***Caroline's POV***

I stared at my father in shock. My heart was knocking against my chest, struggling to pull free through the ribs keeping it safe.

A lot of possibilities had crossed my mind when Laci informed me that dad had called me to his office. He was going to be mad at me for staying with Nadia without asking or even informing him. He was going to scold me for going against him. Heck, I had even thought that he was going to tell me about Lahaina's planned wedding with Aaron and ask me to stay away or worse, be a part of it.

Aaron asking to marry me was never going to be an assumption. Even if I was given 1000 guesses, it would still not make it to the list. It was ridiculous, outrageous and just not possible.

But then, why else would my father be trying so hard to control his temper if it was not for Aaron? He was the least calm person I've ever met. He got annoyed with the smallest of things just as quick as he was to shower the source with either physical or mental torture. He had never tried to hold his hand or his tongue back, then why was he now?

His phone rang the next moment, snapping me out of my thoughts. Looking at the caller's ID with a deep sign, he answered the phone.

"Yes... yes, I got her... She is sitting right in front of me.... Oh no, it's alright... yes, you may tell him... yes, she is.... okay." He threw the phone angrily on the desk and sat back in his chair. His eyes closed as his fingers went to his face to massage the temples. I have never seen him more stressed.

After almost a minute, when I was debating myself if I should silently walk out of his office or stay, he opened his eyes and looked at me. He started to say something but was interrupted by another phone call. Whoever's name appeared on the caller's ID, even though not present physically, made him sit straight in his chair.

He cleared his throat and answered much more politely. "I did... yes... but... okay, here," he slid his phone towards me. Without giving me a glance—or a glare—he walked out of his office.

I stared at him as he left and was startled when the door was banged shut. Nervously, I picked up the phone and put it to my ear. There was only one man that I knew of who could make my father talk with such respect.

"Aaron?" I said, hoping I was not wrong.

"Did he leave?" Aaron asked. I turned to look at the closed door and confirmed.

"Where the hell have you been, Caroline?" His voice was demanding and yet soft on my ears.

"I was with Nadia," I told him, then realizing he did not know who Nadia was, I added, "she is my friend."

"For two days, without a phone?"

"I didn't realize I was forgetting my phone when I left," I told him honestly.

"You were there, weren't you? When I was talking to your father," he said with a deep regretful sign. "And that assh- I mean, James must have already told you about my proposal."

I bit my lower lip, my heart racing fast. Just a while ago, I had planned I was never going to see him again. For two days, I have cursed myself for developing feelings for him. I had cried for him after that charity event for the whole night. How was I going to talk to him about his said proposal?

"He did," I told him. My voice had gone terribly low.

"I want to meet you, Caroline, and talk about it. I'll send my car to your place at," he paused, maybe looking at his watch, "at 8. Will you come to meet me?" He asked.

I could hear the distress in his voice with the question, and I replied with a yes.

"I'm sorry for what happened at the charity event. I can assure you it was not what it seemed like. I have a perfect explanation for it, Caroline," he sighed.

"It's alright, Aaron," I told him. As much as I wanted to know why he did what he did that day, I did not want to talk about it yet. The memory and the hurt that came with it was still fresh in my mind.

"No, it's not. I hurt you, I'll make it alright," he said, "I'll see you tonight."

I placed the phone back on the desk and tried to calm my still racing heart and muddled head. Was Aaron doing that because he knew he hurt me that night? I shook my head, feeling stupid. That would be the most ridiculous reason to marry someone.

Then why was he?

He was going to tell me that tonight, wasn't he?

I closed my eyes and leaned back in my chair. Wasn't I supposed to be happy about this? Haven't I spent the last two days imagining the what if? Aaron liked me. He had rejected Lahaina and he was willing to spend the rest of his life with me. I should be happy, right?

My father and mom's relationship was the only example of a married couple I had. And it was literally the worst.

It has scarred me forever and even though I liked Aaron, I was scared to give him my heart. These last two days along with the charity event night had been a great example. I did not want to relieve them.

I have only known him for a few months and it has been so painful. What would happen when I'll be madly in love with him someday in the future? Will I be able to handle it? Will I be able to leave? Because I knew my mother had wanted and yet her love for my dad had made her stay till he himself had decided to push her away forever.

The office door burst open and my father walked in. I opened my eyes and got up to leave. I almost forgot I was still sitting in his office.

"You'll say yes to him," he ordered, sitting in his chair behind the desk.

I stopped to look at him with shock.

"Reply him with a yes today or you won't see tomorrow," he threatened, "now get out!"

He wanted me to marry Aaron? Despite all his efforts of trying to set him up with Lahaina?

I left his office and went straight to my desk outside Laci's office. He was after Aaron's money. That had been his sole goal from the start. There can be no other explanation for him wanting me to say yes.

My phone was still lying dead on my table, I had forgotten to charge it. Pulling the charging cord from the drawer, I switched it on. It had 214 missed calls. 15 were from my father, 24 from Dylan and the rest from Aaron.

I called Dylan as he was the only one unaware of everything. He must be worried for me. I felt like a jerk for not calling him sooner. My call went directly to his voicemail.

Just today I had decided to move to California, and now every plan had gone to the gutter. With Aaron's proposal, dad was never going to let me leave and I doubted if I wanted to go now.

Next, I called Nadia. I wanted to tell her about this and ask for her advice, but she didn't answer.

When the clock struck 6, I cleaned my desk, informed Laci that I was leaving and took a cab home.

At 8 sharp, the doorbell rang. I was sitting on my bed, dressed nicely, anxiously thinking about tonight. Not only was I going to meet Aaron again, but I was also going to talk about my marriage to him. One that I was forced to say yes to.

I got up to look at myself in the mirror. With a sigh, I walked out of my room.

Lahaina was standing at the end of the stairs, glaring at me. I tried to appear confident and stare back at her, but my steps automatically slowed.

"Let your sister leave, Lahaina. Or else she is going to be late," my father said. He was sitting in the living room, looking at me. Juliea, who was sitting beside him, snorted.

"Remember what I told you to do," he gave me a sharp look and I nodded.

Lahaina did not say anything as I walked past her. I could still feel her eyes at my back though.

A limousine was parked outside the house and a man dressed in black guided me to it. The car was beautiful. The interior was prettier, but I was too nervous to give it the attention it deserved.

After three quarters, the car stopped outside a huge building. I tilted my head to look at the tall skyscraper. The door was opened and I slipped out of the car.

The man guided me to a set of elevators, swiped his card, then gestured me to step inside. I did.

My heartbeat increased with every floor the elevator passed by. When the doors opened, Aaron was right in front of me.

Aaron's eyes lit up as soon as he saw me. Taking my hands, which had gone cold with nervousness, he pulled me out of the elevator and whispered in my ear.

"You look lovely, my love," the heat rose to my cheeks at his compliment and the endearment.

He took me to the balcony of his penthouse, overlooking New York City. The view was breathtaking with the sparkling lights from the skyscrapers all around, the busy roads at the foot of the buildings and the starry night in the background.

A table for two was set up near the balcony. Aaron poured wine in two glasses and came to join me on the balcony, passing me a glass.

"You like it?" He asked, standing close.

"It's beautiful," I nodded, taking a sip of my wine, but not moving my eyes away from the city lights.

"Hmm," Aaron hummed and leaned on the railing, facing away from the city to look at me, "very."

We stayed on the balcony for a while, refraining ourselves from talking about the more serious topics for now. Talking, drinking wine, laughing and sometimes just standing there in silence in each other's company. It was peaceful, the silences were not awkward, rather they were comforting.

After a while, Aaron led me to the table for dinner. His chef brought our dishes that looked as exquisite as the ones we were served at our last dinner together at his restaurant. As expected, the food tasted delicious. Aaron shared stories about his mother and how she was the best cook in the world. He missed her cooking just as much as he missed his mother.

I patiently listened when he talked, shared my own stories when he asked me about something, laughed at his jokes and blushed at his compliments. Just a dinner with him was enough to make me remember how much I loved spending time with him.

Conversations with him were as smooth as silk, flowing like water with such ease that it made me forget about the painful days. The way his eyes looked at me with genuine appreciation and admiration was enough to put my fears at bay.

"Now, may I know why you went to stay at your friend's place without your phone?" Aaron asked, wiping his mouth.

I poked the delicate cake served to me with my fork, trying to come with a reason. His question has been more about my sudden absence than my not keeping my phone with me.

"Was it because you saw me with Lahaina at the charity event?" He asked. There was regret in his eyes and voice.

"You kissed her," I told him. My voice was breathy and as much as I did not wish to remember that night, I knew I needed an explanation to finally let it go.

"I didn't, Caroline. That was her. She kissed me and if you stayed for only a few seconds longer, you would have seen me push her away," he said, getting up from his chair to come near me.

He offered me his hand and I took it without any hesitation. Aaron pulled me closer, one of his arms wrapped around my waist while the other reached to twirl a lock of my hair on his fingers.

"The moment you crashed into my life, Caroline," he said, his voice was like honey, "there has been no one else but you. And I'm sorry if I made you feel otherwise. I never wanted to hurt you. I promise you I never will."

His fingers let go of my hair and brushed against my skin, his knuckles touching my face, his thumb trailing my jawline. I closed my eyes at the feel of his fingers. My lips parted a little to breathe in more oxygen. I was sure he could hear my heart beating loudly in my chest.

"Look at me," he said.

I opened my eyes to look at him. His green irises appeared to be a shade darker in the absence of sunlight.

"I can't get you out of my head and it's driving me crazy," Aaron said, shaking his head, as if not believing this was happening to him, "tell me I'm not the only one who feels this way."

I shook my head, mimicking his action, "you're not."

His smile was my reward for the answer. Aaron's eyes dropped to my lips and when his thumb trailed the movement of his eyes, I took a sharp intake of breath. His thumb moved over my lower lip, teasingly slow and barely touching.

Then, all of a sudden, he pulled his hand back. His other arm remained around my waist.

"Before we talk further," he said. Were we talking? "I need to ask you something."

He finally let go of me and took a step away. Without his body near me, keeping me warm, the cold breeze was like a bucket of ice water splashing me. Aaron kept his gaze on me. His hand moved to his suit jacket, pulling out a velvet box.

I knew this was going to happen. I knew what was inside that box. I knew I should not be surprised. But the instant I looked at the ring, I was shocked that I felt nothing except pure elation.

Since the moment my father told me that Aaron had asked him to marry me, a lot of questions have emerged within me along with a lot of fears. Yet, now looking at Aaron holding the ring, none of those fears seem to matter. All I felt right now was joy.

"The first time I saw you, Caroline, I never knew that little accident was going to lead us here to this moment. I never wanted anything more from you than an apology at that time, and now, I am asking you to give me all of you. You're beautiful, so much more on the inside than you are on the outside. And to think you're breathtakingly gorgeous on the outside too. You're kind. You're passionate. And when you start talking about the things you love and the things you admire, the way you glow brighter than the brightest day is miraculous to look at. I want to have it all, Caroline. I want to be there for you on your best days, and I assure you I will be right next to you in your worst. I know I will never find someone like you ever because looking at you makes me want to stop searching. You're perfect for me, Caroline. Will you marry me?"

My eyes were brimming with tears by the time he finished speaking. I tried to answer but my throat was choked with all the emotions I was feeling. I nodded, with a huge smile.

Aaron returned the smile and slid the ring on my ring finger. The cool metal fitted on my finger like a jigsaw piece as if it always belonged there.

Aaron stepped closer, his hands cupped my face and wiped the single drop of treacherous tear that had escaped my eye with his thumb. His face moved closer to mine, his eyes dropped to my lips again, our breaths mixed together and he covered my mouth with his.

- Analia