Neptune

Chapter 10 | The Deal

C A S S I E

Present

Tears fill my eyes as those scenes in the past flash back in my mind. I can't believe that I've let Morgan control my life.

Yes, I love singing, making music and sharing it to the world, but all this time, she's been treating me like I'm not a human.

I don't think that I'll survive a month with what she's planning to do to me now. Perhaps, I'll collapse before I can perform at AMA, or even if I survive AMA, I'll probably die during my next tour.

Clenching my jaw, I get up from the floor, take off my robe and change into my clothes. I storm out of my spa and call Peter, heading toward my room to grab my bag.

When he picks up, I hiss, "Tell Lucas Klein that I'm coming to his office right now. And get my chopper ready."

I can only hear Peter blurt out, "Right away," because I immediately hang up on him to call Mike.

Yes, I'm going to meet that arrogant billionaire again, and even though I know that this is going to feed his ego, I'd rather be in a fake marriage for one year than let Morgan be my manager any longer.

When I arrive at the helipad at the back of my house, Mike is already there, waiting for me.

He follows me as I walk closer to my chopper. "Cassie, you can't possibly change your mind."

My lips form a thin line. "Unfortunately, I did," I say curtly, admitting that I'm mad at myself because even though I may escape this current hell, I'll be in another one soon.

I just hope that Luke's idea of this marriage is only to piss off his parents and ruin the other arranged marriage, one that's between two powerful families.

So technically, our marriage will be just a piece of paper. Hopefully, one year will pass quickly.

At least, he's not some kind of an old perverted grandpa.

I'll have to negotiate with him to keep Mike as my bodyguard at all costs. I can't let Luke arrange my security. I don't trust him.

Once Mike and I settle inside the chopper, he's about to open his mouth to ask me questions, but looking at my irritated expression, he knows to zip his mouth.

I am nowhere near a good mood.

All I want is just to make Luke fire Morgan as soon as possible. He must be able to change the director's decision.

The saddest thing about this is that deep down in my heart, I know that the main reason why I'm doing this is to make Morgan return to her old self, the person who loved me before all those ambitions consumed her.

I hope that realizing that I'm no longer her bank account will make her stop treating me like one. She should have known that she didn't have to control me to be rich because I wouldn't think twice about giving my money to her.

She's the one who's too proud to lose her job, and too ashamed to live in my house that she opted to live in a separate house in Beverly Hills instead.

We land on top of Luke's building and get down to his office like before, led by Ashton, his secretary. Once I walk into his office, Mike follows suit, but again, two men guarding the door suddenly grab both of his arms before he can even step inside.

"Shit," Mike curses loudly, but I'm too angry to stop my feet from getting closer to Luke.

And there he is, already leaning against his desk, facing me, waiting for my arrival. A small smile tugs at the corner of his lips, an amused look crossing his expression, as if he already knew that I would come back to him no matter what.