Love Arranged (#1)

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve: Maggie

Throughout the past seventeen years that I've walked this damn planet, I never would have thought I could hate a person this fucking much.

I was seething, more so that the feeling itself outweighed the initial shock I was hit with the second I found out it was him. All along.

All this time I've been worrying about whom it was gonna be, and at one point thinking that it wouldn't even matter because the parents seem lovely, they seem nice, and maybe their son would be too. But oh, was I wrong.

I still can't even properly process that the very respectful and optimistic couple right in front of me had birthed the monster that is Evan Williams.

How was it possible? I'll never really know.

But then again, maybe I should've caught on sooner. He and Mason do look freakishly similar now that I'm able to look at them side-by-side.

Before that, there was no way I could've connected the dots. It just seemed way too surreal and way too unrealistic that we would find each other in this particular moment in my life, which he had only made worse.

Thinking about it now, those days where he seemed suspicious with his unsettling behavior hits differently now, which leads me to the golden question-

Did he somehow plan all of this?

Of course, not. There's just no way, or is there? Someone can't possibly be this determined to make someone's life horrible, there's just no way.

Then again, I shouldn't be making way too many assumptions when it comes to Evan Williams. After all, what he said about me not knowing him might just end up being a lot more true.

"Now that Evan's here, shall we proceed with the meeting?" Tiffany said as we made our way to the spacious dining room.

Evan was by Tiffany and Mason's side, but every now and then I would feel his gaze on me, just tempting me to say or do anything. To blow up.

Because he clearly knows I'm still in a state of bewilderment, my face says it all, but I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me break down.

I'm gonna have to get things straight with him one way or another, but I'm not going to make a big fuss about it right in front of our parents, that's for sure.

We all sat down by the dining room table, with Tiffany, Mason, and Evan on the left side across from us as we sat by the right side, facing them.

The Carters and The Williams.

Tiffany asked one of their housekeepers to get the files and documents we needed to skim over regarding the engagement, and for the time being my mom and The Williams chatted away as if they were long-time friends. But Evan and I?

I wouldn't necessarily say we're long-time friends, nor long-time enemies. To put it simply, we were two individuals who unlike our parents, actually knew each other before all of this, but unlike them who are all friendly with each other:

We were more than ready to bite each others' heads off.

Evan was looking at me with a sharp, taunting look in his eyes, his lips formed into a teasing grin, eyeing me up and down. As I, on the other hand, continued to scowl at him.

Thinking that if I glared any longer, he'll somehow get obliterated "So Maggie," Tiffany cuts in as she turns to us "Now that we know both of you attend the same school, are you two close?"