After Divorce, I Found Love Within the Walls of your Family

Rose's POV

"Ma'am, you know we can change our mind in this," my secretary said, standing beside me, the dress draped carefully over her arm.

I smiled, then turned to her. "Here, we would take this," I whispered as we walked toward the jewelry section.

"If I wanted to change my mind, Sofia, I would have done that two weeks ago," I said, lifting a necklace to my throat to check if it matched my skin tone. It did.

"Ma'am, three years is a lot," she said gently.

"I know you are trying to look out for me, Sofia," I said, cutting her off before she could go further. "But this is what I want. I was stupid the first time, but now I am fully aware of what I am doing. Okay? I just want you to trust me." I touched her arm lightly.

She sighed, and a small smile broke through. "Okay, ma'am. I will believe you," she said.

"Are we done now?" she asked.

"Yes, I think I am good with this one," I said.

"Okay, ma'am, I will make payment," she said, already stepping toward the counter with the dress in hand. As she left, my phone rang, and I glanced at the screen: Alex's name lighting up.

"Hello."

"I am sure you got my message," he said, cutting straight through the greeting.

"Yes, I did," I said.

Silence stretched on his end.

"There was no response to it," he said finally.

"I did not see the reason to, besides I did not find it a big deal for a response," I said.

He scoffed, the sound sharp even through the phone. "Listen, Miss Vale, I take responses very seriously. If you don't want us having little trouble getting along—"

"I apologize for that, Mr. Alexander. I will put that in check," I said quickly.

"I think we need a rule binding us together," he said. "We both can know what to do and what not to do." A pause. "Please make a list of what you want me to avoid, if necessary."

"Yeah, sure. I will do that," I said.

"Okay. My secretary would send you a dress and the ring," he said.

"I don't think there is a need for a dress, because I have gotten that solved. You can just send down the ring if you want, or I might just get it myself," I said.

He scoffed again. "I asked you to marry me, so I will do the ring. And send you the dress it's up to you to pick which one you would like to wear." A beat. "But make sure your body is covered. My brother is a very traditional person."

"Noted. I will keep that in mind," I said.

"I will text you when something else comes up. Just make sure to give me a response whenever you see it," he said.

"I will," I replied, and ended the call.

"Ma'am, let's go," Sophia said.

"Mr. Alex said he would be sending me a dress," I said, sliding into the car.

"So what happened to the one we bought?" she asked.

"Keep it," I said. "And please make sure to draft out things I would like him to do and not to do with me if we want a peaceful business marriage," I whispered as the car pulled onto the road.

"Yes, ma'am. On it," she said. Then, after a moment, "Ma'am, the board would love to know when you intend on taking back your seat fully as CEO."

I sighed. "After my wedding with Alex is done, then I will make an official statement of my comeback," I said.

"I don't think your uncle likes that idea, ma'am. He thinks you

really need to be present in the office to take over," she said.

"Let my uncle be. He is just trying to put me on track. I will talk to him once I am settled with my marriage," I said. "But for now, anything that needs my signature or attention, please let me know."

My phone buzzed then, and Sophia picked it up. "Mr. Alex said the dress and ring are at your place," she said, scanning the message. "And you should be ready by 6. The driver would come pick you up."

I sighed. "Just give him a thumbs up to let him know I saw the message," I said, and she nodded, doing exactly that.

The car pulled into the mansion, and as I stepped inside, my uncle's voice cut through the entryway.

"Rose, where have you been?" he asked, catching sight of me. His eyes then flicked to Sophia. "Did you tell her about what I said?"

"Yes, she did, Uncle Ben. And I am not ready yet," I said before he could push further.

"Rose, you know how crazy the board is. The fact that you have not been in shape for five years makes them doubt your capacity to even take over and now you are not giving them your full attention," he said.

"Don't worry, uncle. I will handle them, and nobody dares me. But for now, I need to sort things out before fully taking my seat at the board," I said.

He sighed. "You have always been stubborn," he muttered.

"Is that why you came down here?" I asked, ignoring the rest of his words. "If that is why you are here, there would not be a need for that."

I took the stairs down to my room, and there, on my bed, a bag sat beside a small case, a note reading be ready by 6 tucked behind it. I dropped it and went straight to the bathroom to shower. Once done, I had someone style my hair, then finally slipped into the dress less revealing than I expected, but beautiful, my hair pulled into a ponytail that made it even more striking.

"You look beautiful, ma'am," Sophia said, standing behind me as she slid the ring onto my finger. "The car is waiting for you."

I glanced at my wrist exactly 6. "Well, he sure is a prudent man," I said, walking down to the car.

"Keep me posted, Sophia, and don't leave till I am back," I said as she closed the door behind me.

"Ma'am, we are here," the driver said, opening the door and helping me out.

"Good evening, ma'am. Welcome," one of the maids said,

giving a slight bow. "I was told to walk you in," he added, and I smiled, placing my hand on his as we walked into the place together.

The first person I saw was Adrian, and he scoffed the moment his eyes landed on me. "Look who is here," he said. "Did you really have to borrow all this to make me take you back? By the way, how did you know I was here?"

I kept quiet, still scanning the room, until I saw Alex emerge from further inside, another man beside him, a glass in his hand. He walked toward me without a word and stretched his hand out for me to take. No compliment but the way he looked at me told me everything. I was certain he was impressed.

"Uncle, do you know who this lady is? She is my ex wife." Adrian said.

I turned my gaze to Alex. Did Adrian just call Alex uncle?

“I know she wants me back but does She has to go this far just to find me, Let me guess, Rose you had someone follow me, right?" Adrian said, a smirk curling on his face. "Even if you look like a president's daughter, Rose, I will still not take you back, okay?" His hands slid into his pockets.

Alex cleared his throat. "This is the woman I talked about," he said. "So, brother meet my wife, Rose Vale."

Adrian scoffed, then let out a short laugh. "Uncle, she can't be your wife," he said.

Alex ignored him completely. "I wanted to only perform the traditional rite of showing you my wife for your blessing," he said.

Adrian looked genuinely confused now. "Uncle, I don't think you know who she is. Rose is a beggar a bloody dirty woman that would feed off your money and run you dry," he said.

"Please, babe, come sit," Alex said, walking me down to a seat as though Adrian hadn't spoken at all.

"Well, since you are all here," Alex continued, "I would like to invite you all to my wedding." He paused, glancing at me, then back to Adrian. "...Tomorrow."

Adrian dropped the glass from his hand.