The Business Proposal

Chapter Five

Ethan wanted another chance to talk to Ivy, but both her and Sasha had disappeared as soon as they'd stepped foot in the house. Instead, the housekeeper had handed him a whiskey and led him into what he realised was a reading room.

The curtains had already been drawn so although the room was big it had a cosy feel. The fireplace held a few family photos of the girls when they were younger, but none of them as adults.

He noticed one photo of Ivy straightaway. She sat in a chair in front of the fireplace reading, seemingly oblivious to the fact her picture was being taken. She must have been only six or seven.

Her curly hair spilled over her face as she gazed at the book in amazement. She was most definitely a pretty child and that childlike innocence still seemed to sparkle from her eyes even though so much time had passed.

He suddenly wondered whether their daughter would have the same innocence and love of books. Would she be just as pretty as her mother? And what about their son? He stopped himself short. Where had those thoughts come from?

Although he would treat this marriage as if it was real he shouldn't imagine it was more than it was. Children were not part of their deal and was something he wasn't interested in, he reminded himself.

He knew his mother was desperate for more grandchildren, but she would just have to be happy with those by his other five siblings.

He suddenly grimaced and rolled the whiskey around in his glass, wondering what he would tell his family. His parents would not be pleased if they knew the full extent of the arrangement between him and Ivy, but they would be pleased he was settling down as per their demand.

Now that he had a wife, his position of CEO was secured and his parents would finally stop threatening to have him removed. They'd always said that they hadn't agreed with his lifestyle but not even he had expected their ultimatum; find a wife or lose his position in the company.

He strolled towards the bookshelf, reading their covers to take his mind off his sudden unease. Introducing Ivy to his family would bring up a lot of unwanted questions, but it was too late to back out now. Perhaps he would bring her along to his nephew's birthday party and introduce her as his girlfriend. That would at least be a start.

His eyes trailed along the books. Pulling one out at random and flicking through the pages. It was a first edition. He wondered whether the entire library was filled with first editions. After looking through a few more books, he smirked to himself. What type of people went to the trouble of buying first editions when most of the books appeared to be untouched?

It was all about the image, he realised. The entire room was like a film set. Cosy but also disused. Charles Thorn and Sasha seemed to embody the notion of image over everything but where did Ivy fit into it?

She seemed less concerned with her image than her family, and he wondered whether she took after her mother more. Although, that seemed unlikely as he remembered her mother was a notorious socialite.

So who was Ivy Thorn? He was used to figuring people out, it's what made him good in business, but Ivy was becoming even more of a mystery to him the longer he spent with her. It unnerved him how she seemed to get under his skin.

Her kiss had made everything explode inside him and he wasn't sure things had returned to normal. He'd never had that reaction to a simple kiss before. He'd have to be careful, although she would be his wife and he would treat her well, he would never promise her more than what he wanted to give.

More than one woman had called him heartless when they'd tried to demand more from him than they'd agreed. His bed partners always knew what the rules were, and it wasn't his problem when they wanted to change them.