The Reluctant Wife (Sold to marry a disabled man.)

Mr. Edmund Walkey and his wife, Evelyn Walkey, were sitting, waiting for the Grey family's arrival.

"Where is that unfilial daughter? She should be sitting here before the Grey family arrives," Mr. Edmund Walkey said sternly, looking toward the staircase to see if Emmeline was coming. Just then, the Grey family walked inside: Mr. Malcolm Grey, his wife, Mrs. Victoria Grey.

Immediately, Mr. Walkey saw them walking in, and he stood up with his wife as they welcomed them and gestured for them to sit down on one of their soft, comfortable couches in the living room.

"Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Grey," Mr. Walkey said softly, smiling warmly.

"Thank you," Mr. Grey replied as both he and his wife sat down, soft smiles forming on their lips.

"Please tell us what kind of drink we can offer you before we get to the dining table to eat," Mr. Walkey said softly.

"We can leave that for now, Mr. Walkey," Mr. Grey said politely while Mr. Walkey nodded his head understandingly.

"We are sorry that only my wife and I could make it here. Other family members are busy, and as I mentioned to you earlier today, we only want a paper marriage for now due to the condition of our son," Mr. Grey said softly while Mr. Walkey nodded his head.

"It's okay, Mr. Grey. We understand, and it's alright if it's a paper marriage. I talked to my daughter about it and she is okay with anything as long as our company is saved. With the amount of money you offered for the marriage deal, it is worth anything you bring us," Mr. Walkey said softly, but one could see the desperation in his voice.

"So we have the marriage certificate, and all we want now is your daughter's signature so we can take her with us. Because after signing the papers, she will be legally a part of our family. I hope we can trust your daughter with our son, as this is the main reason we were looking for a woman to marry him due to his health condition," Mr. Malcolm Grey said softly as he spoke, studying Mr. Walkey's expression and satisfied with his simple answers and requirements for the marriage deal he was offering.

"Yes, Mr. Grey, you can trust my daughter with your son. She will take good care of him. That's why I chose my elder daughter from my first wife. She is mature and kind-hearted, which makes her someone you can trust to be with your son," Mr. Walkey assured Mr. Grey, who nodded his head but furrowed his brows.

"So where is she? I mean your daughter; she should be sitting here and listening to everything we are saying so we can be sure she is ready for this," Mr. Grey said, looking around.

"Oh, she is in her room. I should tell my wife to bring her here," Mr. Walkey said and turned to his wife, who was sitting beside him and listening to the conversation.

Mrs. Walkey nodded her head,

"Excuse me," she said and left the living room to bring Emmeline.

Mrs. Walkey entered Emmeline's room and found her sitting quietly, probably waiting for them to call her, as she knew there was nothing she could do but do whatever her father told her to do.

Mrs. Walkey walked toward her,

"They are here and waiting for you. I hope you don't mess this up and behave well. Remember, the safety of your father's company is in your hands now. Even if he is not your biological father, he raised you and gave you a life you probably wouldn't have had if your mother hadn't forced the pregnancy on him. So it's better you repay his kindness by doing what he wants for you. Is that clear?" Mrs. Walkey said sternly while Emmeline could only nod her head.

"Good. Now get up and don't wear that pity face when you go out to the people who are waiting for you," Mrs. Walkey said while Emmeline forced a smile and stood up from the bed.

She was already dressed in a simple white princess gown, and her hair was neatly done with light makeup.

Mrs. Walkey led her out of the room, and both walked back to the living room where Mr. and Mrs. Grey were waiting for the girl who was going to marry their son on paper.

As Mrs. Walkey and Emmeline walked into the sitting room, Mrs. Walkey sat beside her husband, and Emmeline sat on the left side next to Mr. Walkey.

Mr. Grey studied Emmeline as she walked in with Mr. Walkey;

The way she greeted them showed she couldn't look at their faces properly. She looked simple, gentle, and beautiful.

Mr. Grey sighed in satisfaction; he couldn't judge from the girl's appearance if she would be trustworthy, but he could sense how simple and gentle she seemed to be.

"Okay, so this is your elder daughter? She is beautiful, but I hope we can trust her," Mr. Grey said, while Mrs. Walkey quickly replied,

"Of course, you can trust her. She isn't the type to back off or disobey the family." Mr. Walkey said softly, taking a glance at Emmeline, who bowed her head as she couldn't look up.

"Is everything alright with her? Why is she not looking at us? Is she scared of anything? I thought you told her everything about..." Mr. Grey couldn't finish what he was saying before the soft voice, pleasant to the ears, cut him off,

"I'm not scared, and my father told me everything, so you have nothing to worry about," Emmeline said boldly, causing Mr. Grey to look surprised but smile and feel satisfied in his mind.

"She is bolder than she looks," he thought and smiled.

"Okay, if that's the case, then we shouldn't waste time talking too much. As we told your father, you are going to sign the marriage agreement. Are you ready for this?" Mr. Grey asked while Emmeline nodded her head.

"What is your name again, young lady?" Mrs. Grey asked softly.

"Emmeline," Emmeline said softly with a slight smile.

"Nice name. I hope you can take care of my son and won't betray him. You know you have a responsibility once you sign this paper, right?" Mrs. Grey asked while Emmeline nodded her head.

"I'm ready for this, and you don't have to worry about betraying your family. I won't think of doing that for the sake of my family," Emmeline said while Mrs. Grey smiled.

"Let's proceed then." Mr. Grey said while he placed some papers on the table and pushed them toward Emmeline for her to go through and sign.

------

After the marriage arrangements, Mr. and Mrs. Grey left the Walkeys' mansion with Emmeline.

Emmeline was leaving the Walkey family. The family she thought were her family, leaving them for good.

She was going to accept whatever came her way.

~~~~~~~

Mr. and Mrs. Grey took Emmeline to her supposed husband's room.

"This door leads to your husband's room. This is where you will start living with him. He lives here alone. There were time when maids were working in the house, but he fired them all after one of the maids tried to poison him, which is why we have decided to get him a wife who can take care of him," Mr. Grey explained to Emmeline as they showed her around the house.

Emmeline was confused about something:

"Why do they keep saying they want a wife to take care of him? Is he disabled?" she thought as she couldn't figure out what was going on. She thought it was only a marriage but didn't realize she was marrying a disabled man.

"Umm, can I ask the reason why he needs a wife to take care of him and in what way?" Emmeline found herself asking. Mr. and Mrs. Grey looked at her, surprised.

"Didn't your father tell you why we want this marriage? Of course, our son is disabled due to an accident, and he can't walk or do anything alone without assistance. That's why we married you to him," Mrs. Grey said sternly. Emmeline was dumbfounded.

"A disabled man? I married a disabled man?" she thought, feeling like her heart was crumbling and her life was about to fall apart.

"There's no changing of mind; you are already married to him, and now he is your responsibility," Mrs. Grey said sternly again, causing Emmeline to jolt out of her thoughts.

Emmeline forced a smile and nodded.

"Now I understand, and I will make sure I do my best to take good care of him." Emmeline forced her voice to sound bold, even though her heart was screaming and broken.