His Contract Bride - A Billionaire Contract Marriage Romance

The eviction notice on her door felt heavier than the world. Elena Carter was 24, broke, and out of time. Three days. She had three days to find $5,800 or she and her sick mother would be on the streets of New York. Inside the tiny apartment, her mother Maria was sleeping on the couch, pale from chemo. The oxygen machine hummed. Elena tucked the blanket around her and tried not to cry. She had been fired from the diner today. Again. Her phone rang. UNKNOWN NUMBER. "Is this Elena Carter?" A sharp woman's voice. "Mr. Alexander Knight wants to meet you tomorrow at 9 AM. Knight Tower, 58th floor. About your mother's hospital debt. Don't be late. He hates waiting." The call cut. Alexander Knight. The name every girl in New York whispered. The 32-year-old billionaire. Cold, ruthless, impossibly handsome. The man who never smiled. Why did he want her? Next morning, Elena wore her only good dress - a faded blue dress with a small hole in the shoe. She felt small in Knight Tower. Everything was glass and power. The 58th floor was silent. And then she saw him. Alexander Knight stood by the window, looking at the city like he owned it. He was taller than she imagined. Broad shoulders in a black suit that fit him perfectly. Black hair, sharp jaw, and eyes... eyes that were grey like a storm. Cold, but so beautiful it hurt to look at. He turned. His grey eyes landed on her and for a second, the whole room stopped. She forgot how to breathe. "You are Elena Carter," he said. His voice was deep, low, it sent a shiver down her spine. "Yes," she whispered. He walked closer. Slowly. Each step made her heart beat faster. He stopped right in front of her. So close she could smell him - expensive cologne, sandalwood and something manly. So close she could see a tiny scar on his eyebrow. "You are more beautiful than your photo," he said quietly, his eyes not leaving her face. "Your eyes... they are honest. I like that." No one had ever looked at her like that. Like she was something precious. Elena blushed, her cheeks turned pink. "You... you know me?" "I know everything about the woman I am going to marry." The world stopped. "What?" He slid a file towards her. CONTRACT MARRIAGE AGREEMENT. "My grandfather's will says I must marry in seven days or I lose my company. I need a wife. Not a supermodel who wants my money. I need someone real. Someone who needs me as much as I need her." Elena's hands were shaking. "Why me?" "Because you are desperate. And you are not gold-digger. Your mother has stage-three cancer. She owes my hospital $187,432. Without treatment, she has three months. With the best treatment, she can live." Tears filled Elena's eyes. "Don't say that." "It is the truth. I can be cruel with truth, Elena." He leaned forward, his elbows on the desk. His grey eyes were softer now, not so cold. "If you marry me, for one year, I will save your mother. Best doctors. VIP room. All bills paid. I will clear your rent, your debts. Give you $50,000 a month. And after one year, two million dollars for you to start a new life. No strings." Elena stared at him. Two million? Saving her mother? "And what do I have to do?" "Be my wife. Live in my penthouse. Smile when I need you to smile. Hold my hand at parties. That's it." "That's it?" she asked, her voice trembling. He stood up and walked around the desk. He was now right in front of her. He gently, so gently, lifted her chin with his finger. His touch was warm. Electric. Her lips parted. Her heart was beating like crazy. No man had ever touched her like this. "You are scared," he whispered, looking at her lips, then back at her eyes. "Don't be. I will not hurt you. I may be cold to the world, Elena, but I never hurt innocent things." "Am I... an innocent thing?" she whispered. "Yes." His thumb brushed her chin so lightly. "Very innocent. And very beautiful when you blush." Elena felt her whole body turn hot. She had never felt this before. This pull. This strange, dangerous attraction to a man she just met. A man who was offering to buy her life. He was so handsome. So close. His grey eyes were looking at her like she was the only woman in the world. "Say yes," he whispered, his voice husky. "Say yes and let me save your mother. Say yes and become mine." Mine. That word did something to her. She should say no. This was crazy. Marry a stranger? But her mother's pale face came to her mind. And the way he was looking at her... like he wanted to protect her, not just use her. "Okay," she whispered, tears falling. "I will marry you." Something flashed in his eyes. Not coldness. Something warm. Relief? Happiness? He smiled. For the first time, Alexander Knight smiled. And when he smiled, he was not cold at all. He was breathtakingly handsome. A real, heart-stopping smile that made Elena's knees weak. "Good girl," he said softly, his voice full of warmth now. "You made the right choice, Elena." He took her hand. His hand was large, warm, strong. He held her small, cold hand in his and squeezed it gently. "Don't cry, pretty girl. From today, no one will make you cry again. I promise. You are mine to protect now." Elena looked at their hands together. His big hand holding hers. She felt safe. For the first time in months, she felt safe. He took a pen and signed the contract. Alexander Knight. His signature was strong and powerful. Then he gave her the pen. His fingers brushed hers as she took it. A spark. She signed. Elena Carter. "Welcome to your new life, Mrs. Knight," he whispered, still holding her hand. He lifted her hand slowly and... pressed a soft, gentle kiss on the back of her hand. His lips were warm. Soft. Elena gasped. Her heart exploded. No one had ever kissed her hand like that. Like she was a princess. He looked up at her, his lips still close to her skin, his grey eyes burning into hers. "This marriage may be a contract on paper, Elena... but I am a man who takes care of what is his. And from this moment, you are mine. Only mine. Remember that." She could not speak. She could only nod, her cheeks red, her heart beating for this cold billionaire who suddenly didn't seem so cold anymore. He was still holding her hand. He didn't want to let go. And for a second, Elena thought... maybe this fake marriage wouldn't be so fake after all. Maybe, just maybe, this billionaire could fall for a broke girl like her. Outside the window, New York was shining. But inside that office, a contract bride and her billionaire husband had just started a love story that was supposed to be fake. But his kiss on her hand felt very, very real.