Claire's head was a mess but she decided that it was her turn to make Gabriel's life miserable. She's found a way to get the resources for her mum's surgery and she'll enjoy the ride. She promised herself to make his life a living hell.
She took a deep breath in, and she decided that it was time for her first performance known as 'you tricked me and I hate you'.
She took another deep breath before starting Act 1 of the show.
She stood up energetically, and after calling Pattison to see where he was, she stormed out of her office, marching across the office. The timing was perfect, Claire thought. Gabriel was in the meeting with the board of directors. Could there be a better audience for this?
"What the hell is this?!" Claire stormed into the boardroom, locking her eyes on her prey. Gabriel turned around slowly, watching her with his usual studious curiosity.
"Miss Thompson, this is the board meeting. Please, may you resolve your concerns afterwards?" Secretary spoke in a cold tone. Claire didn't care. Why would she? She was a wife of the CEO and she was going to use it to her advantage.
"Is there a problem?" Gabriel spoke with a smirk as if he knew exactly what the game was, or if he thought that they were still playing his game.
"You tricked me!" She threw the contract on the table in front of him.
"Let's take a break, gentlemen." He smiled at the directors. "I think I need to deal with it first before we can resume."
Claire was fuming, partially truthfully too. But she pretended to be respectful enough for the directors and secretary to leave. Each person leaving scowled at her as if they thought she was crazy.
"You asshole! This is not what we agreed! This is not what I agreed to! You tricked me into this…" Claire stuttered. "This is madness!"
"Claire, may I remind you that you signed it yourself in front of your entire department? There are plenty of witnesses to this."
"You didn't say that it was a f*cking marriage!"
"Language, Claire."
"This cannot be valid! What kind of sick trick is this?!"
"Darling, tenths of people saw you sign it. Not to mention that they all saw me beg you, on my very knees, to stay here."
"What's your deal?"
"Why?"
"Marriage? What benefit do you have from this?"
"Well, so many, actually."
"Oh, please do tell."
"Okay." His smile widened. "I am the last bachelor on the board of directors. I don't want to hear any more jokes about this matter anymore."
"Don't be ridiculous!"
"I'm at the age where I should marry and start thinking about the heirs. Someone will have to take over the company one day. And I have no time for dating."
"Don't be stupid. You aren't going to come anywhere close to me to have heirs." Claire laughed maniacally.
"We'll see about that." He smirked again which only infuriated Claire further. "I've checked your background, including your family and your medical records. There's nothing concerning regarding your health and fertility. You are well-educated. There were no scandals in your past. No questionable financial gains. You are talented and people-oriented. You can move within my circles without standing out too much. You're kind-hearted but we can work on that. And lastly, as a married couple, we will get a significant tax rebate as my tax code will change, saving me millions every year."
"So it's all about the money?"
"Is that all you heard? I've just told you several reasons." He furrowed his brows.
"I am not going to birth you twenty brats and walk around holding your hand for the show. I am not a performing monkey." Claire hissed.
"Okay. I'm glad that we are moving from denial and anger towards bargaining and acceptance." He smiled again.
"I want to go over all of the terms," Claire said decisively.
"Of course. How about tonight? Over dinner?"
"Oh no, we're doing it now." Claire sat down on the chair beside him.
"Aren't you demanding? Shall I remind you that I was part way through the board meeting?"
"Oh, I'm sorry for the inconvenience," Claire said sarcastically. "I'm afraid I was just tricked into marriage and I need to establish boundaries before the devil tries to kill me."
"The devil? Is that what you think of me?"
"That's putting it lightly."
"Just because we're married doesn't make you invincible so dial it down, honey." He said with a stern warning.
"Don't you dare to call me honey." Claire opened the contract. "Clause 9.2. Explain."
"You insisted on no break clause."
"For my employment contract, not marriage!"
"Oh well. Besides, divorce will only bring scandal to both of us." He shrugged dismissively.
"Does it mean that I can't divorce you?" Claire started to actually panic. The lawyer did mention the no break clause but it was implied that there was still a way to terminate the contract.
"Exactly."
Claire's eyes welled up and her hands shook violently. The weight of the situation started to feel quite daunting.
"What do you want?"
"Nothing. I've got what I wanted." He lit the cigarette.
"What would it take for you to get rid of this nightmare?"
"Nothing."
"Seriously? Nothing? I'll return to work on my old contract. I'll never mention a word of it." She shook the paper in her hand. "Please…" Claire started sobbing.
"You've signed it. There's nothing more than can be done."
"Oh, come on. I'm sure someone in your position, with your power, can make it all just disappear."
"Claire, darling, I've made up my mind. I humiliated myself enough for this. There's nothing you can say or do that will change my mind." He pushed the box of tissues towards her.
"You're such an arsehole." She banged her hands on the table.
"Sir?" Secretary walked in. "Everyone's waiting."
"Rearrange the meeting and get out. Can't you see that I'm busy?!" He yelled storming to the door.
"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir." The woman disappeared quickly as he shut the door in her face.
Claire hid her head in her hands. Her body was shaking with sobs.
"Look, what's done is done. Calm down and get over it."
"Get over it?" Claire shot up and her eyes were glaring with anger. "Calm down and get over it? I hate you! I hate you to the core! Every minute in this company as the head of the department was a nightmare! I loved my work when I had Gary to protect me and stand up for me. Now, I hate being on the receiving end of your continuous abuse, your bullying, your tyranny! You always try to find a scapegoat for your own mistakes and incompetence! You're the worst human being I've ever met! I'm not even sure if you're a human! You're the devil!"
"You didn't think that through, have you?" Gabriel grabbed Claire's wrist and pulled her within centimetres of his face. He was sipping with so much anger that he just wanted to crush her.
"Kill me." She whispered. "Please, kill me. Free me of this nightmare."
And just like that, his anger vanished again, and he stopped in his track due to the shock of it. He still held her wrist up but his grip loosened.
"You rather die than be married to me?" He asked in disbelief.
"Yes," Claire said honestly. "Please, just kill me."
"Claire, darling. If I am the monster you think I am, I would intend to make you suffer as much as I can. And it seems that this marriage will be sufficient in doing so." He put up a smirk on his face again. "Now, I'll give you a few days off to collect yourself. We can discuss it further either tonight or tomorrow. So, be a good girl and don't cause trouble." He let go of her and walked up to the door. "Pattison!"
"Yes, sir." His assistant walked into the boardroom, quickly studying the situation and watching Claire who still seemed in a state.
"Take her home. I'll send more instructions soon. But I do need to get to my next meeting."
"Of course, sir." He said quickly as Gabriel stormed out.