A night alone

Anna's POV 

We arrived at the Mansion in a hurry, Nicholas's Mum had asked us to come over immediately. We are both  aware of what was going on.

 Nichola's Mum, Jennifer and Rebecca were all waiting in the Main living room when we arrived. The expression on Selina's was not pleasing at all.

I can feel the trouble brewing.

"Good evening Mother", Nicholas greeted.

She nodded in response and gestured for us to sit.

Nicholas circles an arm around me in a protective gesture after we sit down. Selina frowned at him but said nothing.

"Is there something both of you are hiding from us?

Have you been deceiving us?" She asked, looking at both of us.

Rebecca sat on a seat closer to us while Jennifer stood behind waiting for the drama to unfold. 

"What do you mean?" Nicholas asked as his body tensed up.

I guess he is as nervous as me.

"I'm talking about your marriage. I want to know the truth about it, Nicholas. Is there something you are not telling us?". She asked again, sternly.

"What are you talking about?

We are married. Is there anything wrong with that? What more could there be about it?" Nicholas asked in a defensive tone.

"Then, what is all this about you signing a prenup and also paying her to marry you?", She continued.

What?!, she found out!.

"It's not true," Nicholas countered, flatly.

"It's true," Jennifer chipped in.

Nicholas glared at her, and she looked away in fear. While his hold on me tightened. 

"Edward was here yesterday. I know the truth now Nicholas. I know this gold digger has seduced you into signing those agreements, but I want it all to end now!.

I want this fake marriage to come to an end immediately and whatever agreement you signed to be nullified"", Selina ordered, her voice filling the whole room and beyond.

"No, that is not happening Mum. This is my marriage, and only I get to decide what will happen to it", Nicholas spat back at her, infuriated. 

"Because of this slut, you are yelling at Mum.

What is wrong with you Nicholas!" Jennifer chipped in and yelled at him too.

"Enough!" A voice commanded.

All heads turned in the direction of the voice.

"What the hell is going on?

Why are you all shouting at each other?

What is that great that you cannot discuss amicably?", Thomas asked, walking into the middle of the commotion.

"Your brother lied to all of us, his marriage is fake!. They had both been playing us all this while," Selina informed in frustration.

"I have been telling him to end the marriage and he refused.

I will have the lawyer draft out the divorce papers for both of them tomorrow.

This nonsense is coming to an end" She said in finality before storming off.

"Cheap slut" Jennifer spat at me and followed after her mother.

Thomas smirks at Nicholas after both of them had left before approaching him.

"I guess you still find it hard to trust people's feelings for you now, hence you bought your marriage" he said to him and chuckled before walking off.

Rebecca followed him without a word.

"I guess we are ending it" I said weakly, after it just the two of us left.

"No we are not", Nicholas argued.

I turned to face him and the expression on his face pulled a string on my heart.

He was suffering among his family.

The next few days weren't easy. Nicholas still remains on his word not to end the marriage.

I had to stop going to work, for the fear of being harassed by Jennifer, as she now knows that I worked there.

 But that didn't even stop her from embarrassing me because I suddenly heard loud banging on the front door.  Accompanied by her yellings.

"Bitch open this damn door!

I know you are in there, come out now!" She continued to yell outside the house.

I took my phone and hurriedly dialed Nicholas's number, but he wasn't picking up the several times I called and I gave up.

I gathered some courage and went to the door because Jennifer will still not stop or leave.

I had just opened the door when Jennifer dragged me by the hair and shoved me to the ground without warning.  

Stunned by the sudden attack, I struggled off the floor, but I was at an advantage and I find it hard to get out of her hold.

"You seduced my brother to get married to you so that you could steal from him, and now you are brazen enough to stick around after the truth is out. What more do you want?!" She yelled. Pulling on my hair.

"Jenny, stop stressing yourself over her. I will tell Nicholas to sign the papers when I meet him tonight", a calm voice said, and I glanced up to see Mia standing a few steps away.

Mia smiled and waved at me.

"Let's go, we don't need to waste our time on someone like her.

She is not worth it". She said to Jennifer, who nodded in agreement and screamed some words of profanity at me before finally leaving.

I remained on the floor after they had.I can't do this anymore, Nicholas needs to come back quick.

The part of my head hurt from where Jennifer had pulled my hair.

I knew this day would come.

The most painful aspect is that they are all accusing me of seducing Nicholas when he was the one that had begged me to agree to marry him. 

"Where the hell are you Nicholas?"

I stayed up late till I fell asleep on the couch.A call startled me awake the following morning, and I saw that the sky was bright.

Nicholas still hasn't returned.

Picking up the call blindly, still incoherent from sleep.

"Come over here now" Selina's voice sounded from the phone and my senses only returned when the call had ended.

I rushed off the couch to get dressed and, while still calling Nicholas, he was still not picking up.

"What are you up to?"  I was starting to get frustrated  as the automated voicemail came up again for the umpteenth time.

~

 The previous night.

While working at the Chester company, Nicholas was called into his father's office.

The relationship between them has always been cold these past years, but today his father could no longer keep quiet on the issue going on within the family.

"Sit down", his father said, gesturing at a seat, and Nicholas obliged silently.

"What do you intend to do with your marriage?" His father asked.

"What do you mean?" Nicholas asked, his expression hardening.

"You know the right thing to do is to end it", His father persuaded him.

"No, it's not. I see no difference between it and the arranged ones you and Mum wanted me to do", Nicholas argued.

"At least an arranged marriage isn't a lie. Whereas I heard you signed the agreement for a year, so what will happen after the year ends?.

Listen to your mother and end it".

"I will deal with that when the time comes. It is nobody's business what I do with my personal life". Nicholas replied.

And proceeded to stand up.

"You won't have the right to the position of the President of this company if you don't terminate that marriage. That is what the family has decided on.

Your grandfather also supports this, so stop being stubborn and do the right thing.

Also, it's our business what you do with your personal life as long as it is going to affect the future of the family."

His father continued and Nicholas left without a word, still standing on his words.

The