Her heals click and clacked on the floor as she pulled the cigarette from her lips. The loose strands from her ponytail fluttered in the trail she was leaving behind as she moved quickly from the front door back to the bedroom.

"Gabriella I will not have this," her mother said as she followed her, "He is your husband; you have to act like a lady not some childish drama queen."

Gabriella rolled her eyes as she re-entered her bedroom and made her way to the closet where she reached in for another arm load of clothes and turned to stuff them into the duffel bag. "He isn't who we thought he was mother," Gabriella said as she zipped her bag shut. "It's a trick."

"He is exactly who we think," her mother said stepping into the room and unzipping the bag. "He is going to save this family."

Gabriella tossed her hands up in the air in frustration as she exited the room. "He lied, if he lied about this, what else is he lying about?" It was as if the fumes of fury and betrayal were left behind in scorch marks along the tile floor as she made her way upstairs to his office. Her ears burned from embarrassment and her jaw ached from the long periods of keeping her lips tight in that ridiculous smile. She was so tired smiling.

"Gabriella, take a moment and think about this?"

Gabriella pushed open the door as she headed for his desk. The contract had to be in here somewhere. Turning around she was greeted by her mother who placed her hands on Gabriella's shoulders in an attempt to slow her down. "I raised you better than this," she said with frown, "You have to think about what you're doing? What people are going to say? What about the money and the restaurant! You have to keep it together."

"Then after the divorce you can marry him," Gabriella said shrugging away from her touch and going around her as she made her way back desk. Pulling the drawers open she looked inside for an envelope, anything that looked familiar to her.

"Gabriella Marie Bolton," her mother said sternly.

"I'm not going to bit my lip and deal with it so you can save a little face mother," Gabriella yelled over her shoulder as reached inside one of the files and poured it out onto his office floor. "What did he do with it? I know it's in here!" Getting up she made her way to filing cabinet on the other side of the room.

"This is not just about you Gabriella," Maria said standing in the way of Gabriella's path and reaching for the ties from her hands. "This is about the family, the restaurant, and jobs that will be lost if you do this," her mother said with a wild expression as she tried to talk sense to her oldest daughter. "What are you going to do even if you find the contract?"

"I'm going to tear it apart, there has to be another way to get the money," Gabriella said extending her arms in annoyance. "I refuse to be married to him any longer."

"You've only been married for three months!" her mother shouted.

"That's long enough!"

"Gabriella, please."

"Why are my files all over the floor?" Troy's voice came from the doorway and both women jerked in surprise as they turned to look at him.

"Troy, how was the meeting with the investors?" Maria said standing between Gabriella and the file cabinet.

"Fine, up until the part where your daughter walked out like a crazy person," Troy said looking at Gabriella with a narrowed expression "Is it really that hard for you to just to pretend you want to do this?"

"Of course she does," Maria answered for her.

There was silence in the room as Gabriella stared at him with hatred from behind her mother who from day one had been in-between them every time he turned around. From the marriage proposal to this very moment he hadn't married just one Montez woman he'd married three of them, Gabriella, her younger sister Isabella and their mother. "Maria, if it isn't too much to ask may I have a moment with my wife? Alone?" Troy asked calmly.

Maria looked at Gabriella with a frown before she looked back at Troy and nodded. With a sigh she made her way to the door and hesitated before disappearing into the hall. Troy followed and shut the door behind her enclosing both him and Gabriella in the office. In the peace Troy closed his eyes and braced himself for the fight he knew was coming. It had been a fight since day one.

"You lied to me," Gabriella said breaking the silence.

"I didn't lie, I omitted the truth," he said turning to face her as he surveyed the mess in his office, "however now I see that, and I agree that it might have been a bad idea."

"This whole idea is a bad idea!" Gabriella shouted back at him the Spanish accent stronger than he'd ever heard it before. "Be your wife? Fine. Be your business partner? Okay. Sell a room full of men on my sex appeal? Forget it. Unlike you I have Standards! "

Troy placed his hands on his hip and let out a sigh, "Trust me I know you have standards! You never let me forget it!"

"You made me look like a fool."

"You're coming off as a hard ass."

"What husband parades his wife around like a piece of meat?" Gabriella said in disbelief as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"The kind of man who is asking a room full of other men for 45 thousand dollars," he said bewildered. "Seriously. It's not like I strapped you to a table and took numbers. I asked you to unbutton you blouse a little and take your hair down." Troy took three strides to get to her side, "This business isn't for the weak and it certainly isn't for the prude either."

"You're such as asshole," Gabriella said making her way past him to the door.

"Hey," Troy said reaching for her arm and pulling her back to him so they were chest to chest, "a lot of these problems would be solved if you would loosen up."

"Right," Gabriella mumbled, "because it's my problem I have a vagina and not a penis."

Troy raised a brow as he examined her features from this close, "I'm very well aware of what's between your legs the questions is are you?"

Gabriella pulled away from him her back hitting the wooden door behind her. With her right hand she began to reach for the doorknob, "I don't know what deal you made with my mother, nor do I have any intention to see this through. Mark my words Mr. Bolton I am not a housewife or some kind of street walker. I intend to run my father business with morals."

Troy forcibly pushed forward shutting the door with a slam as he pushed it shut and her against it at the same time. "Oh yeah are those the same morals that taped the eviction noticed to the front door? Why can't you just admit it? You were a sinking ship when I came along." He said inching a little closer if that were at all possible. "Your restaurant is barely floating and that's because I'm the one who threw it a life persevere."

"Get off me," she pushed at him and he didn't move, when she stopped moving from beneath him she let out grunt of frustration. "You're so rude."

"And you're stubborn." He countered.

"I'm supposed to be your wife," Gabriella shot back, "Didn't your father ever teach you how to treat a woman."

Troy scooped down as his lips covered hers in passionate love hate exchange of emotion. The past three months had been one big ball of tension between them. He was so frustrated he could barely take it anymore and if he had to be honest about the whole thing her stubborn behavior was turning him on.

Gabriella pushed him away grunting as she fought back trapped in his embrace. "Stop it," she said against his lips. "How dare you!"

Troy smirked as he pulled back putting space between them. "Fine," Troy said waving her off. "Go run and tell mommy we've come to an agreement."

"I agreed to nothing," Gabriella said pushing herself off the door and wiping her lips with the back of her hand, "I'm leaving."

"Like hell you are," Troy said loosening his tie, "Your family signed a contract. We're in this together whether you like it or not."

"There are other ways I can make the money to save my family and the restaurant."

"No, there isn't," Troy said with a nasty grin. "On the day of the wedding I signed contract just like you did," Troy said reaching up to undo his tie altogether. "That contract included the deed to the restaurant. If you leave me, the restaurant stays with me," he added with a trademark winning grin.

Gabriella face fell and all her anger dissipated into extreme sadness and regret. With nothing to say Gabriella bit her lip.

"Stop doing that," Troy said removing his tie and pulling it from around his neck. He had ideas about using his tie for other purposes, ideas about her bounded and strapped to his bed so he could enjoy every feisty bit of her resolve crumble when she would eventually beg him for more. The sight of her biting on her bottom lip made him want to take him that lip between his own teeth and make her gasps in shock.

Gabriella released her lip and frowned slightly as she tried to keep herself from crying in defeat, or killing him in revenge. "Why are you doing this?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he said tossing the tie onto a nearby chair. "Now, please be a sweetheart and go unpack your bag because you're not going anywhere," he said softly while he undid his cuff links, "I'm more than sure your mother will help you with that."

Gabriella moved forward coming up to him and raising her hand to smack him across the face. The slap was loud, the sting on her own hand was strong and she let out a grunt to keep from wincing in pain. The action wouldn't change anything and it would only make him angrier but it felt good to do it.

Troy stared at her quietly as she stood there taking a deep breath to calm herself. His face was vibrant with the sting from her hand. His hands clenched at his sides as he looked at his wife, this crazy woman who had been turning his life upside down since he married her. "I suggest you leave the room while I'm still feeling so kind."

Gabriella spit in his face, "You have no manners, no shame, and no idea how to treat a woman." She bit out as she stood there with her nostrils flaring. "The very fact that this is an arranged marriage between you and my mother is just proof, because the idea of any woman giving just an ounce of a damn about you is ridiculous. It makes me sick to call you my husband and it would make my father roll over in his grave to see what his family has been reduced to."

Troy hands came to her waist as he turned her around and pushed her towards the door. "Trust me being married to you is the worst business deal I ever made and the fact that it's only been three months makes wish I'd have just shot myself."

When she was at the door he paused to pull it open and lifted his hand to smack her ass as she crossed the threshold into the hall. The action caused her to gasp as the sting on her bottom spread and the heat flooded to her face when she turned around to give him another piece of her mind the door slammed shut in her face.

The next morning Troy walked into his office and unbuttoned the buttons on his suit before sitting down at his desk and firing up is laptop. Things last night had been quite, he stood in his office sorting through the mess she made and she disappeared probably to the restaurant, or to her mother's to cool down. Who knew, who cared?

"Mr. Bolton?"

Troy looked up at his office doorway, he'd left it open on his way in, "Yes Margret?" he asked his secretary.

"Mr. Wrightwood is here to see you, I have him waiting in the conference room and your father has been waiting for you all morning," she said with an innocent smile, her blonde locks loose around her face with curls that flared out. Her white shirt was tight around her chest but concealed and her skirt was penciled and long past her knee. She was sexy, modesty dress but still sexy. Leaning back in his chair he let out a sigh and motioned for her attention just as she was turning to leave the room.

"Margret?" Troy said as politely as possible.

"Yes, Mr. Bolton."

"Come in and shut the door please I have a list of things I want from you it would be better if there were no interruptions."

"Alright," she said cautiously as she shut the door behind her.

Troy reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Here is my credit card," He said holding it up for her to see. "I want you to go down to the jewelry store and picking something up for me," he said firmly.

Margret nodded as she took the card, "Yes sir."

"Tell them you're my secretary and your there to pick up my order." Troy folded his hands as he looked down at the picture he placed on his desk of his wife a constant reminder of everything he was fighting for. "Please make sure the reservations for this upcoming week are still confirmed and don't forget to make sure that they have the needed networking and wi-fi I'll be needing to work on while we're gone," he said with a small nod, "After you have done that, please go down to the flower shop at the corner and send my wife a bouquet of white roses with a card that reads 'You are 100 percent mine.'"

"Yes sir," she scribbled down the information on her legal pad.

"Alright let's get the annoying part over with, please send my father in," Troy said leaning forward to his desk. "Oh and be back before my 2 O'clock meeting I will need you in there taking notes for me." Troy opened the file on his desk and gave it a once over.

"Yes Mr. Bolton," she said quietly.

"And Margret?" he said before looking up from the file.

"Yes Mr. Bolton?"

Troy looked up at her with a soft smile, "Please help yourself to a free lunch wherever you like as a thank you for your service."

"Thank you Mr. Bolton," she said as she moved backwards to leave his office.

"Thank you Margret, please leave the door open." Troy looked down at his paperwork, "All the easier to escape if needed," he said under his breath.

"Yes Mr. Bolton," she responded before disappearing.

Troy looked back at his laptop and opened his e-mail looking over his inbox and letting out a breath as picked up a note pad and pen.

"Morning," a voice chimed as Troy looked up to see his father standing in the doorway with a smile, "Your brother told me that yesterday's meeting with the investors didn't go well?"

"Half brother," Troy corrected as he looked back at the screen. His lips pulled into a tight grin as he frowned inwardly. Troy's mother died at childbirth leaving his father Jack to care for him, or rather leaving his father's staff to care for him because Jack was always somewhere running his company or sleeping around. When he was five his father had come home one day with an entire family and moved them into his home. Troy although he was the only actual son of Jack Bolton, still came in second to his wife Cathy and step children, Ryan and Sharpay.

"What happened at the meeting?" Jack said as he came to sit down in one of the chairs in front of his desk. "Anything I need to get involved in."

And wouldn't that be just what he wanted. Troy hid a smirk as he tapped the notepad with his pen. "No, it's fine, it's just that Gabriella isn't use to the way we do business," Troy looked over at his father again. "I had to explain it to her last night, I can assure you that next time she will be better prepared."

"Troy," his father said with sigh as he adjusted his collar. "Are you sure you want to branch off into this business with the restaurant, it's a sincere notion I'll admit, but you could always just buy her another restaurant. It not like she seriously needs an income."

Troy leaned back in his seat, "There lies the problem she doesn't want any old restaurant she wants that one." Troy said clicking the pen. "The rehabilitation is going fine, we do it all the time with other companies; I don't see why we wouldn't be able to do it with the restaurant." Troy said as he frowned a bit and looked up at the clock. He didn't want to keep Mr. Wrightwood waiting but he knew better than to rush his father.

"It's just that the food industry is always changing, we rehabilitate companies not small business. I told you're allowed to keep your personal businesses on the side but in here we work for the big goal not the small neighborhoods." Jack said with frown.

That was where they differed in opinion. His father always went big; he always shot for the moon and left the stars to fizzle out. Troy saw all the value in rehabilitating not only big companies but the possibility of rehabilitating residential property with the surround business. Tapping the pen on the notepad he looked back up at the clock. "That is why I am taking an effort to learn," Troy motioned to his stack of books resting on the corner of his desk.

"Fine," Jack said with a frown, "Look if you can do this I'll think about your proposal on expanding the company but I make no promises Troy, if you ask me your wasting your time on this."

"I understand," Troy said sitting back in his chair. "Is there something else I can help you with?"

"Yeah Cathy is having a breakfast tomorrow morning, we have the tickets for your flight and she wants to go over the details about our anniversary party."

Troy nodded in acknowledgement and let out a sigh, "I will check with the wife and see if she is free."

"How is my favorite daughter-in-law? Happy I hope? Pregnant would be even better."

Troy raised a brow as he thought about children. The noise and fuss they would make, the endless amount of time and money they would need, he stopped himself from shuddering in response. "We haven't talked about children just yet." They hadn't even slept in the same bed.

"Girls like her always want children, she reminds me of your mother," Jack said with a smile. "She would have liked her for you."

"I'm sure," Troy said with frown as he looked down at his desk. Since Jack had met Gabriella it was yet another person that seemed to come first before Troy which would have irritated him but some reason it hadn't. Troy was in the business of making money, of making hard choices, thanks to his father he'd been making hard choices all his life. He practically grew up without a father, in a home where he felt more like a guest then a resident. Moving out had been a highlight and now living with Gabriella the same feelings sometimes crept up on him.

Pushing that ball of discomfort to the side he held the pen in both his hands and looked at the Bolton Enterprise's logo on the pen. Keeping his eyes low he avoided his father's as he tried to end the conversation. Troy father insisted that he work for Bolton Enterprises and for a long time Troy resisted. He didn't want the hand out or the reputation that came along with being the boss's son. Troy ran a few business of his own very successfully and continued to do so even while working for his father. Truth was he was secretly bidding his time and waiting for a moment to strike. He wanted his father's company. He wanted to pick it apart piece by piece and sell it to the highest bidder just to have the satisfaction of finally having his father's full attention.

His marriage was part of the plan; he needed to prove to his father that he was capable settling down. Need to distract him from his main intent and keep all the attention away from what he was doing behind the curtain. And what better way to hide something than to have everyone's attention so they couldn't the obvious.

When he made the deal with Maria he had been beside himself with genius of it all. To be fair he had only the best intentions for her daughter when he first laid eyes on her, but on a scale of morality he was really in it for the profit on the restaurant. The bank was coming for them, the bank had threatened to close them down for good and leave them homeless, which left them in a position where they couldn't refuse his offer. He brought out the bank for the restaurant in exchange for the deed, he brought out their home in exchange for her eldest daughter. He needed a bride and business plan and as luck would have it Maria just happened to have both.

When nothing else was shared between them Jack mumbled a praise and goodbye before he got up from his chair and made his way out of the office. Once he was gone Troy stood from his desk redoing the buttons on his suit as he made his way out of the office and to Mr. Wrightwood who was still waiting for him.