#skylar ft. james (01)

[musebluebird]

𝓳𝓪𝓶𝓮𝓼 & 𝓼𝓴𝔂𝓵𝓪𝓻 │closed starter for @overnightheartbeats

Of all the Lords she could have marry to, he was the only one that was her sworn enemy. She found him incredibly irritating and annoying. James Grey had been a thorn in her ass since their first class at university. For four years wherever she was, he wasn't far behind. They shared the Finance major for four years at Stanford. Of course they had both been fighting each other during that time to be the best students. James had never missed an opportunity to point out all of Skylar's mistakes and whenever he had been right he had let her know. She also didn't forget that he had dated all her friends, literally all of them. The bastard seemed to want to make her very existence miserable. Her friends were all under his spell cause yeah, even idiots like James had some charm in them. History between them had taught Skylar a very important thing. James was not a person to be underestimated. He was smart in many ways but above all he was smart in moving around as if life was a carefully kept chess game.

To her surprise, Sky found that she was on the list of people authorized to go up to James' office. Son of a bitch. When did he find out about the marriage? Her uncle told her an hour ago in a very brief text that her time to contribute to the family had come. She knew what he meant by that. Hadn't she contributed enough already tho? Her whole life was about the family empire that was never really going to belong to her no matter how much birthright she had over it. She had always known that a Lord was going to end up being the one ending up in control of the family empire. Currently, Sky worked at a firm in the States where she started as an intern after ending her major. She didn't want to take over the family empire cause taking over meant having to go back to Europe and going back to Europe meant being too close to her uncle. Not even an ocean was enough distance between them.

She gave a small, polite smile to his secretary although the girl didn't return it. Ok, that was rude but whatever. "You assumed I was coming and that's why my name was on the authorized list of visitors?" She asked directly as she opened the door to his office. “Holding any secret hopes, sweetie?” Her mocking tone was clear in her voice. Skylar didn’t pretend it to be otherwise. This bastard had no sense of self-preservation at all apparently if he pretend to outsmart her. How long had he known about the marriage? Had he just found out like she did, or did he know all along?

[pansexualjaybird-blog]

♕ yuri plisetsky; the center of the universe ♕ 

01. hobgoblin - clc

02. shine - years & years

03. bite - troye sivan

04. moving mountains - skylar grey 

05. weaker girl - banks 

06. heavy - linkin park ft. kiiara

07. go for broke - machine gun kelly ft. james arthur

08. the greatest - sia ft. kendrick lamar

[massivelysuperbmaker-blog1]

Date: 2017-11-13 12:00:01

✎Here is some of Sylvester Stallone's best advice to stay productive: "Every champion was once a contender that refused to give up." "I am not the richest, smartest or most talented person in the world, I succeed because I keep going and going and going." "Remember the mind is your best muscle…BIG ARMS can move rocks, but BIG WORDS can move mountains….Ride the brain train for success." ✎ Productive Music Playlist - November 2017: Be more productive at work with this playlist that science says will help you. From Avicii to Britney Spears and The Chainsmokers, and more. ✎ For those interested in the data behind this here is a quick infographic from FastCompany: * Classical music: stimulates creativity and brain activity * Music with a beat / techno / trance: productivity for office workers * More here: http://www.fastcompany.com/3030955/the-future-of-work/this-infographic-will-tell-you-what-music-you-should-listen-to-at-work ✎ Some more of the research: * Playing music at work can improve your mood: http://pom.sagepub.com/content/33/2/173 * "Low-information-load" music - simple tunes without a lot of complexity - have the strongest positive effect on cognitive skill: http://www.amsciepub.com/doi/abs/10.2466/pms.1989.69.2.531?journalCode=pms * Surgeons work more accurately when music they liked was playing in the background - music they didnt' like was second best, and no music was least helpful of all: http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=379309 * Music can boost your levels of neurotransmitter dopamine, a brain chemical that can help people focus: http://edition.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/worklife/03/23/cb.tuned.in.at.work/index.html?iref=24hours ♫ LIST OF SONGS ♫ DJ Snake ft. Justin Bieber - Let Me Love You Cheat Codes - Sex MNEK, Zara Larsson - Never Forget You Skrillex and Diplo - To U (Feat. AlunaGeorge) Selena Gomez ft. Marshmello - Wolves Avicii - Waiting For Love - starts at 00:08 The Chainsmokers & Coldplay - Something Just Like This Avicii - Levels Robin Schulz - OK (feat. James Blunt) Axwell - more Than You Know OMI - Hula Hoop Britney Spears - Work Bitch Robin Schulz & David Guetta & Cheat Codes - Shed A Light Avicii vs Nicky Romero - I Could Be The One Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful Cheat Codes - No Promises Avicii ft. Rita Ora - Lonely Together Martin Garrix - Hold On & Believe Chantaje ft. Maluma - Shakira The Weeknd - Starboy Marshmello x Ookay - Chasing Colors Alan Walker - Sing Me To Sleep Galantis - Pillow Fight The Chainsmokers - My Type ft. Emily Warren Major Lazer - Run Up (feat. PartyNextDoor & Nicki Minaj) Meiko - Leave The Lights On Kygo & Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me David Guetta ft. Skylar Grey - Shot Me Down B.o.B. - Airplanes ft. Hayley Williams of Paramore The Chainsmokers - Paris Lady Gaga - Poker Face Grace ft. G-Eazy - You Don't Own Me Flo Rida - Wild Ones ft. Sia ♛ BUY MY BOOK, CHANGE YOUR LIFE ♛ Some used the ideas in this book to build multi-billion-dollar businesses. I'll give you the simple-yet-powerful formula that they used (and you can) to realize your dreams. Get yours. http://www.evancarmichael.com/oneword/ ✉ JOIN MY #BELIEVE NEWSLETTER ✉ This is the best way to have entrepreneur gold delivered to your inbox, and to be inspired, encouraged and supported in your business. Join #BelieveNation and feel the love. http://www.evancarmichael.com/newsletter/ ⚑ SUBSCRIBE TO MY CHANNEL ⚑ If you want to do great things you need to have a great environment. Create one by subbing and watching daily. http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=Modelingthemasters ¿ COMMON QUESTIONS ¿ • What is #BTA?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsY8bmTUVP8 • How do I get one of Evan's t-shirts?: http://evancarmichael.com/Gear.html • Why does Evan look like Nicolas Cage?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZHRniTcRwo • Why does Evan make so many videos? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEKxGA8xr1k • How do I vote for the next Top 10 video Evan should make? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0arZb0xLIDM

[djdeepdo-blog]

Best Mix Deep House 2017 - Mix Set #20 - Best Of Deep House Chill Out & New Tropical House Mix 2017

Tracklist:

00:00 - 03:40 / Ed Sheeran - Castle On The Hill (Throttle Remix) 03:41 : 09:17 / James Vincent Mc Morrow - Higher Love (Matoma Remix) 09:18 - 13:36 / LYAR - Rush (ft. Antonia) 13:37 - 17:12 / The Weeknd & Daft Punk - Starboy (Kygo Remix) 17:13 - 20:04 / The Chainsmokers - Paris (Ingi Bauer Remix) 20:05 - 24:18 / Major Lazer x DJ Snake - Lean On (KLYMVX Ft. Emma Heesters Remix) 24:19 - 27:35 / Train - Hey, Soul Sister (Psyrex Remix) 27:36 - 30:55 / Kygo, Selena Gomez - It Ain't Me (with Selena Gomez) 30:56 - 35:00 / Alexx Mack - Whatever I Want (Ammi Remix) 35:01 - 38:29 / Skylar Grey - Coming Home (Hush The Kings Remix) 38:30 - 42:54 / Holly Drummond - Fade (Corey Gallagher Remix) Kygo Style 42:55 - 47:40 / Maroon 5 feat Wiz Khalifa - Payphone (Matoma remix) 47:41 - 51:19 / Will Smith - Miami (Matoma Remix) 51:20 - 56:06 / Robin Schulz - So Lonely (feat. Easy Freak) 56:07 - 59:17 / Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (Ryan Dwane Remix) 59:18 / Black Eyed Peas - Where Is The Love (BCX Ft. Ellena Soule Remix)

=== Enjoy the mix ===

Subscribe to my youtube channel for even more mix. a big thank-you

[musebluebird]

She raised her brows at his words before leaning over the table to look at the papers. It was a mess to say the least. If it wasn't for the company logo on the trim, she wouldn't have believe him. It made no sense for those financial statements to belong to the company. Her uncle had tried to sink the ship and it seemed like he had done everything in his power to do so. "Firstly, may I remind you that you signed certain papers that prevent you from talking about this with anyone other than me?" And by 'anyone' she meant especially his family, especially his father. It wasn't that the old man scared Skylar but maybe it was necessary to clarify to James that he couldn't even ask anyone for advice on the matter. It was just the two of them and that was it. Contract was pretty clear on that.

"Second, give me some bloody credit, if I had anything to do with this it wouldn't look so sloppy or obvious, you know I'm smarter than this." If she had anything to do with it, to start with she would have delayed the marriage as long as possible until the situation was unrecoverable and above all, she wouldn't have been so stupid to do it with James on the other side, Sky knew better than to underestimate him.

She took a deep breath before continuing "Third, as much as you'd love for me to be the one to blame, we both know there's only one person responsible for this" Her uncle. He must had something to do with all that, what had the board of directors said about it? They had to know about it too. Skylar had been playing the cat and mouse game with her uncle for a long time. She chose not to work for the family business for a reason she kept to herself "Knowing him, he did everything he could to destroy everything so the family legacy would end with him" and for Skylar to be blamed for any failure of the company. Normally she would never let something like that go unnoticed but getting involved in the company meant entering into an armed war with her uncle. She preferred to hide, she was ashamed of even thinking about it but Sky had done better being the mouse and hiding than being the cat. There were battles she had already decided to lose. All that was left was to make sure her husband fought her battles for her. A coward but a smart one she guessed.

"And knowing you, that's only going to happen over your dead body cause, James? If there's one thing I know about you it's that you like to lose as much as I do." She shrugged as if to downplay the matter. Skylar was trying to manipulate him into wanting to take matters into his own hands as much as she did. Making him see that they were both on the same team there and that she wasn't his enemy, at least not about this "I guess you don't need me to tell you, you need to fix this before it goes public or worse, before it's time to make the annually financial statements public, investors are going to run away if they see this and the board, you need to find out if they were aware of this and then fire them, because if they didn't know, at best they're incompetent, at worst they're as guilty as my uncle" James and she spoke the same language when it came to finances, at least she knew that he was a self-centered idiot but he was capable of solving a crisis of that size in equal measures.

And then, reality hit her like a bucket of cold water. A small, big detail. In order for him to do everything she had just mentioned, James would need to be there personally. "We'll have to move." She nodded, putting the papers aside and leaning back in her chair. "Or maybe you can go I can stay here." But deep down Skylar knew it would never work out, two newlyweds willing to enter into a long distance relationship just a week after saying 'I do.' That was not going to be possible, not really, they would both have to move "This is a mess" She sighed. Skylar was not willing to go back to Europe and all that meant to be back there. She was better at running. She was also too coward to admit she was scared.

Oddly enough, James welcomed the silence that came after he made that comment. He was well aware what he said, but he was not above a ridiculous comment to regain his peace and quiet. It wasn't until she spoke up once again that James got the sense that he had caused a prick of pain. And for a moment, he felt a pang of guilt for his abrasiveness. Still, not something he was going to back down out of. One thing that characterized him and his siblings was their stubbornness, something that usually developed into their inability to admit when they're wrong. So, instead, he looked up from his desk as she got up from the chair. "Lunch break? And, here I thought you controlled your own schedule." James rolled his eyes, nodding in agreement. It was what he had suggested earlier. What was the point in spending hours planning something they both were in disagreement over? Planning a marriage he dreaded sounded like the worst way to spend his evenings. "Great, wedding planner is the best course of action. You keep throwing the kill thing around, you better hope I don't drop dead before reaching the altar." Well, at least she still agreed to see him there. James wasn't sure how it'd go if he told his father she flat out refused marriage.

Once James took the time to process this marriage as the merger it would eventually be for both families, he was perfectly fine. It was good business, and he was confident in his abilities to drive the company forward. His brother had been committed to their family's empire, and his sister would eventually get her head in the game. The Greys were secure, and that thought comforted him. Honestly, honestly? He might've actually enjoyed the reception a bit, when he ignored the drawback to this situation - Skylar. It was a bit weird, sure, for the few words exchanged between them to be their vows and I do promise, but they had said too much at their last meeting. They had already laid everything out on the table, what more could they spat at each other? She kept her distance, and kept their conversation to a minimum. He was fine, at least he wasn't hearing constant complaints of how he planned this entire scheme.

The wedding was stunning, at least she had a good eye for wedding planners. He had even heard it was considered one of the weddings of the year, two for the Greys. Great, one point for Skylar. The wedding planner had reached out a few times with the dumbest requests, which color for whatever. Who cared, just pick one. Aren't you the expert? Admittedly, he contributed nothing but his presence. Though James supposed that his parents had a say here and there. He could see glimpses of their touch.

He had no plans to come into her family's office building. Shortly after the wedding, he had been given access to the company files, and knew he had a lot of work to do to catch up. Still, he preferred to keep his distance and continue using his office at his family's building. After all, he'd see more than enough of her at home. But, just the beginning of his review, he already had more questions and one that he really wished his wife wouldn't confirm. Walking into her office, he rolled his eyes at her first comment. "Cut the crap Skylar." Did she really think this was a social visit of some sort, that he was actually demented enough to make his way here? He came in with a file, printed versions of the files he had received access to. "This is not a social visit. Help me? Yeah, I'd hope so. Care to explain why your family's finances are shot? All that shit you talked about old money, and your family is in the red? Cute. What's your game here - trying to dupe my family into marriage? Use our money to rescue your company?"

[musebluebird]

She didn't listen much after he brought her parents into the mix. This jerk. He really had no limits on how low he could stop. Skylar waited a moment to gather her thoughts after he finished speaking and stared at him for a minute. "Wow." She said to break the silence. "Throwing her dead parents in the face of your future wife." It had been a long time and she had accepted it? Yes. Did that mean it was okay for her future husband to remind her that her parents were 3 meters underground? No. "That was low even for you." Skylar said with a nod. Not that she was particularly going to burst into tears over being reminded that she was an orphan but even Skylar hadn't expected him to go there. James really was a piece of work, wasn't he? She had gone too far but was definitely not going to apologize to him after what he said.

Skylar stod up from her chair and smoothed down her skirt. “I have to go back to work anyway, my lunch break is almost over.” She replied before looking at her wrist watch. “I’ll find a wedding planner to take care of everything so we don’t have to kill each other before the ‘I do’ comes around.” She was more likely to kill him after what he had just said. Besides, she just didn’t want to have to deal with everything that went into organizing a wedding that she didn’t even want in the first place. Was she going to have suggestions for the planner since she had thought, like any little girl, about what her wedding would be like? Sure but was not going to put extra effort on it tho “See you at the altar, idiot.” She rolled her eyes before walking out of his office.

It had been exactly five days since she said ‘I do’ and technically she was officially ‘Mrs. Grey’. Skylar preferred to leave the title to her mother in law, she would rather be dead than let anyone call her ‘Mrs. Grey’. True to her promise in her office, she had kept conversation with James to a minimum before the wedding, communicating strictly through the wedding planner if necessary but making most of the decisions herself. Poor girl, she really felt bad for the woman who had to mediate between the two of them but Sky had made sure that she collected a bonus and boosted her business socially by organizing what the gossip magazines and society in general defined as 'one of the weddings of the year', ironically the other wedding of the year was her sister in law's wedding.

When the security downstairs told her that her husband was coming up, Skylar had to admit that she had been speechless for a moment. Since they had been married less than a week ago, they had pretended that the other did not exist and she was perfectly fine with that. Except for the move, which had been prearranged by their secretaries, Sky's life had remained pretty much the same as it had been before they got married. She was a workaholic and had no problem saying so, anyway Skylar would leave the apartment early to start the day at a pilates class and then go to work until after dinner time. When she got home usually the cook would have dinner ready and a portion ready for her, Sky would eat dinner and then go to her room for the rest of the night. Of course they didn't share a room so it was all easier.

"Oh, how the tables have turned" She scoffed leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms when the door opened. Ready for a fight because they were always fighting. Now it was James who walked into her office in a foul mood. Her new husband's hair was a little messy, Skylar assumed it was because he was frustrated and had run his hands through his hair, something she found out he did back in college. He looked like he wanted to strangle her with his bare hands, an expression she had seen a few times when she prided herself on having gotten on his nerves in college. "How can I help you, darling?" She smiled sweetly at him. Skylar really didn't know what the problem could be because this time, she hadn't done absolutely anything that would have caused him to be so angry at her.

He shrugged in response to her comment. Sure, he knew. Skylar had edge to her, it made her interesting. Then again, it also made her irritating to no end. A never-ending back and forth, a balance he'd need to find soon before he lost his mind. There was no need to find it before in college or in passing. If she irritated him enough, he could just walk away. That was a luxury he was about to lose. Her choice of wording probably didn't have the meaning he was pointing out, but it was too amusing to pass up. His smirk in full view as he replied. "See, you're already coming around to it." James had heard about that too, the distance within that family. "Very well then. I won't operate under that assumption, that he keeps you informed."

“Not by choice,” he spoke through gritted teeth. The way she said it, you’d think he groveled at her feet begging to tie the knot. He was not thrilled with the idea, but he seemed to have something that Skylar was severely lacking - a reality check. James knew what was expected of him, being from the family he was and being the second child. He didn’t have a unique quality in the group of siblings, not the oldest and not the ‘only girl’. He was just a sibling, she was right about that. It stung a bit, but it wasn’t anything he hadn’t heard before. Her mocking comment reminded him so much of his siblings' comments when he sided with his father instead of sticking with them. She really had to get new material. Though, he supposed that new material would inevitably come with marriage. She'd see more of him than anyone had ever done. "At least I have a father to listen to. Where are you, estranged uncle?" He was no stranger to her family. James had recently gotten the rundown of his future wife and what he'd be marrying into. No parents, taken in by her uncle. Only heir to the empire. It was a low blow, but if families were allowed in the conversation, then he'd take it.

James let her speak, though frankly, the conversation was beginning to bore him. Perhaps, because it wasn't a conversation and just a display of wealth and who's bigger than who. He was aware that his family lacked the old, generational wealth. It was one of the reasons his father was so ambitious, focused on securing his family's safety and power in society. A goal he instilled in his children too, though his siblings lacked the commitment for it (or so James thought). He could only roll his eyes because she was acting so high and mighty about an empire she couldn't even control.

"Are you done?" He asked when there was a moment of silence. "You're the one who barged into my office demanding answers to questions I, myself, had only a few hours ago. You don't think I know that? I know what's best for my family, I'm willing to do it. You're here sticking your chin up for a last name and legacy that you only have in name. Because, here's the kicker - you spat about my family, my tragic middle child life, but at the end of the day, I don't lose. Well, having you by my side, but I'll manage. Soon enough, I will take the reins of that empire you defend so much and I won't even need to lose my name for it." Still a Grey at the end of the day. "Sure, your family name is more important. We know that. Why do you think this is even happening? But, don't kid yourself. Your uncle agreed to this for a reason. We must have something, even with our lowly new money. Yes, we benefit more from it, I sure hope so, considering what I'm tying myself to. So, what's your point? You came to list the fifty reasons this sucks for you? Because that's all I'm hearing right now."

[musebluebird]

"I'm no joke either as you should already know" She replied tilting her head slightly to stare at him. He was an idiot if he was simply underestimating her. That smirk of his reminded her of when he used to get better grades than her in college. One thing about James was that he would always let you know when he was right. He just loved it even more when it was her who was in the wrong apparently. In that way they were alike, part of why they still got along like cats and dogs after all these years.

"One thing you should know since you're soon to be my brand new husband is that I don't talk to my uncle if I can help it, you know him so you can imagine why" It was much deeper and more complicated than the simple fact that her uncle was just plain an idiot but she wasn't going to reveal her darkest secrets to James either. Enough that she was admitting out loud that her relationship with her uncle was completely non-existent.

Oh, boy. He didn't just- this asshole "And yet here you are, marrying me" She was not going to bring it up or saying it out loud to be honest. Skylar did not consider herself a rude or cruel person but James couldn't just insult her like that and expect her to let it go. She was a catch. That was a fact. They could agree on the fact that so was he and that neither of them would have been the other's first choice if they could choose who they would marry "Aww, do you always do what daddy says? Good to know moving forward" She mocked with every intention of making her voice sound as sly as possible.

"Pardon to disagree but you are the second child out of three, pretty irrelevant in the grand scheme of things and we both know you should have married some heiress anyway because if we're being honest, like really honest James, that's the biggest value you'll bring to your family ultimately, who your future wife will be." She rolled her eyes. Was she perhaps being a little cruel and purposely butting into a subject she knew he might be sensitive about? Yes. Skylar knew how much she had just insulted him but James knew her well and couldn't expect him to just insult her like that and let him go. That wasn't what they did "and don't take it personally, that's the same value I'll bring to mine, who my future husband will be and how well will that position the family" Was that a thorn in her side? Of course it was. That was one of the biggest frustrations of her life but she will be damned if she let a man believe he was above her.

"In fact, getting yourself an heiress is the best thing you can do for your family so don't come here and give me the 'my family is just as important as yours' speech because spoiler alert, they're not, you know that, I know that, your father clearly noticed it too, let's not lie to ourselves." Her uncle hadn't just chosen the Greys, he'd chosen the only Grey who could truly take charge of the company and turn it around from the inside out, why? Was it some stupid revenge against Skylar, who could never truly take charge of her family legacy? Having her watch her enemy torn her family's legacy apart? Why was her uncle choosing a man who could and would have financial control over the family's operations? Because one thing she knew for sure was that James wasn't just going to stand in the shadows and let others do his work for him. There had to be another reason why her uncle had specifically chosen him but Skylar couldn't figure out why exactly. "We are old rich, you know what that means, your family is new rich so if we put everything on a scale to see who benefits more from this marriage, I'm sure your family would come out on top of mine"

"Careful, death threats are no joke," he mused. James probably wouldn't be taking so much pleasure in all of this if it didn't irritate her this way. He wasn't thrilled about this either. In fact, he had his own frustrations that he had been ranting about to his siblings just this morning. But, there was something wicked about irritating Sky. It was fun, he enjoyed it and it helped combat his own frustration.

He rolled his eyes at her comment, drama queen. "You can put them to use all you want, not the best look for your future in-laws." Oh, his father would have a field day if he saw her making a scene in his office. It was tempting, to remove her from the list, just to see what would happen.

Her mocking smile didn't faze him. It's what he was used to, to be honest. As she sat down, he leaned into his desk. "One question for you. Didn't your uncle explain all of this to you already? Or is listening not within your capabilities?" If this was the only reason she came to visit, then she came a long way for nothing. "Or, let me guess. You think I've been scheming in the shadows, after your family's fortune this whole time. Nope. Your family could offer me double, and I wouldn't have taken it if it meant marrying you. If it was up to me." But, that was the thing, wasn't it? Still, he'd be damned if she thought he was on some gold digger mission. "My father believes otherwise, strengthening the families, he says. Guess your family believes the same. We might not own majority of the world's banks, but our name holds weight. You're not doing me a favor, if that's what you're thinking." His chest heaved, a breath falling in an attempt to bring himself back to neutral. It was a touchy subject, but what did it matter? "Since you came all this way, guess I can answer your questions. I found out last night, but you're not exactly on speed dial, so no way to give you a heads up. Details, nope. Figured you'd want the planning privileges, or we hand it to some wedding planner. They're experts by now." A brow raised once more. "Again with the threats. You really have to hope nothing happens to me before they accuse you of murdering your fiance."

[musebluebird]

"Ugh, you're so annoying, I should have killed you back in college when you weren't even a Lord yet." She groaned. It probably would have saved her the headache of having to spend the rest of her life looking at this idiot's face every day. Skylar didn't mean to kill him of course, not really, but James knew how to get on her nerves and always seemed to have a clever comeback for anything she threw at him. Something that she found extremely frustrating.

"Please, go ahead, I always wanted to put those theater lessons I took in school to use anyway." She wasn't a theater girl but she sure could scream like a Broadway actress if she put her mind to it. Skylar didn't think he would ban her, or maybe he would just to annoy her. She wasn't ruling anything out. What a catch, Skylar, what a catch.

"Two questions for you, lover boy." A mocking smile painted her lips at the nickname before she sat down in front of him. The fact that he had slept with all of her friends in college was just proof that nickname was well-appointed. The gossip magazines didn't lie either. "One, how long have you known?" She stared at him waiting for his response. Sky hoped he had some modicum of self-preservation and that this wasn't something he'd known about for a while and had been working on in the shadows. She doubted James was eager to marry her either but it wasn't hard to see that objectively, she was the heiress to a family that owned most of the world's banks and James was a middle child who was never going to inherit anything anyway, not really. Some would say he was the one who had hit the lottery with this marriage. "And two, do you have any other details on the wedding other than we're getting married in three months if you manage to live long enough without me killing you for getting on my nerves?" When her uncle called earlier, Skylar wasn't going to ask him any more questions because she didn't want to prolong any exchange with him any longer than necessary.

His morning had been a quiet one, just like all the others. It felt like any other day really, except for last night's conversation that replayed in his mind. His father called him into the study and informed him that he had done it - found James a bride. A lucrative arrangement for the Grey family, as he put it. James knew it was coming. It'd happen eventually. He wasn't the heir to his family's empire, would never be, and this mean that the arrangement for the younger Grey needed to situate him in a position of power with whatever family they came together with. The idea of the arrangement wasn't what had kept him up that night and distracted him this morning. It was his father's news of the family's name.

Now, James was no fan of the Rothschilds. Her uncle had always looked like a sleaze. He couldn't stand being near the man, no matter how polite he acted. Then, there was Skylar. She was a thorn on his side from the start. He always enjoyed a challenge at school, but she was just a nuisance. It was always push and pull. Some days, he'd find her intriguing. Other days, he was constantly rolling his eyes and walking away before she got a word in.

The phone's beeping noise caught him by surprise, the receptionist informing him of his latest visitor. Great. It was bound to happen, he supposed. Then again, James could've had the entire day to prepare and it still wouldn't be enough. As the door flung open, he looked up to find her standing there. She looked so furious, and honestly? That amused him a bit. Almost made the conversation worth it. "Would you rather I had your name blocked from the visitors' list?" He curiously asked, silently suggesting that was still an option. "Please. Secret hopes are so high school. I have no need." James sensed the mocking tone, and that should be a sign to take a step back and catch their breaths. Maybe, find a way to make this work. After all, choices were slim. "I assume you're here for something, or was it just to test your visitor privileges?"