Fated to the Ruthless CEO

Meanwhile, Devlin is at the bar, getting himself wasted again. He had a heated argument with his dad when they left the library earlier. His dad was accusing him of bringing Amber into his game to get as much money from his late grandmother.

“How could you do this, Devlin?! You have gone too far?” His dad was shouting. Good thing they are in the lounge area and no one could hear them from the outside. Amber is still in the library with the lawyer.

“I did not do anything. Blame it on grandma who changed her mind at the last minute.” He does not know why he has to explain to his dad. And he does not want to appear rude. But he has enough of his dad’s insulting words against him. For years, he had to endure everything from constant comparison to his achiever brother to getting the wrath of his father for his failures in school.

“I know you don’t care about this family but you should have respected the memory of your grandmother. She would be utterly devastated knowing what you did.” Continued his father’s accusations towards him. Devlin only smirked at him.

“I know that you think so low of me but I never did anything to have grandmother change anything in her will. You can ask your son here to investigate further.” Devlin taunted while quickly glancing at his brother who was trying himself to calm down. It did not help that Raven is with his brother, hugging him tightly to stop him from any crazy action he would take against Devlin.

“Please, will you all knock it off?!” It was Devlin’s mom who screamed to be heard by everyone.

“I am sick from all of these. Devlin, would you mind telling us what exactly happened? How come you married in haste? I mean you can’t blame me for thinking that way. We have not heard nor seen the girl until now.” Her mom’s calm voice made everyone relax slightly. His dad went to sit on the nearest couch. And so is Dalton and Raven.

“All I know is that Amber is the granddaughter of grandma’s very close childhood friend from the orphanage.” Devlin explained.

“And how sure…” His father interrupted but his mom stopped his father from saying anything further.

“Dalton, you need to learn how to listen to your son. Nothing will be resolved if you don’t want to hear his side.” His mother said meaningfully which made his dad stay quiet.

“Last year, when grandma learned for the first time that her cancer had recurred, that’s where she met Amber. From what I learned, Amber accompanied a friend for her check-up at the hospital where grandma was.” Then, Devlin’s forehead wrinkled. Suddenly, realizing something but did not voice out his thoughts.

“And how sure are you that this Amber is the granddaughter of your grandma’s friend? Did you even investigate? You let a sick old woman be unwittingly manipulated by that woman?” Devlin was quiet because that was also what he thought of Amber.

“I can attest that she is the granddaughter of grandma’s friend. And grandma’s friend was indeed her childhood friend from the orphanage.” Despite the issues between him and Amber, he can’t dispel the truth about marmee and her own grandmother. He saw the old photo albums that Amber’s grandmother saved for years. He saw the pictures of his grandma in her younger years. Pictures when they were still kids at the orphanage. Also, he saw that special bond between them. That’s something that only both women could recognize. So, yes, he is certain that Amber’s grandmother was definitely his grandma’s long lost childhood friend.

“Why? Did you do your own investigation?” His father asked further which only made Devlin shake his head.

“No, I didn’t ask anyone to investigate Amber and her grandmother. I was with grandma when she visited her friend on her small farm in California. She welcomed us to her home.” Devlin said seriously. He saw his father’s grimmed face.

“Why did you never tell us any of this? It is for grandma’s safety.” It was his brother who spoke up this time.

“Why should I tell any of you? You barely visited grandma unless she was sick. When you all found out she got cancer the first time, you came and stayed but only for a short time. The second time her cancer came back, where were all of you? I’ll tell you… You came and stayed for a week.” Devlin was speaking to his brother. Then, he went to look at his parents who only put their heads down.

“I am sorry mom and dad but you were not there either. Who was with grandma? It was me. I stayed with her and lived in this house despite the distance of this place to my company.” Now, it is his turn to speak what’s in his mind all along. They could criticize him for anything but not when it comes to his grandmother. He was there for her although a part of him still regretted that he was not a good kid growing up.

Before any of his family members could speak up, Attorney Harrison appeared in the lounge area.

“I am sorry for interrupting. Guess you have an important family meeting here. I just want to bid you all goodbye. I don’t want to be rude and simply leave.” He chuckled lightly. He sensed the tension in the air.

“Thank you so much for your time, Attorney Harrison.” It was Devlin’s mom who spoke.

“You’re welcome, Mrs. Wesley. Should you have any questions or anything that has to do with the properties and other bank accounts, we could arrange another meeting next time.” Everyone nodded in agreement before Attorney Harrison left.

Devlin stood up and also said goodbye to his family. He went to the library to check on Amber. He found her with those dry tears on her cheeks. He felt a bit guilty while looking at her like a wounded puppy. But when he realized something earlier, he decided to ignore her. They went to his penthouse without speaking to each other. He immediately left after that.

So, now here he is, getting himself drunk again. He has so many questions going on in his head. He just realized something earlier while talking to his family. He did not question why Amber was in Seattle at the time when his grandma was visiting the hospital. Was it a coincidence? She is from a remote place in California. What would someone like her do in Seattle? Did she know beforehand about his grandmother? And who is this friend she mentioned that she accompanied in the hospital? Now, he is more suspicious of her than ever.

He needs some answers. If he finds out that she is guilty, then the worst case might happen. He could not believe that the naive woman he thought that she was may be a big fraud. Who knows she may have just led him on to get hold of his grandma’s wealth? And what about her grandmother? Is she part of all of this elaborate evil scheme?

He remembers the sweet old lady from the farm. She is nothing but nice to everyone. How could he think ill of her? With too many questions in his head, he decided to drown himself with alcohol. At least he could forget his problems for the time being.

On the other hand, Amber got a call from her grandmother. “Amber, my child, what’s going on? I have not heard from you for a while. I let you by yourself with Devlin knowing that you are enjoying his company. How are you doing, my child? I miss you so much.” The old woman tried hard not to shed a tear.

“I am doing go–good, marmee.” Amber slightly choked from her words. She could not bring herself to keep lying to her grandmother. She is miserable and she just wanted to tell her everything but she couldn’t.

“I miss you so much, marmee. I am sorry that I have not contacted you these past few days. I got busy with all the dinners and going somewhere with Devlin.” She started crying but tried not to make any sound.

“I am glad to hear that. Are you busy preparing for the wedding? I have not heard any news about that.” This is the dreadful part that Amber is trying to avoid. She could not just keep on lying to her grandmother. She will be devastated once she finds out that she lied to her.

“Devlin is generally busy right now, especially from his company. I only wait for him on whatever he decides for both of us.” She heard her grandmother giggling from the other line.

“Oh to be young and so in love.” Her grandmother exclaimed. Amber has never felt so bad about herself. Lies after lies…

“Yeah, you could say that, marmee. Wish me luck that things will go smoothly.” Amber just echoed what she really wanted to happen with her relationship with Devlin.

“Not luck my child. What you both have is fate. You were fated to each other.” Her grandmother declared seriously.

“How can you say that, marmee? What we have is not fate but an arranged marriage that you and Grandma Olivia wanted even before we were born.” Amber refuted her grandma’s statement. She just wanted to set the record straight. If it was not for both their grandmothers, they would never have crossed paths at all nor would there ever be a chance that they would meet.

“Trust me on this one. Arranged marriage or not, I have a strong feeling that you will still both meet each other no matter the circumstances.” That suddenly brought chills to Amber. How can her marmee sound so true? It is like there is a certain force that puts her and Devlin together.

Before meeting Grandma Olivia a year ago, none of Devlin nor Amber would have known each other’s existence. They are just the complete opposite. She lives a modest life in the rural area. While Devlin, he is a very successful businessman who is living his life in a huge city. And they are miles apart. The only reason why she set foot in Seattle a year ago was because of her best friend, Amy. Her family moved to Seattle a few years back from California. Amber went to visit her friend who unfortunately died just two months after she met grandma Olivia. The hospital she went to is a specialized institution for cancer patients.

She bid her grandma goodnight after talking to her for almost an hour. They were just catching up. They even planned what to do when she would come back from Seattle. Her marmee wanted her to bring Devlin with her.

She heaved a deep sigh after her phone call. How can she bring Devlin with her? There is nothing between them except a piece of paper that says that they are married. Devlin’s animosity towards her will never change. She does not know anymore how to find a solution to her problem.

And now, she just heard some noises in the living room. She immediately put her robe on before she got out of her room. She saw Devlin all wasted laying down on the couch. Jackson was trying to make him stand up.

Amber immediately went to Devlin’s other side. She understood that Jackson would want to bring his boss to his bedroom. They both helped him until he reached his bed.

“Thank you so much. I will take care of him.” Jackson only nodded and left the penthouse.

As usual, Amber already knew what to do. For some reason, she feels bad for him. Both of them did not want to be in this situation they are in right now. And more so for Devlin who is still trying to win back his ex.

‘Why are things so complicated? Can we just go back to our normal lives? Can we just go back to where it all started?’ Amber just wanted to change what happened if only she could…