Cindy smirked, not matching the expression her stepmother had hoped for.
"So you want me to agree to marry an old man just to get a cure for my mother?" Cindy asked again, her voice steady and measured, wanting to be certain.
"Yes, Cindy. You don't have a choice. I've already accepted the marriage offer on your behalf. You just have to go along with it until the old man dies. You'll inherit his money, too, and you can use it however you like," Mr. Paulson said, his tone soft, his lips curled into a smile.
"Yes, Sister. You should do this for us. Dad and Mom supported you, and with the Sullivan family's support, our family will rise to the top of the influential families in Brooklyn," Tasha said, her tone radiating sweetness.
Cindy smiled, her gaze firm as she demanded, "Why don't you marry Mr. Sullivan, Tasha? You're young, with flawless skin. I'm sure the Sullivan family would cherish you more than me."
Tasha scowled, but before she could retort, her mother snapped at Cindy, her voice firm and rising an octave.
"Cindy, this gives you no room to argue. We need the Sullivan family's connection, and you are to marry Mr. Sullivan whether you accept this marriage or not." Mabel rose from her seat, but Cindy stood as well.
"Mom, you cannot force me into an arranged marriage with an old man. I decline." Cindy rushed to the door and darted out of the house.
"Mom, Dad, you both should get Cindy back. I will not agree to marry an old man," Tasha cried after seeing that Cindy had run out.
"Don't worry. We will get Cindy. There's nowhere she can run or hide," Mabel said, a sinister glint flashing in her eyes.
Mr. Paulson frowned and sneered. "I can't believe Cindy would deny me this opportunity. What makes her think we'll use the money for her sick mother? We aren't going to use it for her. Hurry up, Babe. Send the men you hired to find Cindy and bring her back. She must marry Mr. Sullivan whether she likes it or not."
"Got it," Mabel smiled and stepped out of the house, phone in hand as she dialed the bodyguards' number.
"Hello, boys. It's time to do the job I sent you. Ensure you capture my stepdaughter, Cindy White and bring her back to us. Do not harm her or do anything to her," she said, her tone firm and icy.
"Okay, Madam. We understand," replied the leader.
"Good. I'll be expecting good news. Bring her to us," Mabel said before disconnecting the call.
A wave of relief washed over Mabel's features as she looked at her daughter and husband.
"Don't worry, Tasha. We'll have Cindy returned to us," Mabel said, her tone confident.
"Mom, what if Cindy refuses to marry Mr. Sullivan? You know he said he needs a willing bride, not a forced one," Tasha reminded her mother of the rules for finding the old man a wife.
Mabel's brows furrowed. "Don't worry. We'll tell him Cindy accepted at first, only to change her mind later."
Tasha's brows relaxed. "You're the best, Mom."
"Sure," Mabel grinned. "Let's wait for the good news."
***
Meanwhile, Cindy ran back to the restaurant where she worked, knowing she couldn't afford to lose her job as a waitress.
Just as she entered the high-end restaurant—a place where influential men and women went on dates and for dinner—three men in black stepped in. They wore black clothing, their gazes sharp as they glanced at everyone's faces in the restaurant.
"Hey, what do you want here? Get out!" the manager warned the men in black who had intruded.
"We'll leave. We're looking for someone," replied one of the men, the gangleader.
"Who is it? Stand outside and tell me the person's name," requested the manager, looking displeased at the sight of the dangerous men.
Just then, one of the men spotted Cindy as she tied an apron around her waist, preparing to serve the businessmen in the restaurant. She looked exactly as her stepmother had described: beautiful and alluring like a blossoming flower.
"That's her!" pointed one of the men.
Just as Cindy was about to serve the handsome man seated there—who was on a business lunch with his friend—her eyes widened in shock when she saw the men in black pointing at her with deadly glares. She knew her stepmother had sent them. She wasn't surprised by her stepmother's cruelty.
Thinking of how to escape as the men strode forward to take her, Cindy sat on the thigh of the man she was about to serve, pulled him closer, and pressed her lips to his.
The man stilled. His friend's eyes widened in shock at her audacity—kissing a stranger, the wealthiest bachelor in Brooklyn City. Did she have a death wish?
The man Cindy had kissed was Nicolas Sullivan, a wealthy CEO in his early thirties whose grandfather wanted him to marry by any means.
Nicolas had just arrived to have lunch with his best friend, Aaron Kingston. He hadn't expected the bold waitress to kiss him and hold him so closely.
Embarrassed and wanting to push her away, he felt her hold tightened on his neck as she begged, "Help me, sir. I don't want to go with them."
Nicolas's brows furrowed deeply as he looked over at the men in black striding toward his table. They looked menacing, and he wondered what she had done to offend them. If she was bold enough to kiss him, what else wouldn't she do?
"Help me, sir. Don't let them take me away. They want to force me to marry an old man," Cindy begged, seated on Nicolas's thighs as she hugged his neck, unaware of what her soft body was doing to his already tense one.
Nicolas Sullivan had an aversion to women, but this soft woman on his lap seemed to have a death wish, seducing him publicly. Would she deny that she didn't know who he was?
"Get away from me!" he snarled at her after regaining his senses.
Her orange scent filled his nostrils, and his dîck was rock hard in his pants—something he hadn't felt so intensely before.
Cindy stilled, thinking she could use the top client to chase away the men her stepmother had sent to bring her back.
Embarrassed, she rose to her feet, trembling when she noticed the man's face. He was a wealthy man, dusting off his black suit with an irritated gaze.
When Nicolas looked up at her face, Cindy felt her breath knocked away. She couldn't believe she had just kissed the richest CEO in Brooklyn City.
Her jaw dropped, and she lowered her head to apologize—only for her manager to stride up to her and deliver a slap on her left cheek after catching her openly seducing Mr. Sullivan.