A Night With My Brother-In-Law

immediately. Without it, s

pers in my lap, the faint hum of the machines in the background, even the doctor's voice-all blurred into the

o the room, but the truth settled like a

This wasn't supposed to happen. My mother wasn't supposed to be dying. She had always been

rom the depths of my thoughts. "We can

interrupted, my voice

his next words. The silence stretched between us like a chasm, and I could feel

posed. But the tears burned at the back

anaged to do was fall further into debt. The hospital bills piled up, insurance barely covere

an tables, take orders from impatient customers, and listen to the endless co

the doctor continued, his voice now low, almost cautious. "I cou

rity handout-something I couldn't accept. My mother had always told me to never

of something I couldn't co

urant was

shift at the restaurant, my third job this week, and already my feet ached from standing on them all da

or. I maneuvered through the tables, making my way past white linen and crysta

but the weight of it all was

near the window-my heart stopped, and for a

lored suit that screamed money. His eyes, a piercing shade of blue, stared out the

as something about the way he carried himself, the confide

ing just a little as I forced myself t

over me as though he was sizing me up. It wasn't the first time a customer

y said, his voice smooth, controlled. "And a

e man didn't seem to notice, his attention still on the c

w here," h

nfused. "Yes, sir. I've b

hough he was weighing something in his mind. "You're

ghtly. There was something about the way he was loo

as savoring the sound of it. "You loo

d I say? Everyone had something weighin

ghtly tapping on the edge of it. "Tell me somethin

my eyes, trying to gauge whether he was serious or

and calculating, tol

I whispered, before

d for the first time, I felt the faintest stir of hope-h

with power. "Marry me," he said. "And I'll

him correctly. Marry him? The bil

his gaze never leaving mine. "It's a simple deal, Aria. You get what you ne

eight of the offer crashing down on me. I had no choice.

my throat dry. "

musement. "There's no

estaurant fading into the background. This was it.

ed as I reache

reedom-everything I had ever

that, my life