The Arrangement

There were few things the children of powerful families were allowed to choose for themselves.

Their education was chosen.

Their careers were chosen.

Their friends were often chosen.

And, apparently, their marriages were no different.

Michael Von Meister sat quietly at the far end of an enormous dining table, one hand resting against the side of his chair as he listened to the adults around him discuss business.

He had been listening for nearly twenty minutes.

Not because the conversation interested him.

It didn't.

He simply had no reason to interrupt.

The room itself was enough to remind him where he came from. Marble floors. Crystal chandeliers. Paintings that had been hanging on the walls for generations. A table large enough to seat twenty people despite only six chairs currently being occupied.

Everything about the room was designed to communicate one thing.

Power.

Michael had grown up surrounded by it.

He had simply never cared much for displaying it.

Across the table sat the Vale family.

And among them was their heiress.

Elowen Vale.

Michael had seen her before, of course. Their families had crossed paths at business events and formal gatherings throughout the years.

But they had never actually spoken.

Not properly.

She sat beside her parents, posture straight and expression unreadable. Her long black hair fell neatly over her shoulders, and every movement carried the kind of controlled elegance expected from someone raised to inherit an influential family.

Michael noticed something else.

She looked irritated.

Not mildly irritated, either.

She looked like someone who had been invited to a meeting without being told what the meeting was about.

That made two of them.

His father finally placed his glass on the table.

Michael's Father: "Enough about the merger."

The room fell silent.

Michael looked up.

His father exchanged a glance with Elowen's parents.

Then he smiled.

Michael's Father: "We have something else to discuss."

Michael already had a feeling he wasn't going to like where this was going.

Michael's Father: "The Von Meister and Vale families have worked together for decades. Our businesses complement one another, our interests align, and our influence has only continued to grow."

Elowen's expression tightened.

Michael remained still.

Elowen's Father: "And now, we intend to make that partnership permanent."

Michael raised an eyebrow.

Permanent?

That word carried far too much weight for a business meeting.

His father looked directly at him.

Michael's Father: "Michael."

Michael: "Yes?"

Michael's Father: "You and Elowen will be married."

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Even the grandfather clock in the corner seemed louder.

Michael stared at his father.

Then at Elowen.

Then back at his father.

Elowen, meanwhile, looked like someone had just informed her that the building was on fire.

Elowen: "What?"

Her voice was sharper than Michael expected.

Her father remained calm.

Elowen's Father: "You heard me."

Elowen: "No."

She pushed her chair back slightly.

Elowen: "No, I heard you. I'm saying no."

Her mother sighed.

Elowen's Mother: "Elowen."

Elowen: "You can't be serious."

Elowen's Father: "We have already discussed this with the Von Meister family."

Elowen: "Without me."

Elowen's Father: "It is a family decision."

Elowen's eyes narrowed.

Elowen: "Then it's your decision. Not mine."

Michael watched the exchange quietly.

He couldn't exactly blame her.

He wasn't particularly thrilled either.

His father turned toward him.

Michael's Father: "And you?"

Michael thought about it.

There were countless questions he could ask.

Why?

When?

For how long?

What would happen to the company?

What would happen to them?

Instead, he simply asked:

Michael: "When?"

Elowen turned toward him.

Her expression changed from anger to disbelief.

Elowen: "You're actually considering this?"

Michael looked at her.

Michael: "I'm considering what my family has told me."

Elowen: "That's not an answer."

Michael: "No."

He paused.

Michael: "It's not."

For the first time that evening, Michael noticed something behind her anger.

Fear.

Not fear of him.

Fear of losing control.

He understood that feeling.

He had spent enough of his life surrounded by expectations to recognize it.

His father continued speaking.

Michael's Father: "The wedding will take place in three months."

Elowen stared at him.

Elowen: "Three months?"

Michael's Father: "Yes."

Elowen: "You already chose a date?"

Michael's Father: "Of course."

She stood.

Elowen: "I'm leaving."

Her father didn't stop her.

Neither did Michael.

Elowen walked toward the doors, her heels echoing against the marble floor.

She stopped just before leaving.

Without turning around, she spoke.

Elowen: "I'm not agreeing to this."

Then she left.

The doors closed behind her.

Silence returned to the room.

Michael looked toward the door.

His mother sighed.

Michael's Mother: "She'll come around."

Michael didn't answer.

He wasn't convinced.

---

Later That Evening

Michael found Elowen outside.

The mansion's rear garden was illuminated by small lights along the stone paths. The night air was cool, and the distant sound of the city barely reached them.

Elowen stood near the edge of the garden with her arms crossed.

She heard him approaching.

Elowen: "You."

Michael stopped several feet away.

Michael: "Me."

She turned toward him.

Elowen: "You don't seem bothered."

Michael: "I didn't say that."

Elowen: "You didn't exactly object."

Michael considered his answer.

Michael: "I don't know you well enough to decide whether marrying you is something I want."

Her expression softened for half a second before returning to irritation.

Elowen: "Then why aren't you angry?"

Michael: "Because being angry won't change the decision."

Elowen: "So you're just going to accept it?"

Michael: "I don't know yet."

Elowen stared at him.

Michael remained calm.

Michael: "I understand why you're angry."

She looked away.

Elowen: "You don't understand anything."

Michael: "Maybe."

He didn't argue.

That seemed to catch her off guard.

Most people would have defended themselves.

Michael didn't.

After a moment, he continued.

Michael: "But I don't intend to make this harder for you."

Elowen looked back at him.

Elowen: "What does that mean?"

Michael: "It means I'm not going to force you to act like we're happily married."

She blinked.

Michael continued.

Michael: "You don't have to pretend around me."

For the first time that evening, Elowen didn't have an immediate response.

The wind moved through the trees.

Michael glanced toward the mansion.

Michael: "Our families already made the decision."

His orange eyes returned to her.

Michael: "But whatever happens between us after that..."

He paused.

Michael: "That should be ours to decide."

Elowen stared at him.

She had expected arrogance.

Entitlement.

Maybe even some smug comment about being lucky to marry into the Von Meister family.

Instead, she had gotten none of it.

That somehow made things more complicated.

Elowen: "...You're strange."

Michael nodded slightly.

Michael: "I've been told."

A tiny smile almost appeared on Elowen's face.

Almost.

She quickly looked away.

Elowen: "I still don't want this."

Michael: "I know."

Elowen: "And I'm not promising I'll ever accept it."

Michael: "I know."

She looked at him again.

Elowen: "You're really not going to argue?"

Michael: "No."

Elowen: "Why?"

Michael thought about the question.

Michael: "Because you have the right to feel the way you do."

Elowen fell silent.

For the first time since the announcement, she didn't feel like she was standing across from an enemy.

She just wasn't sure what that was supposed to make him.

Michael turned toward the mansion.

Michael: "I'll see you at the next meeting."

Elowen watched him walk away.

Then she quietly muttered to herself.

Elowen: "...What am I supposed to do with someone like you?"

Michael didn't hear her.

Or, at least, he pretended not to.

Three months.

That was how long they had.

Three months until two strangers became husband and wife.

And neither of them knew yet that the arrangement their families had created for business would eventually become something neither family could control.