She nodded, and fell silent as she thought for a moment.If they did this, what would their marriage look like?
“May I ask you a question?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Am I to be just a figurehead for you to secure leadership?”
He narrowed his eyes.“That’s cynical.”
“Accurate?”
“I’m not going to lie,” he replied.“Yes, it helps, but that’s not the only reason why I chose you.”
That confused her.“What do you mean you chose me?”
“Photos were laid down and I chose you.”
“Oh,” she said.“That sounds a little cold.Did you close your eyes and point blindly for your choice?”
He chuckled.“No.I chose you because of something I observed one night at a banquet last year.You stood up for a servant.”
She wracked her memory for the incident.“I don’t remember.”
“That’s because it was a natural reaction for you,” he explained.“You weren’t putting on a show for anyone who happened to be watching.It impressed me.”
Surprise filled her.“I see.So, you’re all right with this arrangement?”
“Of our marriage?”
“Yes.”
“Of course, I am,” he replied.“I’m sure you’re aware of our roles in the Coalition.”
“So, you need a wife who knows her place?”
He cocked his head as he studied her.“Her place?That isn’t how I would describe you or our situation.Yes, we are part of a bigger picture and we have our roles, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be allies together.I want a real marriage, Kleya.I want us to become a united front.”
United?A real marriage?She had grown up knowing at some point she would have to kowtow to the Coalition.The organization that ruled the city with an iron fist had a leader.A boss who enforced the rules, punished the guilty, and made sure the city and all the elite got richer.Under him would be the mayor and the high-ranking officials like the city council, police chief, the district attorney, financier and business capitalists like her father and David Roarke.They were the ones who chose the next leader.
The Coalition’s only goal was to stay rich and become richer.On one hand, she hated how the Coalition ignored the vulnerable and poor.Yet, on the other, she understood the infrastructure it maintained.Understood her place within the mafia-esque pyramid.This was the life she’d been born into, and there was no escape.Not even if she moved away and changed her name.Anything she cared about would pay the price for her defection, mainly Lark and the food kitchen.Money and power.That’s what ruled, and the Coalition would go to great lengths to ensure their word stayed law in Kaneera City.
James proposed an intriguing offer.To be more than just a business arrangement.There was no divorce, so whatever man her father would’ve given her to, she would’ve had to deal.Maybe together they could create a better Coalition.
“I have a few questions,” she said.
“I’d be surprised if you didn’t.”
“Will you beat me?”
He answered immediately.“No.”
“Put that in writing?”
“You can put that in a prenup if you wish.”
She hadn’t thought about a prenup.“Will you take a mistress?”
“I have no plans to take a mistress,” he replied.“I would insist no side lovers for you as well.This will be a real marriage in all ways.”
