Fated to the Ruthless CEO

“Good afternoon, Attorney Harrison.” Devlin greeted his grandmother’s lawyer the moment he saw him in his office. He wonders whether he is working today. He is such a workaholic man despite his age.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Wesley. How are you doing? Please take a seat.” Smiled the aging Attorney Harrison. When Devlin’s grandfather was still alive, Attorney Harrison used to work for him as his personal lawyer. His grandfather was a very successful real estate developer. It was also Attorney Harrison who read the last will of his grandfather a few weeks after he died. His grandmother took the bulk of his grandfather’s wealth with almost all of his real estate properties as her inheritance. Devlin’s dad was also given some properties like the beach house and some apartments. Both Devlin and his older brother were given some parcels of land.

Despite all the wealth her grandmother got, she lived a very simple life. Devlin knew that she also took good care of those properties. Most of those properties were leased by some major companies.

“Mr. Wesley, I called you here for something very important. I have yet to inform your family regarding the reading of your grandmother’s last will which would be Friday next week.” Devlin’s confused look was visible, making Attorney Harrison chuckled.

“I don’t understand. What does the last will of grandma have to do with this very important meeting with you right now?” Devlin just blurted out. He did not want to appear rude to the old man but what happened earlier with Raven still got into his nerves.

“Relax, Mr. Wesley. Did you have a rough morning?” Attorney Harrison asked with his serious tone.

“I am sorry, Attorney Harrison. You are right. I had a rough morning. I hope our meeting will help lighten up the mood.” He smiled briefly at the aging lawyer who only nodded at him.

“Anyway, do you want any drinks before we proceed?” Devlin only shook his head. He can’t wait to hear what their meeting is all about.

“In that case, let’s proceed then.” Attorney Harrison paused for a few seconds before he continued talking. He then took something from his drawer and handed it to Devlin.

It is a regular white envelope with his name written on the back. Devlin gave the family lawyer a questioning look.

“What is this?” He asked the lawyer while staring at the white envelope.

“That envelope in your hand was given to me by your grandmother a few months ago. She specifically told me that should anything happen to her then I would hand this to you, a few days before the reading of her last will. By the way, she changed a small portion of her last will just a few months before she died.” Came Attorney Harrison’s revelation. That puzzled Devlin.

“Is that bad? Why would my grandma do that?” He asked out of curiosity. He does not know anything about his grandmother’s finances. He only knew that there is an accounting firm who takes care of all her assets.

“I think you should better read what’s inside that envelope before I will tell you what she did.” Attorney Harrison was careful with his words. Even he was initially shocked as to his client’s decision regarding her last will.

Devlin stared at Attorney Harrison for a while before he opened the envelope. His forehead slightly wrinkled when he opened a piece of handwritten letter. He knows the familiar penmanship of his grandmother.

My dearest Devlin,

By now, for sure I am already in a good place free from all the pains. Devlin, my grandchild, I love you with all my heart. I kept fighting till the end even if I knew what the ending would be. You gave me the courage to hold onto that small hope that I could beat this cancer. However, we only live on a borrowed life. All good things must come to an end. I am so happy that you were able to show me your great love. It was a life well lived.

However, there is only one thing I deeply regret…that I will not be able to see you walk down the aisle with your beautiful bride. That I will not be able to see a beautiful family that you are going to have in the future.

Forgive me my grandchild if I made a decision that you will not like. But please understand that I only have your best interest in mind. I have a feeling that you may not honor my last wish. And I feel it is my responsibility to make sure that you will end with a great woman who will truly love you unconditionally.

I took this drastic decision to include Amber in my last will. The lawyer will explain to you more details. And finally, I have arranged for your marriage to Amber to take place before the reading of my will.

You may hate me right now but you will understand what I did at the end. Please take care of yourself and so is Amber. She is a great person with a great heart.

Much love,

Grandma

Devlin was totally shocked. His mind was numbed for a few minutes. The reality of what his grandmother just mentioned in her letter rendered him speechless. He closed his eyes tightly trying to imagine that this is all just a bad dream. He would have remained in his position had not Attorney Harrison started talking.

“Mr. Wesley, are you alright? Please drink this glass of water. You looked pale.” Devlin opened his eyes. He looked angry and confused.

“When did you know? Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Devlin asked in an angry tone. He felt betrayed. He has never thought of marrying Amber. He was glad that Amber also did not want to do the marriage. Or was that really her intention when she came to attend his grandma’s burial? He is too angry to even think clearly.

“It was your grandma’s decision a month after she found out that her cancer is back. She called me for a private meeting one day. She said it is something personal and does not have to do with work.” Attorney Harrison had to pause. Even himself did not agree with his client’s decision. He tried to talk to her to think carefully before she would take any further decision.

“Your grandma was determined to have you married to her childhood friend’s daughter. She mentioned about meeting her that day she heard the news of her cancer.” Of course, anyone close to her would never forget that day she met Amber. She never stopped talking about her.

“How about the letter? Do you know what’s inside here?” Devlin asked blankly. He could not think clearly. He is in a desperate situation right now.

“And how can you let my grandma make her decision? She was very sick and she was not in the right mind to make a sound decision.” Devlin argued. It should be the family or anyone close to her could advise her in whatever decision she takes.

“Devlin, your grandma was definitely in her right mind when she made that decision months ago. I even consulted her doctors if her brain could have been fogged from those therapies and medications she took. However, she did not start her extensive therapy until two months later. She made that decision before she started her chemotherapy. I tried talking her out. But you know your grandma. She was a very stubborn woman.” Devlin only smirked at the lawyer. He does not know how to get out of his situation.

“Attorney Harrison, is there any way out of this? I mean what about Amber? Wouldn’t the law also consider her opinion of this matter?” Devlin asked without thought, desperation in his voice was apparent.

“You can have your own lawyer fact-checked everything. It is a watertight document. And for Ms. Adams, she has no idea about any of these. It just so happened that your grandmother was very fond of her. She even put her in the addendum of her will. And by that time, you are already both husband and wife.” Attorney Harrison said seriously. He took a drink from his glass of water.

“What watertight? I don’t fucking care about the damn will. And how sure are you that she has no idea about the whole thing?” Devlin is too angry that he could not even hold his temper. He is losing his mind.

“Mr. Wesley, I am sorry but if you will not honor your grandma’s wish, she specifically added in her will that half of your inheritance from her will go to the charity and the other half of it will go to Ms. Adams.” Devlin wanted to say more but stayed quiet. He made a fist. He is so pissed at his situation right now. How can his own grandmother put him in this situation?

“Attorney Harrison, I still can’t believe that this is all happening. How can grandma do this to me? Why did she not do it to Dalton?” He felt it was unfair of his grandmother to put him in such a situation while Dalton is happy with his ex. Thinking of Raven right now made the situation even worse. He had to massage his temple to calm down.

“Is there anything else that I don’t know of, Attorney Harrison?” This time his voice started to sound calm.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“Yes. I am sorry to break it to you but your grandmother also set the date for your wedding. All your papers are ready including the bride’s papers. So, all you need to do is to sign the marriage certificate in front of the judge.” Attorney Harrison ended with a more serious tone. He looks tense as well. He knew Devlin’s grandmother for decades through her husband. She was a very tough woman. He ended up to be her trusted confidante when her husband passed away. She could not trust no one with the financials. Her own son was not interested in the company. He is busy with his own life. If there is someone that she could entrust her wealth to, it could have been her grandson, Devlin. So, why she forced him to do the marriage confused him. That part of Olivia’s life, she never spoke about it in detail. She only shared a few snippets of her childhood life. However, Attorney Harrison knew the details too well.

“What the hell? So, you think Amber is still clueless about the whole thing? Maybe she planned all of these. She manipulated a very sick woman so she could get what she wanted. Besides, how did grandma get hold of the bride’s papers without Amber’s knowledge?” Devlin said in conclusion of everything he found out today. He doesn’t care anymore about the words that are coming out from his mouth. He started to hate Amber. These are all her faults. If she didn’t show up that day and met his grandmother, then, all of these would not have happened. He could have been focused on pursuing Raven right now.

“Attorney Harrison, I think my time here is done. I am sorry but I want to be alone and think about the whole thing.” Despite his anger, he could not just be upset at Mr. Harrison. He is not only an employee of his grandmother but also a family friend. He can’t be channeling his frustrations on him.

He is now in his car just sitting down. He was trying to replay in his mind what just happened a while ago.

Amber is the reason behind all of these. He could not believe that he treated her kindly. He let her stay in his condo. Made an effort to tour her around the city. And even brought her to a lavish restaurant on a yacht.

‘Aren’t you just the same as her? You used her to get back with Raven.’ His conscience contradicted his thoughts.

Devlin had to shake off his head. At least he did it out of love for someone while Amber is motivated by her greed. It did not even take long for her to come to Seattle to see what she is going to get. Maybe she poisoned his grandma’s mind. Everything is just fake. She is nothing but a parasite who saw a huge opportunity from a weak, old woman.

While deep in his thoughts, his phone suddenly rang. He saw Amber’s name on his phone screen. He smirked while looking at his phone…