Proposal/
prəˈpəʊz(ə)l/
1. the action of proposing a plan or suggestion.
2. an offer of marriage.

▫CHAPTER 9▫
P R O P O S A L

Evelyn

"Printouts." I demanded in a bored tone.

Moments later I felt the smoothness of papers touch my outstretched hands.

"Oh Kate, please don't wear those shoes, the noise is quite annoying." I snapped with my eyes focused on the documents she had just handed me.

As usual, I was in a bad mood. And if possible the worst mood I'd ever been in.

Mum was sick. She wanted me to get married. Carlos was Adrian Gallagher. Adrian Gallagher was Carlos.

The anxiety and nerves were too much and right when I was ready to barf up my breakfast, the phone rang. Again.

I let it ring without a care but, but for every care not given by me, it was given by Kate.

"Ma'am this is the seventh time-"

"Let it ring." I growled emptying my cup of coffee into my mouth.

"Ma'am-"

"Kate don't."

It must've taken a lot of effort, but she complied. The phone stopped ringing and I had barely heard the relieved sigh level Kate's lips when it began ringing again.

"Ma'am-"

"Christ, Stop!" I cried and picked up the phone, the ringing didn't bother me, Kate convincing me to answer the phone did.

"Gallagher, this is the last warning, stop calling."

The familiarly deep voice greeted, threatened actually, "Do not hang up."

I let out a huge breath, "What do you want?"

"The deal," I heard his thick accented voice say, "You can have it."

I laughed, "I'll tell you what I already have, a dignity! Now don't ever call me again!"

And with that I hung up.

There was a long silence as Kate stared at me before gulping and asking, "Ma'am what have you done? Adrian Gallagher just called you seven times, you do realize how huge this is?"

I sighed and slumped down on the desk, muttering, "It's a long story, and honestly I don't care."

Before she could reply the phone rang again.

I glanced at Kate and then glanced back at the phone. Standing up in a flash I grabbed a scissor and cut off the cord.

I could've unplugged it, but hey, I saw the scissors first. And I had terrible anger management issues.

Kate, who was becoming sure day by day that I was a potential serial killer, backed away in fright.

I resumed my earlier position with my head resting on the sheet of wood and shut my eyes, hoping to catch a few minutes of sleep.

Of course the phone rang again.

I looked at the telephone with the half cut wire dangling from the edge of the table.

Bloody hell! I knew he was the Antichrist!
He somehow could control my dead phone!

"Uh...ma'am," Kate pointed at the other side of the table where I saw my mobile phone flashing.

Paranoia always did get the best of me.

"Hey mum."

"Evelyn Rhodes, what exactly is going on? What did you tell Adrian?"

"Nothing."

She sighed, "Evelyn stop this nonsense at once, he's such a sweet boy! I want you to stop torturing him unnecessarily, also why aren't you answering his calls?
he just wants to apologize."

I laughed at her choice of words. Adrian Gallagher? Sweet? Right.

"What? that bastard complained to you? God, what a loser."

"Language, young lady," she chided, "and yes we met yesterday and he explained everything, how you two met, in a business meeting and you said some rude things and you had an argument, and I heard you threw a glass of juice on him is this how I raised you? And despite all this he wants to say sorry why don't you go visit him and apologize before him?" the last sentence was more of a threat than a suggestion.

That bastard.

"Mum-"

"Nuh uh I'm busy, you know what happens when you disobey."

Yeah, I get the silent treatment.

However I didn't have the guts to say that, swallowing back my pride along with the urge to shout I muttered , "Okay, mum."

She hung up and I was left with a confused assistant and glares directed at my phone.

"Kate," I called with growing irritation, "get my car, somebody needs to be taught a lesson. Again."

▪️

"Telling on me to my mum, real mature move Gallagher!" I exclaimed, as soon as I exited the elevator and strutted towards his desk without knocking.

I saw him on his desk, shrouded under the light pouring in from the ceiling to floor glass windows behind him. He was deeply engrossed in a task of typing  and he didn't even look up when I stood in front of him.

"It worked, didn't it?" The surly tone couldn't hide the smugness.

I scowled and waited for him to do something but his eyes remained focused on the screen while his fingers moved across the keyboard rapidly in utter concentration. His short hair looked messed up as usual and his eyes, bloodshot. Honestly if his skin was pale and not this tanned shade that I totally envied, I would've assumed he was one of those mythical creatures, a vampire definitely.

After a few minutes of standing awkwardly I cleared my throat.

He nodded slowly but continued typing for another five seconds before abruptly getting up, which surprised me and I flinched slightly. His face was impassive and eyes emotionless as he stared at me, "Evelyn."

Okay, I definitely did not like the way my name rolled off his tongue.

"Gallagher," I scowled, retreating back, "I don't have time. What do you want?"

He chuckled, the pleasant raspy voice surprised me and echoed in the room, "Funny, last time this was the other way around."

I forced a smile and he let out a sigh at the sight of it. Well at least he wasn't half naked this time. Instead he was dressed in a dark grey suit that defined the shape of his biceps and buttoned at his abdomen. I had to look away immediately, didn't really want the enemy to think I was checking him out.

"Have a seat please." he walked closer until the strong smell of aftershave hit me.

Ooh the smell of aftershave, don't for a second think it didn't have an effect on me. I was still a woman.

Forcing myself to stop breathing, I rolled my eyes but after glancing around found a sofa set near his desk. No way was I sitting anywhere near that disgusting man. Swiftly walking towards it, I sat down.

"You want something? Water? Coffee? Or the cranberry juice you threw on me?" His accented voice mocked.

I smiled innocently, "How about your blood."

His lips lifted slightly, so slightly, I thought I'd imagined it because this was probably the second time I'd seen him smile.

"Sorry darling, that isn't an option."

"Too bad, I just love seeing assholes like you decapitated, with your head on my favorite golden platter." I said and smiled sweetly after.

"Aren't you full of positivity?" I thought he'd return to the desk but unfortunately he seated himself on the sofa in front of me. So much for sitting away from him.

"So what do you want?" I asked casually. 

"Well, for starters," he cleared his throat, "I'd like to apologize, for everything, maybe we can have a fresh start? Call a truce?"

I blinked, "Sure, I'd love to."

"Really?" he asked more suspicious than surprised.

"No." I deadpanned.

"Why?"

I raised an eyebrow at him, "You know exactly why?"

He leaned forwards with his arms placed on his knees, "Actually I don't."

"I don't like the look of you."

"I'm sorry?" he leaned closer with a genuinely puzzled expression on his face.

I reclined back on the leather cushions and rolled my eyes, "Haven't we already talked about this? If you don't remember I have no trouble in repeating, for starters you're an asshole and a chauvinist, you don't care for women unless of course you need them on your bed, you have no manners, you live for, drinking and possibly drugs-"

He rolled his eyes, distracting me for a second, "Seriously? I've never done drugs in my whole life."

"Well...there's no promises you won't do it in the future." I pointed.

He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his palms, "You have known me for days?Are you really going to judge me on the basis of things you read on the internet? Which I have no idea about because I prefer to stay away from it, so, I suggest you stop making assumptions and actually get to know me."

Okay, that was probably the longest sentence he had ever said but I knew he was right, I was judging him but it didn't matter.

"I know enough to know that I can't trust you. So this is the last time I'll say this, stop bothering me and my mum, just please get out of our lives."

Suddenly his eyes turned darker and I could practically see the fury rising in them, he said his words slowly and I could feel the rage in each syllable, "I will, when you stop acting like you know everything, because you don't. I will gladly stay away from you but don't ever ask me to stay away from Laura."

I fell back on my seat in tiredness, "Okay, I get it you guys are buddies and I don't know why,  but my mum actually seems to like you, and there's no way I can convince her to stay away from you, I already told you you can keep meeting her, but why the hell did you call me?"

He hadn't been expecting me to say everything I had and for a moment he looked conflicted, I could see he was thinking something and it bothered me he was taking this long to reply.

"Um, hello? Still waiting for an answer?"

He simply sighed before turning to look at his phone, which started to ring. I thought he was going to be saved by the bell but he simply groaned and without answering switched off the phone.

"Why didn't you answer?"

"Jesus, woman! Do you have to know everything?" I flinched at the unexpected harshness in his tone. He just growled into his hands, pushed back his hair from his forehead and got up from his seat all of a sudden. He continued growling and pacing around the sofa, while for the first time I actually felt afraid of his presence.

As carefully as I could, I looked up from the corner of my eyes as he slowly calmed himself down and returned to his original position on the sofa with a loud sigh. He looked outside the windows, lost in his thoughts.

I was chiding myself for staring at him instead of getting up and walking out of here when he reached his hands into the pockets of his pants and took out a pack of cigarettes. I watched as his fingers gingerly lifted the flap and took one of the cylinders out. He kept the box to his side while placing the one between his lips. I tried forcing myself to look away but my eyes didn't obey. I was almost sure this prick knew how attractive he looked while lighting up the cigarette and that I was blatantly staring at him.

"Sorry about that, I'm just under a lot of...stress, there's...problems, but mostly there's my nan who wants me to get married ." He laughed after a few seconds, but it didn't sound humorous in the least.

I perked up instantly, mostlt because I couldnt believe someone like adrian gallagher who smiled once in a week and hated everybody could harbour emotions and referred to his grandmother as nan and also because in the past few days I had found a special loathing for marriage, "Are you joking?"

He gave me a pointed look, as if to question my sanity, of course someone like him would never joke, he looked away soon, "Apparently it's bad omen for an Italian man to be twenty-six and unmarried."

"Wow," I said, "for the first time, the only time I can actually relate to you."

He frowned, "You're being forced to get married?"

I scoffed, "Thanks to you 'Carlos' , I mean if you wanted to have an alter ego why not be a bigger jerk than your normal self? Why did you have to be this sweet gentleman and impress her?"

"I've always been a ladies man."

I scoffed, it seemed there was nothing else to do. We were both silent for a while until he asked, "So Laura? She wants you to marry me?"

I cringed and made a dramatic motion of gagging, "Unfortunately."

I saw his seagreen eyes flash with either anger or annoyance, "Some women would be honored."

"Except for me." I replied.

He laughed, "I said women, not an unknown species of some psychotic, fire-breathing and violent organism."

"You wanna repeat all that?" I dared after getting over my disbelief that he said that.

"I don't repeat things."

"That was rhetoric, asshole." I scoffed but knew he was right about the earlier statement, most women would die to be with him, and all of them would have one thing in common, lack of a brain.

Before the silence could make us its slave again, I decided to break it, "So your problem? It's not that big of a problem honestly, I mean it's kind of hard to imagine how someone like you is legally allowed to breed but don't you bed girls every week?  Just ask one of them to marry you."

He laughed, not a sarcastic laugh but a full blown laugh like I had said a very funny joke, "Darling could I know what is your source of this information."

"Why?"

He looked in my direction for a second, "Because it most certainly isn't true."

This time I laughed, "Liar."

"I don't lie."

Another chortle of disbelief fell out of my mouth.

He seemed to be offended and I immediately shut my mouth, "Is it that hard to believe I'm a celibacist?"

I had to refrain myself from bursting with laughter, "Yes."

"It doesn't matter what you think, can we stop talking about my private life now?"

"Yeah, I don't have more time to waste."

"Well thank God!" he mumbled.

I sat up straight once again, "So how about that idea? Why don't you just marry some random girl?"

He turned away from me, taking another drag of the cigerette, "It's not that easy."

"What? Don't tell me you're one of those guys who are waiting for the love of their lives?"

"No." he answered, looking rather bemused.

I smirked, "Liar."

He looked at me slowly, "Well why don't you go marry a stranger too, if its that easy?"

My mouth clamped shut.Well, he did have a point.

"Well you're right, marrying a stranger will be uncomfortable. Which is why if I was in your place I'd to one of my exes, someone who still likes me, go on a few dates as friends with them, after some while make them believe I still love them, marry them and after my nans happy, maybe a year later just divorce them."

He looked at me without blinking, the smoke from his lips rose in swirls, "Isn't that quite heartless?"

"I do have a heart, it's simply as cold as ice."

He didn't reply, just stared at me the same way, as if I was as transparent as glass and he could see my soul and read my mind.

And then came the silence, if there were crickets we could hear them, we both looked in opposite directions or anywhere other than each other when it hit me what a waste of time this was. I didn't really want to help Adrian solve his problem but it was a better conversation topic than the weather.

"Don't you have an ex? Maybe you can have a temporary fake marriage with her or something, I mean thats what I'd do if I had an ex."

He thought about it for a second, "I do have an ex."

"You mean twenty? But ok does she like you?"

He scoffed softly, "Anybody likes money, darling."

That sounded egoistic but I didn't feel the confidence radiating around him so I decided to bite back an insult,  "Well marry her."

He looked at me for literally ten minutes without saying anything.

"That's a great idea." he said and I nodded with pride, "except for the fact, she spent nearly 400 grand in two weeks by the way, and said her thanks by not so subtly cheating on me."

I opened and closed my mouth a few times, "What a bitch."

His showed jawline tightened and he nodded in agreement.

"And $400,000? What the hell did she do? Buy a freaking yacht?"

"Or botox and implants and the entire stock of a fake tan company." he replied solemnly.

I looked at his face and without a second thought laughed.

Did Adrian Gallagher, the brooding guy who I'd only seen glare at every person and thing around him crack a joke?

And did I laugh like a school girl laughing at a guys awful joke just because he was her crush?

Yes and yes.

By the time I was done I caught him looking at me with the same mysterious gaze. After the silence returned again and it was too awkward for me to say something I simply looked away.

"What about you? Why don't you use the idea you were talking about."

I realized he was referring to the idea about marrying an ex, "Uh...that would work of only I had an ex."

His bent forwards and butted his cigarette in the ash tray beside him, "No way."

"Yes way, I hate men, they're vile creatures."

"No offense taken, but what, you seriously expect me to believe you never dated."

"Never said I didn't date, but a few mistakes were enough to teach a few lessons for a lifetime."

He nodded slowly, "It mustn't be hard for you to find a man. Unless you open your mouth first."

"Funny," I said sarcastically, "but true. I'll just have to force some guy into marrying me, or can you like get a spouse online? They have dating sites, there must be a wedding site, or you know I could always buy one, men are cheap anyways, see what I did there?"

"Evelyn," I was interrupted and snapped my head to Adrian who was staring at me as if he Buddha and had just gained the best enlightenment.

"What? You finally realized you're a dick?" I muttered, eyeing him weirdly.

He shook his head, "No, but are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I have no idea what you're thin-"

I froze in my spot.

Everything wed talked about in the past moments reeled like a short movie in my mind.

Shit, he couldn't possibly be thinking the same?

Hell I was disgusted at myself for even letting such an idea come to my mind!

His eyes flickered in worry a few times and despite the fact that his hands constantly wrung each other in anxiety, his eyes held a glimpse of excitement in them that frightened me.

"Will you marry me?"