ICanBeAnyone

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

Azariah laughed at his disbelief over the cockroaches. "Yes, huge Madagascar hissing cockroaches I believe they were. Fried up in some sort of oil with a spicy peanut sauce. Not bad, the legs were a little scratchy on my throat, but an interesting experience." She said with a small shrug.

She raised an eyebrow as he asked about what could interest her. "You say you are a simple man, yet your speech betrays you, as does the fact that you have arranged for all of this." she said gesturing around the private dining room. "So, to be incredibly American, Let's cut the crap and start being more straight forward." She said with a smile as she rested her hands in her lap.

"You want or need my money and that's great, but to get it we have to marry. Fine... But stop trying to sell me a line of shit over who and what you are. I will find out eventually, and would you rather it be from you, or from the investigator I hire to find every skeleton in your closet so that our Prenuptial agreement is iron clad?"

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She laughed a little as he commented on the fact that people would hardly think her life was boring. “But that is the difference between perception and reality. Everyone sees exotic trips or fancy balls, but no one sees behind that, the endless pitches over why I should invest in one company or another or why I should donate to this charity or that one. It is hardly as glamorous s it seems. My family was very fortunate and my father worked very hard to get where he was. It is up to me to see that we continue on the forward path he put us on.” She said.

“I have very little interest in continuing to spend much time in the public eye. It serves little purpose other than to distract me from the things I could be doing.” She said as she sat back a little allowing her food to be placed.

“I have no food allergies, and will try everything at least once.” She said. “I enjoy trying all sorts of new things. The giant cockroaches at the market were an interesting experience.” She said with a laugh. “Enough about me. Tell me more about you.” She said genuinely interested.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She looked at him and leaned forward placing her champagne back on the table. "First of all, I do not appreciate your tone." She said. "My visions regarding my own businesses are none of your concern, and should you chose not to hear my ideas on keeping you solvent, then I will certainly keep them to myself." She said as she shifted in the chair sitting back as the waiter appeared with their first course.

"As for me, I am certain you will find my life quite boring. It is making appearances, and smiling for camera's, taking pictures." She shrugged. "I am looking forward to the day our divorce is final and I can retreat from the public eye" She said honestly. "I am tired of performing for people, and I want to be left alone. Let me run my businesses, watch my Netflix and not have to deal with cameras in my face and I will be a very very happy woman."

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She raised an eyebrow as he mentioned liberties for the both of them. She was not used to men being so... blunt. Her only hope was that he would be discreet. She laughed a little as he turned to her asking about her stories of England and reminding her of the shared history their homes shared. "It has been quite lovely thus far. I have seen Borough Market, as you are aware. Today I saw some of the pathology museums, they are quite interesing." She said as she finally began to relax.

"To be honest, I have not sought out much in the way of similarities other than business opportunities." She said looking at him. "You see, the new taxes and tax laws put into place are going to force a lot of people out of the business of being landlords." She smiled a little. "There is money to be made here, especially in London, and I am hoping to take full advantage of that, and it may be something you would be interested in investing in as well. The more streams of income you have, the more stable you are against a change in fortunes." She pointed out to him.

"Perhaps I will make that part of my wedding gift to you, a property management firm, that way you will have additional income after I am gone."

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She watched him as he carefully considered her condition, it likely was not an easy one to accept. No one wanted anyone else to see where they were failing, but she insisted upon it, and from this she would not back down. She folded her hands and rested them gently on the table as she leaned forward and smiled. "Oh, but you forget, I am American, and part of my charm is that I handle the media with all the grace and aplomb of someone twice my age, and I assure you there will be media interest on both sides of the Atlantic when this marriage is made public. As for me having a part to play? I assure you, I understand my part. I am the checkbook, nothing more. We will marry, you will run your enterprises, I will run mine. We will maintain civility and if possible a friendship, and after six months to a year we will quietly file for divorce so that you may begin your search for your second wife." She said plainly.

"There will be no children, and after an appropriate amount of time, I am guessing three, maybe four months we will no longer even share a room, much less a bed, which will of course lend veracity to our claims that we are just not a suitable match." She explained. "I think that the best way to handle this situation going forward yes?" She asked this time reaching for the champagne, in her mind the negotiations were concluded and therefore she would be safe to drink.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She looked at him as he leaned across the table, a small smile crossing her lips. "Oh, my dear dear man." She said with a soft laugh in her voice. "The English public? Perhaps not, but the American public? I assure you, they would love to get involved, so on this, do not test me." She said settling back still smiling. "But I do appreciate your honesty as to what it is you require from this arrangement, and I shall be happy to oblige you. Provided..." She held up one finger "Provided I see the business plans to assure me that after this initial influx of cash your enterprise shall once again be self sufficient" She told him.

She reached for her water glass and picked it up taking a small sip before returning it to the table, and gently moving away her champagne glass, she was not drinking, not right now. She wanted a clear head for these negotiations. "I can assure you, that while the general impression of me is that I am all beauty and no brains, that is simply not true. And I am not in the habit of throwing good money after bad. We are, after all discussing a very quiet divorce once your business is back on it's feet and my fortune under my sole control. I have done my research on English Law, and inheritance is not something that will be divided in a divorce, therefore, should you NOT have a plan you would continue to be dependent on my generosity and good humor. That is a situation neither of us want, nor, would your next wife be thrilled with the prospect." She told him.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

She looked at him and raised a delicately sculpted brow. "I think you will find, I am not so easily dismissed." She told him taking a seat, but she was not at all relaxed, her body was quite stiff. "You will find, that there are things I do not handle well, and one of them being disrespect. My time is just as valuable as yours, and this is behavior I simply will not tolerate in the future." She said softly. That was the thing, She never once raised her voice, but she was still able to make herself very clear.

"I, myself have not yet agreed to this, and it was my understanding from our communications, neither have you." She said resting her hands on her lap. Perhaps it is time we get to the bottom line yes?" She said tilting her head to the side a little. "You stated that you felt that this arrangement would be beneficial to both of us, what exactly is in this for you?" She wanted to know.

She watched him as he decided how to answer. She cleared her throat and spoke again. "Please, do not try to hide anything from me Adrian." She said "I have until my twenty fifth birthday to make a marriage, or to come to terms with having much less money, but do not forget, the public seems quite interested in me and what I do, so if need be, I can certainly appeal to the court of public opinion about the outdated, archaic, and patriarchal conditions set on my inheritance, and I assure you, I will likely find a way out of my predicament." She warned carefully.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

Azariah watched as the time crept past 10. The first few minutes she thought nothing of it, as the time crept by she became concerned wondering if something had happened to him, but the concern soon turned to irritation. She was on her feet pacing the room. She glanced at her watch. He had another five minutes before she left. She was just about to leave, when the door opened and he stepped in. She greeted him with a tight smile, one that was much different from the ones in the photos he had seen and she had shared.

"Well, how lovely for you to finally join me." She said her tone saying exactly the opposite. She blatantly pulled out her phone and made as show of checking her e-mail. "All of London experiencing a cellular disruption? Because surely, someone with the slightest smattering of manners would have let me know he would be so late." She said. "I had hoped we had much to discuss, but at this hour, I think we would be better off rescheduling, after all, I have three years before I lose my inheritance, so I obviously have time." She told him coolly.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

Azariah found the box that contained the gift he had sent. She opened it carefully, and pulled out the dress, it was beautiful. The bodice was plunging, and the skirt had a high-low cut which draped amazingly. She slipped it on, and tied the back. She had several hours before their meeting, so she decided to go all out. She sat down in front of the mirror with her combs, brushes, pins and curlers. It took her three hours before she was finally finished with her hair style. She added simple understated jewelry and the barest hints of makeup. She was feeling slightly nervous, she didn't understand why. She was meeting a friend for dinner, and then, it was over. She picked up her phone and smiled.

To: Adrian
From: Azariah
Subject Re: It's a date...

Adrian,
I am looking forward to it very much. You have incredible taste. I hope I am able to do it justice. I will see you soon!

Azariah

She drew in a deep breath as she checked the time once more. She picked up a small clutch purse, and tucked her room key, her credit card, her ID and her cell phone inside. She didn't bother with anything else. She wouldn't need it. She walked to the elevator, and pressed the button to go down. She stepped out into the lobby as she made her way toward the dining room, She was greeted immediately and shown, as promised to a private dining room. She of course was early, she detested being late. In her mind, and the way her father always operated was 'Early is on time, on time is late, and late is fired.' It was how he operated his entire life, and it stuck with her. She held her purse tightly in her hand as her eyes scanned the room. She never arranged for this type of luxury for herself, others seemed to do it for her. She was used to it, and it no longer made her uncomfortable, but it was absolutely not something she preferred.

A Perfect Match I Can Be Anyone and Loreliee

Azariah had sent her email asking for confirmation, and then she actually took a nap. She wasn’t much of one for napping normally but between travel, the uncertainty of the past few days and the amount of food she had eaten. She woke sometime later to find a reply to her email asking for confirmation of their dinner date.

To:Adrian
From: Azariah
Subject: Re: Its a date...

Adrian,

Oh Thank God! Please do not misunderstand me I am very much looking forward to meeting you, but I seemed to have misjudged my stamina for so many back to back activities. I do hope everything is alright, I haven’t heard much from you the last few days, and I have to be honest, I would have thought at least the video of my failure to master chopsticks would have gotten at least SOME reaction. I am very much looking forward to our meeting tomorrow, although I can’t think of stranger circumstances under which to meet. Although I am fairly certain that it will one day be a humorous story for you to tell your children. “Did I ever tell you the time I met with an American woman to find a way to convince your grandmother not to marry us off to each other? And that dear children is why we do not let Grandmother have more than a single glass of sherry.” I should probably sign off now and get more rest, today was a lot of fun but incredibly exhausting. I do wish you had been there, you might have enjoyed it! Rest well my friend.

Azariah

She sent the email and then forced herself to get out of the bed so that she could shower and change into her night clothes. Tomorrow would be another big day. She had lots of the city to explore before her date. She would be returning home soon and wanted to see as much as she could.

She woke the next morning, she showered and dressed again. She wore jeans, and a flowing shirt as she slipped her feet into a pair of flats. She didn't bother with makeup today other than a quick swipe of lip gloss. She put her sunglasses on her face, slipped her credit cards, ID, cell phone and keys into her pockets and headed out. The first stop on her tour of London was The pathology Museum at St. Bartholomew's. She found this kind of thing endlessly intriguing. She finished her tour and grabbed a quick snack from a street vendor as she walked the streets of London. She ended up taking a cab to Bond Street to do some shopping.

She walked from store to store, enjoying her time as she shopped. She bought nothing, she wasn't really looking for anything in particular. She did try on a few gowns that would have been perfect for some of the fundraising gala's she attended from time to time, but decided against them. She was, in the back of her head planning an entirely different way of life for herself. She stayed until about 3 before she reluctantly headed back to the hotel. There was seven hours before her dinner with Adrian, but she wanted to take a nap.

She napped for a few hours, waking up around 6. She then ran a bath. She scrubbed, exfoliated, shaved, buffed and otherwise did everything she could to look her best. She got out of the bath and wrapped herself in a fluffy robe, so she could go and see what it was he had sent for her to wear. She would create her entire look this evening around whatever it was.