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Esme's POV

I found a few dresses that Lily might like and exited the closet.

"Alright. We have, all of these," I said, showing Lily all the options.

"So, which one do you want?" I asked.

"The first one please," Lily said, with a nod of approval from Gabriel.

She chose a pink mermaid gown, covered with sequins, sleeveless, and had a small train.

"Alright. Gabriel get out. She's gotta dress up, and we have only twenty minutes left on the clock I said rushing around.

Quickly finishing up Lily's makeup, I paired the outfit with glass heels with pink flowers.

Then, I threw on the dress, did my makeup, and hurried my ass out to the office, with Lily behind me.

The dress was a nude shade, sheer material, sequin work that made my boobs look great, sleeveless, and had a hip-high slit. 

I could flash people just by walking.

I threw my hair into a messy bun, with baby hairs and bangs framing my face, gold hoops, bold red lipstick, beige heels, rings, and bracelets.

I held the door open, let Lily walk in first, and followed behind.

Asher's eyes filled with confusion when he saw my sister, but he almost choked on the water he was drinking when he saw me.

If he wasn't questioning this entire meeting before, he was definitely doing it now.

But as usual, my dad thought that his reaction was directed at my sister, and a satisfied smile settled on his face, which confused me. But that didn't last long.

"Lily, I think you mixed up your outfits hun," he said, kissing the side of her head, smiling softly at her.

"I didn't like it, dad. But this is better. Don't you think?" she asked giving a small twirl.

"You look amazing sweet pea," he said before turning to me.

"Esme, your mother wanted to see you. She's in the living room. I shoot a text if we need anything during the meeting," he said. "Sure dad," I said turning around.

"Wait. Don't go. I need her to be present for the meeting Mr. Knight. Ms. Knight however can leave."

"Lily right? I'll tell your dad to send someone to get you. Why don't you humor yourself by doing something you actually like?" he asked Lily.

And that was all she needed to bolt.

Pulling out my phone, I texted Gabriel.

Esme: Gab, take care of her till I come back, I'm needed here

Gab: hope you have your gun and phone in case things go south

Esme: Yep

 I do

 now get your ass up, and get Lily

"Why do you need my elder daughter Mr. Raymond?" my dad asked.

"Just business Thomas," he replied in a curt voice.

I didn't give much thought to the dress until then. But right now, I feel super awkward. I was practically bare underneath, and this was a sheer material. This was so unprofessional and super inappropriate for a business meeting. 

God, I feel awful.

This is why you don't give way to your impulsive ass decisions.

I know, you're right my dearest subconscious.

I made my bed, and now I had to lay on it.

Sitting down made the situation even worse. I was constantly fidgeting with the slit to make sure I didn't flash him my hoo haa.

We all sat down, and Asher explained his side of the deal.

"You give over sixty percent of your company's shares and pledge your loyalty to our family. No more random trafficking rings, no more drugs, only what we say. You listen to whatever we say, and we supply the necessary arms and protection. You stay off of our docks and ask permission in case you want to use them. No more trashing our name on TV. No more backbiting. Just be a good partner, and keep up your end of the deal."

Then my dad started.

"In return, you get my daughter Lily," he said, and it all made sense to me.

Slamming my fist on the table I stood up, not even bothering to adjust my dress.

"You are not doing this. Not on my watch. I'll let you go bankrupt than force that little kid into marriage. Do you even know how much she would hate this? Does she even know that you're marrying her off to a stranger?"

Then I turned to Asher, ready to go off on him. How the fuck did he have the fucking audacity to ask for my sister? SHE WAS A GODDAMN SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THINGS HOLY…

But he intervened before that.

"You want me to marry your younger daughter? When did you get that idea? When YOU wanted a marriage to take place, he agreed because he thought it was Esme. Not Lily. I'll marry Esme, or you can consider the deal off." he finished.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I want to talk to Esme. In private," he said.

My father definitely didn't expect it. His wide eyes and slightly open mouth told me that much.

"But, Mr. Raymond, Lily's the better candidate. She's better than Esme in everything."

I scoffed. Of course, he'll favor her. Poor kid.

"YOU wanted a marriage to take place, Thomas. Not me, not my dad. You did. You know how helpless your ass is right now. So consider your next words carefully, or you can kiss your company goodbye, and be on the streets, bankrupt," Thomas said, before pulling me to the balcony. 

He shut the door and came over as I was leaning on the railing. When I turned around, he was less than two feet away from me.

"Mr. Raymond," I nodded.

"Asher. Call me Asher when we're alone."

"So, What did you want to talk about?" I asked.

"Did you know that he was giving up Lily?"

"Nah. I would've had his head if I had known it any earlier. Look, my whole family's messed up. You should call this deal off. Why are you guys doing it? Let's be honest. My family's a few years away from being bankrupt. My dad wants this deal only for the investors. He has nothing to offer, other than his daughters. So why are you doing this?" I wondered.

"Well, we know how your father does his business. He plays dirty. He may have nothing to offer us, but my dad and I had a talk today. We are doing this for you girls. We can find better mergers, better contracts, and deals. But if we refuse this deal, he'll go over to the Davidsons with the same proposition, and that's something you don't wanna imagine. You know how those bastards are, and how they treat women. So, while we're forming a plan to take your father and the Davidsons down, this is just a window for you to save yourself.

But if you're not willing, I promise I'll call it off. Your dad won't suspect a thing. But if you wanna do this, I want it to be on your terms. Use this to milk him for whatever you need. Also, this marriage is conditional. It'll last only till your father gets enough investors. So just about a year or two. You can get a divorce later. And I'll sign it without demanding anything. You'll be free. No strings attached. 

If you need time to think about it, you can take a week. I'll leave my number with you," he said and turned around. Before he left I caught his wrist.

"Wait. I'll do it. But in return, just help me sign a deal with my dad. I'll do whatever you ask."

"Good. Come on. Let's go tell your dad," he said, and took off his jacket, and wrapped it around my shoulders. I was about to protest when he said, "Don't. You were uncomfortable. This is not much, but it'll help you cover up a little more."

He guided me in with his hand on the small of my back.

Asher's POV

I knew Thomas was a slimy bastard, but thinking of marrying off his younger daughter? That's another level of fucking sick.

Esme didn't seem to be offended by my use of insults against her dad.

I knew she didn't have another choice, but I wanted her to have time to think about it. 

I was glad she agreed.

She was fidgeting throughout the meeting but held her own well against her father.

She was beautiful, had her own opinions, made valid points, and held her own.

Christ. She was my ideal girl.

I was upset we had to meet under the given circumstances.

Esme's POV

I walked in with various things on my mind.

Taking a seat, I began.

"Dad, I'll agree to this marriage on a few conditions. You let me visit Lily and Gabriel once a week. They can visit me whenever they want. You shouldn't make deals involving Lily anymore. I take over the South side, and this should be immediate. No matter your financial conditions, you or mom shouldn't touch their college funds. You shouldn't make deals involving me either. If you agree to all of this, we have a deal."

"I have a few things to add," my dad said.

"You continue accompanying me to important meetings. You should be available whenever we need you. When you take over, you can't make decisions without telling me first. You shouldn't divulge information regarding our dealings to the Raymonds. You should get married next week," he finished.

"Print up an agreement, and I'll sign it with Mr. Raymond as a witness. You have a deal father," I said.

Half an hour later, I had signed the contract, and Asher left but not before giving me his private socials, and phone number.