"You already know my stance on it and I'm not budging. This is the only method I trust to ensure you don't wind up with some gold digger whose going to ruin your life. This company assures that you're marrying a woman with a comparable net worth and they take care of the full wedding planning. You get a full background check and you know you're marrying a woman with equal drive. You marry these women with nothing to their name and then they start cheating because you're always working and they're bored. Look at me - I'm not on wife number five for the fun of it." Ethan zoned in and out as his grandfather continued to praise this matchmaking service. He was starting to believe that his grandfather had personal assets in this company the way he promoted it.
Ethan wasn't against having to settle down. In his eyes he'd already already had his wild days through his teens and twenties. At thirty years old he was ready for the next step in life - just not with a stranger. He knew the service wasn't a scam because all of his cousins are now happily married as a result of this company. The only thing he noticed about a couple of his cousin's wives was that they weren't the nicest on the eyes. For him, love will never be strong enough to stay with someone he isn't physically attracted to.
"I'll try them out. No promises though."
"It's a guarantee, boy. I'll be damned if you waist my money. Ms. White is going to make sure you get a wife you're happy with. The way that young lady runs that company will always amaze me. Head over there now. Late and Christensen don't go together." Ethan shook his head at his grandfather and stood up, making his way towards the door of the office.
"I love you, Pops. I'll let you know how it all goes." He shot a head nod to his grandfather and walked out.
Ethan couldn't help but to think about his grandfather as he made his way to the matchmaking agency. After going through four wives and having pay out divorce settlements each time due to the income difference, James decided to take a gamble on a new matchmaking service he'd heard about from one of his business partners. Being introduced to his current wife was enough for him to encourage everyone he knew to ditch the traditional way of marriage.
Ethan could agree that he'd never seen his grandfather as happy as he's been the few years that he's been with his wife. It's had a positive effect on his relationship with the family and even the success of the family's company. He could tell that his grandfather didn't feel as pressured to work around the clock because his wife was able to contribute to the lifestyle as well. For this sole reason he'd agree to try out the service, but he'd do anything to make sure it's on his terms. As open as he was to the service, he still would never marry a woman he couldn't see beforehand.
"Welcome Mr. Christensen. We've been awaiting your arrival. Before you meet with your matchmaker we ask that you please sign the non disclosure agreement. Please take your time with reading it in full." The receptionist greeted Ethan while motioning to the iPad where the standard NDA was displayed.
No one was allowed past the reception lounge without singing the non disclosure agreement. Even the employees had to sign one annually. Working with high profile clients it was extremely important to ensure that their privacy is protected. Ethan read through the NDA, appreciating the clauses that were added into it. As soon as he finished signing the digital form the door behind the reception desk swung open.
"Mr. Christensen, pleased to meet you. I'm Amira. I'll be the matchmaker working on finding your perfect match." Amira plastered on a fake smile while holding out her hand. Once Ethan shook her hand she led him back to her office.
Today wasn't the day for Amira to be helping anyone find love. She'd only gotten two hours of sleep last night due to an ongoing argument with her fiancé. She would have called off if she didn't have this appointment today. Arya would fire anyone on the spot if they ruined the exclusive experience with any Christensen client. The Christensen family always purchased the elite package that is a base rate of half a million dollars. One bad review from anyone in their family and it would probably end the company.
"I'm not going to have to do anymore tests am I?" Ethan questioned, already drained from the many personality assessments he had to do with his application.
"Oh, no. We already have your profile built. I'm going to go over some potential profiles with you to see if we can get a mutual match. Can I offer you some coffee?" Amira was trying her hardest to stay in a professional mood for the client, but Ethan saw right through her. He could tell she didn't want to be here today and that made him nervous regarding what potential matches she had in store for him. As someone who ran a business, he knew the importance of only employing people who enjoyed what they do. Happy employees take pride in giving you the best experience. An experience which he felt he wasn't going to get with Amira.
"I'll take some water." He spoke, his attention trailing off to the women walking through the office. Amira's office held one of the best views of the office and the city, depending on which angle you look. One thing about Arya, she made sure that her employees had the best perks and working conditions. Amira grabbed a bottle of Essentia from behind her desk and placed it in front of him.
"Match me with her." Ethan spoke confidently, nodding his head to a woman that he noticed walking past the office with an older white man. Amira followed his eyes out the glass wall, immediately spotting her sister.
"If only it were that easy, Mr. Christensen. To ensure a perfect connection our connections are all to remain anonymous." With a sigh, Ethan pulled out his checkbook and leaned forward to grab a pen off of Amira's desk.
"How much?" He could only describe it as lust at first sight because he knew absolutely nothing about her. Her presence alone screamed power and he knew she would look good on his arm and even better in his bed. If he was going to marry a stranger it was going to be her.
"There is no price. That's our CEO. She doesn't even have an active profile in our candidate system." Ignoring the slight plea in Amira's voice, Ethan proceeded to fill out a check and slide it across the desk to her. In his eyes, everyone had a magic price that would drive them to do something unethical, and he was sure that he gauged Amira's price correctly.
"It's obvious you don't want to be here just as much as I don't want to be here. I don't care how you get it done, but that's my match. Your job is to find me a wife, and that's my wife. That should be more than enough for you put her in the system and create a match." Arya looked down at the check that was half the amount of his contract. She would get a bonus from matching him, but it wouldn't even be a fraction of the check that was sitting in front of her. Ethan could see the wheels turning on her face and wasted no time with standing up.
"From my understanding, it takes two to three days to compose the contract for a mutual match. I'll be back on Wednesday to sign it." Amira opened her mouth to protest, but the words couldn't seem to make it out.
She made great money working here, but this would give her the opportunity to take the three years off and relocate with her man. It's what their entire argument had been surrounding. Sean was being transferred to a base in Japan for three years and neither of them wanted to be away from each other that long.
Ethan noticed Amira in deep contemplation and slipped out of her office before she had the opportunity to push back any further. He wanted to see his match up close and get a gauge of her personality. Raking his brain to remember the name his grandfather mentioned often when talking about this company. Thinking back, he couldn't recall his grandfather ever mentioning the CEO by her first name.
"Ms. White?" He called out, stopping her in her tracks. Arya looked over to where she'd heard her name being called and smiled brightly at the man walking towards her. She immediately recognized the man as one of James' grandsons.
"Mr. Christensen, it's a pleasure to meet you!" Ethan could immediately see the difference in the way she greeted him compared to Amira. He also can see why his grandfather spoke so highly of her. "Please allow me a moment to walk Mr. Peters out and then I would love a few moments to touch basis with you."
Arya didn't expect to run into Ethan. Her meeting with her lawyer couldn't be rescheduled which is the only reason she handed Ethan's profile over to Amira. She normally handled all of the Christensen's personally, but due to her schedule she was trusting her sister to step in for her. Seeing him now she knew she had to touch basis with him to ensure that he's being taken care of. There is no room for error with any client that's paying half a million dollars for services.
"No need for any trouble, Arya. I'll see you at our next meeting." Ethan watched as the two shared a side hug, noticing the mesmerized look in the man's eyes. He didn't blame him. Arya's presence was enough to have you ready to sign everything you own over to her. It'll explain why he just signed a check for a quarter of a million dollars to ensure that he'll be the one to marry her.
"I spoke with your grandfather this morning and assured him that I would touch basis with you. He did inform me of a couple of concerns you had and I would love to go over them with you. Do you have about fifteen minutes to talk to me." Ethan licked over his bottom lip, falling deeper in lust with every word that left her lips.
"As highly as my grandfather speaks of you I would never miss an opportunity to speak one on one with you."
"Great! Let's head to my office. Hailey, please bring Mr. Christensen another bottle of water to my office. Thank you." Arya took the empty bottle out of his hand and discarded it in the closest recycle bin while leading Ethan into her office. Unlike the other offices, hers had frosted glass to prevent anyone from seeing inside.
"I know how much the old man likes to talk so there's no telling what all he's told you." The angelic laugh that Arya let out was exactly what Ethan was looking forward to hearing. He wanted to let her know right now that she would be his wife in the matter of ninety days, but it's not his job to explain that to her. He had to keep up the act of the match being anonymous. He wasn't nervous about Amira not following through, he was more than confident that she wouldn't pass up the money he gave her.
"Well it's always a good conversation, so I don't mind the weekly phone calls. He informed me that your biggest concern would be not being able to see who your match is before the alter." Arya motioned to the couch for him to sit and took the chair next to the couch. She didn't sit behind her desk with any of her clients. She believed that the couches created a level of comfortability to where her meetings and consults didn't come off as a transaction.
"You've done wonders for my family and that doesn't go unnoticed, but a physical connection is just as important as an emotional connection to me. I don't want to be married off to someone I have to grow an attraction to." Arya grabbed the closest notebook to her so she could jot down some notes.
"That's completely understandable. I know you're working with Amira, but if you're willing to give me a few physical features that you're looking for in a woman I can be sure to incorporate that into your profile to help choose the best match for you." Ethan studied Arya closely and began listing off every one of her features that grabbed his attention.
The two went from talking about physical features to discussing hobbies and even business. Amira was stopped just outside of her sister's office, listening to the muffled laughter. Her guilty conscience had kicked in and she had full intention to turn the check over to her sister and explain what Ethan propositioned her with; but hearing her sister laughing with Ethan had her going back to her first mind of accepting the check and forcing the system to match Arya's locked profile to Ethan's. If there was anyone other than Arya who had the access to do it, it was her. Arya trusted Amira with everything and it was killing Amira to know that she was selling her sister's trust for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
Without another thought, Amira turned on her heels and made her way back to her office. She blocked out any opposing thoughts in her head and began telling herself that this was the best thing for her sister. As much as she admired her big sister she didn't like that at thirty she was still single and spent all of her free time working on the company. She can't recall her sister ever having a boyfriend, and any date or hookup she had was initiated by Amira or Danica forcing her to go out. She believed her sister deserved someone that would help her let loose and live a little. Someone that would give her the two kids she's always wanted and give her the love she deserved. She could only hope that Ethan would be that person for her sister.
I'm back! I'm so excited about this story, and I hope that y'all are locked in as well.
What are your thoughts on Ethan?
What do we think about Amira going through with Ethan's request?
How do you think Arya is going to act when her sister tells her the news?
This is my first book that I'm not writing in first person so if something sounds off please call me out.