Challenges at the Table

Pov

Cora

The important thing was that he was polite, sweet, and willing to give me what I needed. I had no idea what I expected from Bryce throughout this whole process, but it wasn't this.

Maybe, somehow, I could get through this marriage, if only we took it one step at a time. And if I didn't think too much about what I was about to do.

If I thought too much, I'd have another panic attack, and that wouldn't work.

Six months, I told myself. That was all. In the grand scheme of things, it was nothing. And as Bryce would take care of my mortgage problems and my mom's medical bills, my burden was already lightening.

Now, I just had to accept the truth, no matter how shocking it was.

I was marrying a stranger.

Pov

Bryce

Convincing my father to go along was more difficult than expected. When I told him I was marrying a respectable woman to appease the board, he didn't think I was serious. He thought I was messing with him because I was upset about Allison. But I laid it all out for him — how I had just met Cora and how she agreed to the plan. We were indeed getting married. His disbelief soon turned to shock.

After the shock passed, he became worried. I couldn't remember the last time I had seen my father so concerned about something. His life had always been quite simple. He worked himself to the bone to build the company, and that was admirable. I couldn't recall a day when money was a problem — we always had more than we needed. My father never seemed to think that spending time with me was all that important. He was fine with letting nannies raise me. He seemed to take life in stride.

But now, this marriage thing had shaken him up.

I sent him my research findings on Cora. I did a full background check on her, even hired an investigator to do the job properly. The girl had an impeccable record. A 3.9 GPA from a respectable university on a scholarship, full extracurricular activities, and glowing recommendation letters when she applied for the internship. Not so much as a speeding ticket in her life. My instinct was right about her — she was squeaky clean. Stealing two rolls of toilet paper was probably the only dishonest move she ever made.

That eased my father's mind a bit. Cora's wholesome image would do wonders for the company's publicity.

I also put Allison Evans to work. She convinced the gossip site that leaked the story about my weekend with the three models to issue a correction and a public apology. Now they claimed their information was outdated. The site assured its readers that my wild weekend had happened months ago.

As far as all the tabloids were concerned, Bryce Hollis was officially a one-woman man. Today, a flurry of articles appeared speculating about who the lucky woman was.

The round of PR had gone off without a hitch. Maybe this would work out after all.

But when I arrived at my father's house tonight, he seemed worried again.

"What's wrong, Dad?" I asked as we waited in his mansion for Cora and her mother to arrive.

It was the welcome dinner. Cora and her mother, me and my father — we were all meeting for the first time.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea," my father said. "I understand what you're doing, and it's good to see you so serious about the business, but it's madness. And I don't know if you'll be able to pull it off. If she's not fully committed..."

"She'll be fine," I assured him. "She has more than enough reasons to make this work."

"Yes, the bribe," my father grumbled.

"It's not a bribe, it's a deal," I pointed out.

"Sure," my father scoffed, far from convinced.

I was nervous about meeting Cora's mother. My father knew all this was a facade, but Cora asked me not to tell her mother that it wasn't real. She said her mother wouldn't understand, and that after going through so much, she wouldn't be able to handle it if she thought her daughter was getting married for anything other than love.

It was already a tough pill to swallow that this was all happening so soon.

We had rehearsed our official story — the one we would tell Cora's mother as well as the board of directors. We met at work, fell madly in love, and decided to make things easier for each other, and for HR, by getting married.

It wasn't foolproof, but plenty of people got married on impulse. Plus, no one would be able to prove otherwise. After all, who was anyone to judge young love?

I had promised Daddy that Cora was a capable actress, that he was worrying over nothing.

But deep down, I feared I might end up losing the company.

But one thing at a time. First, the dinner.