Is this destiny?

"Why do you want to go back?", Mrs. Morgan asked her husband with urgency. "This place is so much bigger and better. There is the staff who cleans and cooks. I am not going back, Bruce. Who cares about on whose name the house is if we get to live in it? They will pay for all the expenses and they can\'t kick us out. It says so in the contract..."

Penny and Ben both frowned slightly. The audacity of Mrs. Morgan reached the next level. She didn\'t even bother to go to a different room and discuss this in private with her husband. Mrs. Morgan has no problem admitting that they are taking advantage of Penny (and Ben) in front of them!

Mr. Morgan sighed and did his best to tune out his wife while reading the document one more time. It is concise: Mr. and Mrs. Morgan can live in this house until both parties (owner of the house as the first party and Mr. and Mrs. Morgan as the second one) decide to terminate this agreement, and Penny and Ben will shoulder any expenses related to the house. Stocking up the fridge and pantry with food is included.

This document guarantees that if Penny or Ben change their minds, they can\'t chase them away. Even if they want to sell the property, they will be unable to do so.

His gut was telling him that he is missing something important, but he could not see it. Mr. Morgan looked at his wife who silently begged him to accept and he exhaled before nodding. "Pen, please…"

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan signed the documents, and then Penny and Ben signed them as well. Three copies: one for Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, the second one for Penny and Ben, and the third one will go with the lawyer (the guy with a briefcase who is popping in and out occasionally).

Penny smiled at her parents. "Now that we got that out of the way, we can chat. How have you been?"

Mrs. Morgan waved her hand dismissively. She does not want to talk about them, she has so many questions about Penny and her gold mine husband (aka Ben) that she does not know from where to start. "We are fine. Are the two of you going to live here?"

Penny was amused that the first question from her mother is if they will cohabit or not.

"No. We have our place closer to Ben\'s work. We will stop by to check on you when we get a chance. On weekends probably, because Ben is busy on weekdays. But once the baby is born, probably not so often."

"You have another place?", Mr. Morgan was curious.

Penny confirmed. "Yes. A penthouse, closer to downtown Los Angeles."

"All this is just for the two of us?", Mrs. Morgan wanted to confirm.

"Do we have a driver?", Mr. Morgan asked before Penny could respond.

"You will get one within a few days. Until then, please enjoy the villa and the grounds. The staff can provide you with whatever you want, and if you really need to go somewhere, you can get a cab.", Penny explained.

Mrs. Morgan nodded in approval and then she remembered: "How about our other expenses? Like shopping?"

Penny glanced at Ben before responding. "We didn\'t talk about it, but if you have any requests, let us know. If it\'s reasonable, I\'m sure that we can come to an agreement. Maybe you can do some research on the prices of the things you might want, and we can set up regular payments. Or we can open a separate account for you. There are many options. You just got here, so there is no rush. When you discuss it, let us know what works best."

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan relaxed. It seems that all the major topics are out of the way.

They started talking about Ben, and they were interested to find out what he is doing and his background.

Ben was not interested in talking with these two shameless people, so Penny spoke for him. Mostly the truth. She said that he was married before and that he has a twelve years old daughter and that he is in the software business.

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan were not happy that Ben is quiet. They would assume that he is mute, if not for a few occasions when he spoke to Penny.

However, they got their answers: Ben has his own company, he is making a lot of money, and he has an ex-wife and a daughter.

Mrs. Morgan understood how Penny is a trophy-wife and it is not unusual for a man to upgrade his wife when he becomes successful. Ben is so rich that he bought those five hotels in Texas for Penny to keep busy, like a hobby.

The more they found out, the more image of Ben as a typical rich man was coming together.

Mrs. Morgan was pleased with this first session and she was confident that as time goes by, they will find out more about their son-in-law.

The topics shifted to Penny\'s pregnancy, weather, clothing, and any other usual chat. The atmosphere was pleasant, at least on the surface.

At some point in their conversation, Penny asked: "Did you see the house?"

"Yes, we saw the view from the rooftop, the pool, bedrooms, and the main floor.", Mrs. Morgan happily responded. "Jason showed us around. He is very well trained, and so is the rest of the staff. They move swiftly, I can barely notice their presence, and everything is in place. They even got fresh pastries without me asking for it…"

Penny\'s smile widened as Mrs. Morgan chattered excitedly. If her mother knew that Jeff and JoAnna helped them hire these people and that all of them are trained in more than house related chores, her mother would not be so happy. Especially Jason. He is not just a butler, but the head of their security as well.

Penny and Ben bought this mansion and hired the staff for them. The baby is coming, and the apartment will not be so convenient. They want a big backyard where their son can run and chase after the ball. Felix ensured that the security surveillance is set up and everything is in place for Penny and Ben to move in. Almost everything. There is one thing pending: Penny wants them to be married.

This Saturday (in two days) Ben and Penny will go to the courthouse to sign the paperwork with Emma and Charlie as witnesses. After that, Penny will be Mrs. Casano.

They have everything figured out, and Penny decided to handle her parents first.

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan will not disrupt their plans, the two of them being here is only adding another layer to it.

"Did you see the basement?", Penny asked.

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan exchanged excited glances. There is more to this villa!

"The basement? No.", Mr. Morgan responded.

"This house has some special features underground…", Penny stood up and Ben was right next to Penny, helping her balance and providing support.

"Come…", Penny urged her parents. "I\'m sure you will be surprised by what all this villa hides…"

Mr. and Mrs. Morgan stood up and followed Penny (and Ben) down the hall through the door.

"When we checked this, I thought it\'s just a storage room.", Mrs. Morgan voiced her thoughts.

The passage toward the basement looks like a room with shelves filled with unmarked boxes and hangers with jackets which are the same as the ones staff members are wearing. You need to push the jackets to the side in order to see the door at the back of the room. The door is the same color as the wall, so it\'s easy to miss it.

Penny agreed with her mother. "Yeah, this space gives that illusion. If we didn\'t see the floorplans, we would not know that this villa has the basement at all. It\'s almost as if it\'s hidden."

"Hidden basement? Are there any treasures? Underground tunnels which provide an easy escape?", Mr. Morgan guessed.

Penny laughed awkwardly and shook her head. "Wait and see. We are almost there…"

---

If you are not reading this at \'W e b n o v e l .. c o m\', then the content you\'re reading is stolen! Please support the author by reading this novel from the original source.