Nicholas watched the silver flash again. Mr. and Mrs. Bolton were standing upon the steps: Mr. Bolton in black and Mrs. Bolton with a letter in her hand and her eyes looking straight back to the wall of the grand house of his father, Patrick Wild. Nicholas heard the soft whisper of the fire in the furnace and saw the men adjusting their cameras to observe what was going on around them. Others were standing round, still scribbling nervously upon their pads of paper to be a part of the wonderful collaboration between The Wilds and The Boltons. An arrangement that would see their first and only daughter get married to Nicholas Wild. The bulbs flashed again and Nicholas was startled to see that they were pointed in his direction. He wanted to duck his head, or throw his hands in front of his face so he won't be a part of what they were doing, but it was too late. They had enough pictures of him now to show the public how the future groom of Jessica Bolton was going to look like. He moved away as he watched a few men searching for a perfect angle to take more pictures.
After more pictures were taken, some of the men left and Mr. and Mrs. Bolton turned and walked slowly up the stairs and disappeared through the kitchen door in search of his mother, Jennifer Wild. A minute later they were back with Jennifer Wild and with their small white dog following closely behind them. Nicholas still stood with his back to the wall, watching and trying to value every move in relation to himself and his chances of not getting married to Jessica Bolton. He wanted to just run away from everything that was happening in front of him and hide until everything was over, until he could no longer see the cameras moving around his father's grand house again.
"You are supposed to be looking for Jessica Bolton, son. If we want a marriage to happen, the groom has to show that he is willing to search for his bride wherever he wants," his mother said to him as she led Mr. and Mrs. Bolton up the stairs again.
"Sure," Nicholas replied dryly so his mother would know that he actually listened to her and he might consider her statement if there was every a need to consider it.
Again, Nicholas relaxed on the wall as his father, Patrick Wild led a group of men up the stairs into the kitchen. The three men who had come with Patrick Wild sat on the steps and stared gloomily at the floor and the beauty they were seeing with their eyes. Soon the camera men who had gone to phone their stories in came back with bright lights as they took note of the amazing pieces that his father had gotten from Africa. Nicholas knew that they wanted to talk to him because of the way they were staring at him as they moved up and down the stairs. But, he didn't want to talk to them. He wanted to be alone with only the thoughts of Christabel Bloom inside his head.
"Your mother has told you how everything is going to happen," Patrick said as soon as he came down the stairs. "You are going to marry the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Bolton because arrangements have already been made to ensure that both of you get to know each other."
"I don't want to marry her," Nicholas protested. "Doesn't my opinion matter again in this family?"
"For now, it doesn't," Patrick answered him. "For now, you are going to do as I say without complaining."
For a while nobody said anything as his father left him to rejoin the busy camera men who were chasing their stories. Nicholas folded his hands as he saw the camera men who had came down, one by one, turn and stare at him. He lowered his eyes as he knew that they were longing to ask him questions and he did not want that. His eyes roved the room and saw the crumpled copy of a recent newspaper lying forgotten in a corner. He wanted ever so badly to read it but his current mood at the moment was not favouring his eyes to look at it.
Quickly, he grabbed the newspaper when he concluded that he had stared at it long enough to know what was inside it. He grabbed the newspaper and turned to the fifth page and stopped as he discovered a picture of The Boltons. Indeed! Their daughter looked pure and beautiful. Like an angel that had fallen from the sky. He closed the newspaper as he noticed his cousin, Lora Wild staring at him now. She was curious to know what had made him frown in the first place. And her curiosity led her to take the newspaper from him. She turned five times then stopped when she saw the picture of The Boltons dressed for a party.
"Why don't you want to marry her?" She asked, admiring the beautiful picture of Jessica Bolton she was seeing inside the newspaper.
Nicholas looked at his cousin's face and eyed her. "Why are you not yet married?" He responded.
Lora dropped the newspaper on the floor and stared at him, eyeballs to eyeballs. "I am not yet married because I am yet to find a man who can give me what I need," she answered. "Also, considering the kind of family I come from, you of all people should know that I am a big fish to catch. I am not any random hot chick that any man can stop on the way and demand for number without getting a harsh response."
Nicholas sighed. "I bet you still have that attitude in you," he said.
"Of course, I do,"she affirmed.
"I bet you still have that mindset that the world revolves around you and you own it."
"Of course, I do," Lora affirmed for the second time. "If I don't maintain this kind of attitude, I am not going to get the kind of respect I have. The sooner you realize it, the better for you."
Nicholas shook his head as he wondered how he was going to inform his cousin that life was not all about being proud. He knew she wouldn't listen to him because she had spent a large number of years in her life believing that the world was owned by the rich and only the rich had the right to enjoy every bit of it.
"Why are you quiet?"
Nicholas became suddenly alert as he noticed that his cousin was still there, looking at him. He thought she must have left him now since he had showed his lack of interest in her way of life and in the way she saw people.
"What do you want me to say, Lora Wild?" He asked. "I got a wild crazy family that wants me to marry a girl I know nothing about. I can't make a choice. I can't say a word. And, while I am still focused on pursuing independence from my parents, I have to now deal with hurting another woman who I know nothing about."
"So, you are not going to marry her?" Lora asked.
Nicholas wanted to answer her immediately but he stopped himself from making a mistake. What if she was working with his parents? What if she was going to tell them what he would tell her now? He moved away from the wall, leaving Lora Wild to be on her own and only stopped when he found a quiet corner to think.
At the moment, all that was on his mind was Christabel Bloom. He wanted to know how she was doing and if she had decided on when she was going to start running again.