedding certificates instead?" She questioned as she folded her arms.

A frustrated groan left his lips as he pinched the center of his eyebrows. How did they get back to the idea of marriage again?

"I can't do that" He finally said driving Laleen into a state of puzzlement 

"Why can't you?" She asked, suspicion filling her tone. 

"I could, though I'd rather sleep forever than pretend to be married to anyone " He confessed, surprising Laleen.

"I'm just a victim of circumstance with an old geezer who won't let me be" He explained as he looked up to the ceiling with eyes filled with longing, confusing her even further.

Looking down to stare into her eyes, he answered her question, "I can't arrange for a fake wedding certificate because the mastermind behind all of this is not something as trifle as the media "

Stunned by the sudden revelation, Laleen who had been reading a lot of action novels recently "connected the dots". A mastermind...

With a gasp and subconsciously leaning forward, she asked with an odd sense of excitement, "Is it your nemesis?" 

Her sudden question with her eyes sparkling threw Shane off guard and the tired look on his face crumbled revealing an amused expression for the first time since she stepped into the room.

"Maybe" he answered with a slight bemused smile.

Laleen nodded with a pensive look on her face too absorbed in his revelation to notice the change in his expressions.

"But how is this mastermind responsible? Wasn't it supposed to be Amelia?" She was very curious to know.

Shane relaxed into his seat, crossing his legs.

"Amelia? That fish is nothing but a joke to me" he responded lazily as if she was not worth bringing up. 

"Tell me, how do you think Amelia got those pictures? Did she take them herself? But she was with us the whole time, was she not?" He asked calmly.

Laleen nodded, her mouth forming a small 'O' in realization. She had been so absorbed in the situation that it skipped her mind.

"So your nemesis did it! He took those suggestive pictures of me and you! And then sold it to Amelia!" She declared, finishing the story on her own.

Shane blinked and then sighed inwardly. She wasn't completely right but he was too lazy to explain and so he nodded.

"No way" Laleen murmured as she covered her mouth with her hands looking completely shocked.

Realizing something she asked again, "But what does he stand to gain from doing that?" She understood now how it happened but why? What would this mastermind gain from doing something like that?

"The loss of my peace of mind" Shane responded. He looked like he was battling with a very serious headache.

Laleen grew quiet at his words, her brain weighing her options carefully.

Though she finally understood the whole situation or at least most of it, she still found it unsettling to go with his initial proposal of hiding away.

"So you believe this is the right decision. For me to leave that is" As she spoke, Laleen drew the file back to her side of the table.

Shane was busy massaging his temple as he answered, "Absolutely. We won't have to put up with the media or even each other as we are but strangers aren't we?"

Laleen nodded and yet picked up the pen on the table. Shane was busy tapping at his forehead with his eyes closed as he awaited her response.

Contrary to his wishes, Laleen opened the file and signed her name on the paper at the space provided.

Dropping the pen on the table with a click sound, she smiled as she looked up.

'Sorry Mr. Shane Degavon but you're stuck in this problem... with me', she thought silently to herself just as he opened his eyes.

He stared blankly at her, the realization of what she'd just done coming slowly to him.

Laleen put up a brave front as she watched his expression darken.

Suddenly he scoffed in disbelief as his eyes traveled to the already signed paper on the table.

Joining his fingers, he relaxed back into his seat, uncrossing his legs and then crossing it again.

He appeared calm. Not the reaction Laleen was expecting.

Closing his eyes shut as if to reign in something inside him, he muttered in a hard voice,

"You dare sign it, girl"