THE BILLIONAIRE'S CRYBABY
Chapter 77: SELFISH INTENTIONS

Chapter 77: SELFISH INTENTIONS

"I– I don’t understand."

"Yes you do," the matriarch countered. "You very much understand what I want from you. Together, we’re going to get Ace to really fall in love with you."

"But what if I don’t want that? What if I just want to get the money from him, and leave?"

The matriarch chortled dryly. "I thought we already established the fact that I’m not a fool? Do you think I didn’t consider that before presenting this proposal?"

Fay remained silent as she contemplated if that was a statement or a question that required an answer from her.

Her hand left her chest and intertwined with her other finger, as she trembled nervously.

"I thought the best we could do was send you away and have Ace face the consequences of his deceit. But when I sat down and analyzed the situation, I understood the desperation that led him to do what he did," she paused to catch her breath, and adjust herself on the seat, before she continued speaking.

"If my husband had stated clearly he would be the heir like he was designed to be, without any condition attached to it, he wouldn’t have had to seek out a faster and clearly thought out alternative route."

"I—"

"If I had trained my first daughter better," she continued, interrupting Fay’s attempt to butt in. "Taught her the beauty in accepting our fates, because she was never going to be the heir, maybe things would have turned out better. I realized it was myself, and my husband’s fault, and adjusted my anger."

"I understand that, but—"

"I’m going to have to interrupt you again, Fay. You cannot fool me. I’ve been alive longer than it took to conceive the idea of you. I see how you look at my grandson. To him, this is a game. But for you Fay, is it really?" She asked in an investigative tone, that had Fay shifting uncomfortably.

She wasn’t the best at lying. If she was, she could have easily denied the allegations.

But the matriarch was right, she realized. It wasn’t a game anymore. It stopped being a game when Ace began confusing her needy heart with his kisses.

If he had just stuck to his initial declaration that he’d never be attracted to her, her heart wouldn’t be in the mess it was right now.

This was in no way saying he was fully attracted to her. But he had to be at least a little bit, to kiss her the way he continuously did. Most recently, in front of his entire family.

"But that was just him trying to stop an accusation that could be damaging to his reputation," one of her innate voices popped up.

"Right," she thought. But still. Her attraction to him was hinged on the fact that he didn’t totally find her repulsive.

She needed to think that way, even if in reality, it was probably not the case.

"Fay?" A wrinkled hand snapped across her face, causing her lashes to blink.

She raised her head, and met the waiting gaze of the older woman. "It has to be just games," she whispered in a barely audible voice.

"Why? Do you think you’re not good enough for my grandson?" She asked, picking up on what Fay said, despite how tiny her voice sounded.

"I– I don’t think. It’s a fact. We’re from two different classes. Two different worlds. I don’t understand anything about his life, even though I pretend to. It will never work. He’ll never feel anything more than pity for me," she said in a hushed tone.

This time around, the matriarch struggled to hear her. However, she got the most important bit.

She understood the struggle. In reality, it was difficult for a rich family to merge with a poor one. Especially a poor family like Fays.

She had looked into Fay Landon that was soon going to be Fay Atticus in truth.

She lost her parents at a young age to an accident. As a result, she also lost her memories. Her Aunt took her in, and raised her alongside her two girls.

’Raised her’ was stretching it, but she did take her in.

With everything she found out, it had been sheer luck that the girl had survived till this stage of her life without losing her innocence.

Yeah, it was the innocence that made her take a step back in the first place.

Instead of making a hasty decision, and declaring hell for what Ace dared to do, she decided to go with it.

At the end of the day, she hoped for two results. First, her beloved grandson would finally feel what true love is. Secondly, he’d be free to take the company into greater heights.

It was a selfish decision. All about her grandson. But, she knew Fay would get something out of it too. A family. The kind of family she deserved, but never got to have.

"You underestimate yourself, Fay. I understand why though. You’ve been lied to for a very long time," she paused talking long enough to pull out a small mirror from one of her drawers. Raising it up, she pointed it towards Fay.

"I want you to take a really long, and good look at yourself. I don’t care what anyone has told you before. Both the good, and the bad, filter it away. Really look at yourself, and tell me what you see."

"A ton of makeup that makes me look better than ugly," she said without breaking a sweat.

The matriarch sighed. Conditioning wasn’t an easy thing to break out of. She had been conditioned to see herself as less.

Therapy would be too long a process. She needed Fay to have the healthiest self esteem as soon as possible.

"No!" She snatched the mirror away,and dropped it on the table. "You’re going to listen carefully to me, okay?"

Fays went from flicking with fear at her sudden outburst, to nodding her head.

"You’re a gorgeous girl. You have physical features that the best of supermodels, queens, beauty experts around the world would kill for. You have to trust me on this, you know why?"

Fay shook her head, and mumbled a no.

"Because I once owned the biggest fashion editorial magazine in at least two continents. I know beauty like the back of my hands. Before there was Spade, there was Glam. The reason why I am desperate for you to get your shit together and start believing in yourself a little more, is because I want Glam back. I want you to bring back Glam."

Fay blinked multiple times, and her ears twitched. She scrunched her face, wiggled her nose, and all but jerked in shock. "You just said you want to make Ace actually fall in love with me," she said, barely able to keep the stutter out of her shaky voice.

"I did. That’s my priority. Ace falls in love with you, and finally learns how to love. He gets the company, and everything resets to normal. That’s the selfish desire I have for my grandson. I also happen to have a selfish desire for you too. What’s wrong with that?" She asked a little too pompously.

Fay observed the woman sitting across from her. In her heart she knew she had honest intentions. But in her head, the case was different.

This was clearly a woman used to being in a position of control. She was the queen on a chess board. The one that designed a masterpiece.

As much as she appreciated her— well, generosity, she couldn’t help but feel like a project.

The rich get bored and decide to experiment. She was clearly that experiment. But what happens when an experiment gets boring? Wouldn’t she just be discarded.

Her fear clouded her reasoning. So bad, she just couldn’t see the vision.

"I think I’ve spoken more than enough. You clearly have your reservations and I understand that. However, I’m not going to let you sit on my offer for too long. If you’re not going to do it, understand I’ll do everything in my power to get you out of Ace’s life. My grandson needs to learn, and glam needs to come back in business. You’re the best person to make both of these things happen. But you’re not the only option," She rose to her feet, and walked away from the desk.

Stopping at the center of the room, she stomped her cane to the ground. Fay, who was too shocked to move, shuddered.

"Tell everyone I’ve retreated to my room for the night. I’ll give you just three days to think things over, and be ready with an answer. Good night Fay."

The door closed behind her, and Fay abruptly jumped to her feet.

She waited until she couldn’t hear the old woman’s cane flapping on the floor anymore, before she began readying herself to leave the room.

"Oh God," she felt a surge of panic, as she took a step forward.

Unable to physically bring herself to move, she bent her head, waiting for this wave of anxiety to pass.

Her eyes involuntarily closed, and she heard a loud screeching sound in her ears.

"Glam is officially clo—" she heard those words from an oddly familiar voice, and everything went still in her head.