Tricking Joshua
Tricking Joshua
"Your man is here." Aria pushed Ivy away and winked at her and Ivy returned her wink with a glare.
"He must be anxious that you have not returned to him."
"Shhhh." Ivy tried to shush her, but Aria just snuck out her tongue playfully.
Glaring at her again, Ivy opened the door, only for her eyes to sparkle in mischief when she saw the man behind Joshua.
"Ari, your man is here too and he seems more anxious than mine."
Now, it was Aria's turn to glare and she threw a pillow at Ivy, only for her to duck before it could hit her. But Joshua was not so lucky and the pillow smacked his face hard.
"Oops, bullseye," Noah remarked and Aria smiled apologetically at the man who stood blankly at the door.
"Why did you do that? What did I do?" Joshua complained aggrievedly and Ivy stifled her laugh on seeing his expression.
"Yes, Aria. Tell me. Why did you do that? What did he do to you for you to hit him?"
"Do you really want me to tell him?" Aria stressed her words and folded her hands and Ivy did not miss the underlying threat in her words and tone. She shook her head immediately, warning her not to speak a word.
"Ladies, what's happening?" Noah peeked in and looked back and forth between the two sisters, not understanding what was happening between the two, They were speaking in code language and Noah had an inkling that it was somehow related to him and Joshua.
"Nothing....nothing at all." Ivy tried to brush it off, but her sister was smarter and she approached the confused me before Ivy could push them away and shut the door on their faces.
"Joshua, may I have a word with you? In private."
Ivy bared her teeth in anger. But all she got in return was a shrug. Before she could stop Joshua, the man had planted himself inside the room, much to her annoyance.
"Sure. What do you want to speak about?"
"Ummm....I would like to speak to you in private. So.."
"Of course." Joshua smiled warmly at her and faced the two redundant people behind him. "Ivy, Noah, please." He held his palm and gestured for them to leave.
Having no other choice, Ivy walked out, not before silently warning her sister to mind her words.
"What did Aria want to speak to Joshua?" Noah enquired once Joshua shut the door behind him.
"I have no idea. She did not say anything to me." Ivy lied. 'Ari, I'm going to kill you if you say something you shouldn't.' She thought and walked away, leaving a perplexed Noah staring back at her. He could still not determine what was happening and why Aria had requested Joshua to stay behind.
Meanwhile, Joshua waited patiently for Aria to start speaking. The woman was behaving mysteriously and he was still baffled that she had asked him to chat with her privately.
'What does she want to talk about?' He wondered but could not come up with anything and eventually gave up wondering.
"You must be wondering what I wanted to talk about." Aria started and gestured for the man to take a seat while she discreetly dialed her sister on her phone.
Joshua, still bewildered, took the chair while Aria sat on the bed and when she noticed that the call was connected, she started with her mission.
"I have something important to ask you."
"Go ahead, Aria. What is it?" Joshua urged, still wondering what was running in her mind.
"What are your opinions on marriage?" Aria held her breath and observed the man before her go into a state of total shock briefly.
"Why are you asking me this?" He tilted his head suspiciously and Aria let out a nervous laugh.
"I just wanted to find out." Aria tried to brush it off. 'How can I say my sister wants to know the answer because she wants to propose to you?'
"Uhh...okay. Marriage is good, I think." Joshua did not know how to answer her question and stumbled over his words.
"Let's just say if I were to propose to Noah today, what would his response be?"
"Do you even have to ask? That man will be jubilant and throw a party to the entire country." Joshua smiled and the next instant, his eyes widened in realization. "Wait a minute. Are you going to propose to Noah?"
Aria was stunned by his question and was speechless for quite some time. How could she say that she had no thoughts as such and that her sister was thinking of proposing to Joshua?
"More or less," Aria answered, not knowing what else to say and Joshua smirked at her mischievously.
"Noah is one lucky bastard. If only I was that lucky..." He sighed and Aria picked up the words immediately, finding the path for her to lead the conversation.
"Why? Do you want Ivy to propose to you?" Aria leaned forward and looked at Joshua excitedly.
Although he was surprised by her sudden burst of excitement, Joshua did not doubt her intentions and nodded fervently. "I'd love it if she did. I mean, why wouldn't I? I want to marry her, there's no doubt about it. Although it might not be now, considering all the danger around us. But surely sometime in the future."
"So, if Ivy were to propose today, you would accept it. Am I right?"
"Definitely."
"Great." Aria momentarily lost her composure and chirped happily, making Joshua look at her suspiciously.
"Why do I smell something fishy? What's cooking in your mind?" He raised his brows questioningly. "Is Ivy..."
"I was just wondering about it since I raised the topic. Are you really sure that Noah will accept if I..."
"There is no doubt in it. You can believe me."
Aria got the answer she was looking for and she smiled widely. "Please keep this conversation a secret. I want to.."
"I understand. Everything we spoke about here today will be between us." Joshua made the action of zipping his lips and Aria gave him a thumbs-up in return.
"Thanks a lot. I'll get back to packing now."
"Sure." Joshua felt as if he had been tricked somehow. But he could not pinpoint exactly how and left the room in confusion.
Aria waited until he was gone and she closed the door after him. She picked up the phone and grinned in delight. "I think you got your answer, Ivy. You may want to go ahead and do what your heart says."