Chapter 5: The Morning After
784 Words
The morning light was too bright.
Elena woke up slowly, her head pounding, her body aching in places she didn't want to think about. The sheets were silk. Too soft. Too expensive. Not hers.
Then she smelled him. Cologne, dark and expensive. Adrian.
Her eyes flew open.
She was in his bedroom. His penthouse. And she was naked under his sheets.
Memories crashed into her like a wave. The contract. The dinner. The way he had looked at her when she wore that red dress. The way he had kissed her like he was starving. The way she had let him.
Oh god.
She sat up quickly, clutching the sheet to her chest. The other side of the bed was empty. Cold. He was already gone.
On the pillow next to her was a white envelope.
Her heart sank. Money. Of course. He was paying her for last night.
She opened it with shaking hands. Inside was not money. It was a note. In sharp, black handwriting.
"Meeting at 7 AM. Don't leave the penthouse. We need to talk. - A"
She looked at the clock. 6:45 AM.
She had fifteen minutes.
Elena jumped out of bed, looking for her dress. It was on the floor, torn at the shoulder. He had torn it. She remembered his hands, rough, desperate.
She heard the front door open.
Her heart stopped.
Adrian walked in. He was in a perfect black suit, his hair still wet from the shower. He looked like a stranger. Cold. Distant. The man from last night was gone. This was the billionaire everyone feared.
"You are awake," he said, his voice flat.
Elena held the sheet tighter. "Adrian... about last night..."
"Last night was a mistake," he cut her off. His eyes did not meet hers. They were fixed on the window, on the city below. "It violated clause 3 of our contract. No kissing. No feelings. No intimacy."
Anger flared in her chest, hot and sharp. A mistake? After the way he had held her? After the way he had whispered her name like a prayer?
"A mistake?" she repeated, her voice shaking.
He finally looked at her. His eyes were dark, unreadable. "It will not happen again."
He walked to his closet and pulled out a garment bag. He threw it on the bed.
"Get dressed. My mother is coming for breakfast at 8. She thinks you are my real wife, remember? The contract still stands. 26 days left."
Elena stared at the bag. "Your mother? You never said anything about your mother!"
"I didn't think it was necessary. She is in town unexpectedly. You will play your role. Smile. Be the perfect secret wife for one morning. Then we will discuss last night."
He turned to leave, but Elena's voice stopped him.
"What if I don't want to? What if I want to end the contract right now?"
He stopped at the door. His hand gripped the doorframe so tight his knuckles turned white.
"Then you will owe me $50,000 for breach of contract, Elena. And I know you don't have it."
He left without looking back.
The door closed with a soft click that felt like a slap.
Elena sat alone on his giant bed, in his silk sheets, wearing nothing but shame and the memory of his touch. He was right. She was broke. She had no choice.
She opened the garment bag. Inside was the most beautiful white dress she had ever seen. Simple. Elegant. Expensive. And a small box. Inside the box was a diamond necklace.
He wanted her to look like his real wife.
She took a deep breath, wiped her tears, and stood up.
If he wanted a perfect wife for his mother, she would give him a perfect performance. But she would not let him see her cry.
At 8 AM sharp, the elevator dinged.
A woman in her 60s, elegant and cold, just like her son, walked in. Her eyes scanned the penthouse, then landed on Elena.
"So," she said, her voice like ice. "You must be the girl my son married without telling me. The secret wife."
Elena smiled, her heart beating out of her chest.
"Yes," she said, her voice steady. "I'm Elena Knight. Adrian's wife."
Behind his mother, Adrian stood, his eyes wide, warning her. Don't say too much.
But his mother smiled. A dangerous smile.
"Interesting. Because Adrian told me his wife's name was Jessica."
The room went silent.
Elena's blood ran cold. Jessica? Who was Jessica?
She looked at Adrian. His face was pale. He had lied to his own mother. And now her lie was falling apart.
What was Adrian hiding? And who was Jessica?
- Writer
