17 Guilty As Charged

There were times he couldn't believe how foul mouthed he could be when he was angry, or was thinking too hard. It was a weakness, of course, but one that he had been unwilling to let go of. It was also a huge stress reliever after all. That, and smoking.

Miya was beaming, and she looked radiant. He didn't know how to feel about it. She had been scowling at him for most of the day, but just three words from him were enough to have her grinning from ear to ear.

"I will leave."

Jim exhaled noisily. Well, the woman could be happy for now. He was going to have her in her custody for a year, later on.

Looking at her rather disturbing record, Jim had asked Park why she had been shortlisted as his potential bride in the first place. An easier woman might have succumbed to him by now. Fascinatingly, Park had told him that all of the information was off the record. It was only on deeper investigation that they had come to know about her past.

Well, as it turned out, Park and Hartley could be pretty useless at times. Who knew, how horrifying the other two women they had shortlisted would have been. Thankfully, he would never know.

Because Miya, this harmless looking little creature, had a rather astounding record. Though never officially arrested, the reports had said that she had been involved in charges of both assault and B\u0026E (break and enter).

The reason Park had wanted him to leave.

He had been overreacting, of course, but he wasn't wrong.

Jim sighed deeply. He didn't know what to do now. Under normal circumstances, he would have immediately left after reading the girl's history. He wasn't dense enough to marry such a shady woman. But now, with the recent situation at hand, he had no choice. There wasn't enough time to pursue someone else, and well, keeping aside personal feelings, he had enough threads on Miya to make her dance the way he wanted.

He silently cursed this whole ordeal.

He had a plan formulated, but he hated the fact that he would have to deal with this troublesome woman for an entire year, in case things turned out fine. If they didn't, he would lose his inheritance, and that too to two wanton morons. It was like he was playing with a double edged sword. The only person getting struck at would be him.

Beside him, Miya kept looking at Jim, her expression awaiting, hoping he would tell her "Bye-Bye" and just leave. But all he did was type furiously at his phone. Who was he texting anyway, and that too so fast and so much? Girlfriend?

Eh. As if.

She wouldn't have been involved in this situation if he had one.

Shrugging, she kept his gaze on him, hoping he would see how excited she was to watch him leave.

For just a second, his attention wandered, and his eyes caught the sight of Miya looking hopefully at him.

He almost laughed.

The woman could not have been more expressive of her intention.

Shrugging, he replaced the phone in his pocket. Then holding out his hand, he smiled, "Well, Miya. Thank you for the treat. I wish you had accepted my offer and we had become friends. But well, I wish you good luck for the future. I hope there are no hard feelings."

Miya's face dropped. She was dumbfounded.

She looked at Jim's outstretched hand, and didn't know what to do. Something didn't feel right. The young master, just like that, was going to let her go? What about his big deal? The contract he desperately wanted? All his threats of suing her? And that matter of Ben's adoption…

Even though Jim was smiling at her, Miya couldn't come to believe him. Sure, she wanted him to go. But she didn't expect it to be this easy. Moreover, he didn't even tell her to keep quiet about the 'broom' incident. Wasn't he the least bit afraid she'd spill the beans to someone?

No, something was definitely not right.

"Miya?"

"Ah. Yeah."

He held out her own feeble arm, afraid now. Her fingers had barely scraped his palm when she withdrew her hand with a jolt.

She didn't care about the guy's plan. As long as he didn't mess things up for her.

Jim watched her every move. Now that he had discovered her history, he had to be careful. He could see she suspected something, but wasn't convinced of the notion. So far, so good.

To give the scene more effect, Jim turned around, ready to leave.

In his head, he counted up to three.

One. Two. Th–

A loud bang suddenly echoed through the entire room, making everyone inside jump.

There it was.

Jimmy pretended to be alarmed and stepped back, whereas Miya was shocked. Someone was obviously trying to break open the door.

But, why?

Almost in answer, a loud bellow resounded through the room.

"Open up! This is the police! We know Mr. Hunter has been kidnapped, and that he's inside. Open up, or else we'll have to force our way in!"

All colour drained from Miya's face.

She was white as a sheet.

Jim observed her closely. The woman looked positively horrified. He had noticed her expression change at exactly one word.

Police.

He smiled.

Guilty, Miya.

Guilty as charged.