Chapter 5: The Devil’s Conditions
880 Words
Sophia stood frozen in her apartment doorway.
Her phone was still pressed against her ear.
“My driver is outside.”
Alexander’s words echoed through her mind.
“Outside?” she repeated.
“Yes.”
A faint amusement entered his voice.
“I told you, Sophia. I expected your call.”
The line disconnected.
Sophia stared at the screen.
Expected her call?
How could he possibly know she would eventually contact him?
The thought unsettled her.
Yet curiosity pushed her forward.
Five minutes later, she stepped outside.
A sleek black Rolls-Royce waited at the curb.
The driver immediately opened the rear door.
“Miss Carter.”
Sophia hesitated.
Everything about this felt unreal.
But she climbed inside.
The journey through London was silent.
Streetlights blurred past the window.
Her stomach twisted tighter with every mile.
She was about to meet a billionaire who had proposed marriage after knowing her for less than five minutes.
What kind of person did that?
⸻
Thirty minutes later, the car entered private gates.
Sophia’s eyes widened.
Beyond them stood a massive estate.
The mansion looked more like a palace.
Tall stone walls.
Perfect gardens.
A fountain illuminated by golden lights.
Wealth beyond anything she had ever imagined.
The car stopped.
The front doors opened before she could even reach them.
A butler greeted her.
“This way, Miss Carter.”
Sophia followed him through the enormous entrance hall.
Marble floors stretched beneath her feet.
Crystal chandeliers sparkled overhead.
Everything screamed power.
Money.
Control.
The butler stopped outside a set of double doors.
“Mr. Blackwood is waiting.”
The doors opened.
Alexander stood beside a floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city.
His black suit fit perfectly.
One hand rested casually in his pocket.
The other held a glass of whiskey.
Without turning around, he spoke.
“You’re five minutes early.”
Sophia blinked.
“You knew exactly when I’d arrive?”
Now he turned.
Those steel-grey eyes locked onto hers.
“I know many things.”
The answer wasn’t comforting.
Not even slightly.
Alexander set down his drink.
“Sit.”
Sophia remained standing.
“I didn’t come here for coffee.”
His lips curved slightly.
“No. You came because you need help.”
Direct.
Brutally direct.
Sophia hated that he was right.
“I need to understand something first.”
Alexander folded his arms.
“Ask.”
“Why me?”
The question had been bothering her since the wedding.
Out of all the women in London…
Why her?
For a moment, Alexander seemed to consider his answer.
Then he said:
“Because you’re exactly what I need.”
Sophia frowned.
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
“No.”
“It doesn’t.”
His calmness was infuriating.
She took a deep breath.
“What do you want from me?”
Alexander walked toward her.
Every step seemed deliberate.
Controlled.
Dangerous.
When he finally stopped, they were only a few feet apart.
“I need a wife.”
“A real wife?”
“A legal wife.”
Sophia crossed her arms.
“That’s not the same thing.”
“No.”
Again, that tiny smile appeared.
The one that never quite reached his eyes.
“It isn’t.”
He moved to his desk and opened a folder.
Inside was a document.
A contract.
Alexander slid it across the table.
Sophia looked down.
The title made her heart stop.
MARRIAGE AGREEMENT
Her mouth fell open.
“You already prepared this?”
“Of course.”
“You really thought I’d sign it?”
“I hoped.”
His honesty caught her off guard.
Sophia slowly opened the contract.
The first page outlined the terms.
A legal marriage.
Public appearances together.
One year.
At the end of twelve months, either party could walk away.
Then she saw another figure.
A number.
Her breath caught.
The financial compensation alone could pay for her father’s surgery ten times over.
Sophia looked up sharply.
“This is insane.”
Alexander’s expression remained calm.
“Perhaps.”
“No one pays this much for a fake marriage.”
“I do.”
“Why?”
Silence.
For the first time, something dark crossed his face.
A shadow.
A memory.
A secret.
“There are people who need to believe I’m married.”
Sophia stared at him.
“What people?”
Alexander’s eyes hardened instantly.
“That’s not information you need.”
The room fell silent.
Sophia looked back at the contract.
Her father’s surgery.
Her family’s future.
Her ruined life.
Everything she needed was sitting right in front of her.
All she had to do was sign.
Yet something told her Alexander Blackwood was hiding far more than he admitted.
And secrets always came with a price.
Then Alexander spoke again.
“There is one more condition.”
Sophia looked up.
“What condition?”
His gaze locked onto hers.
Cold.
Intense.
Unbreakable.
“If you become my wife, Sophia…”
He paused.
“…you can never betray me.”
A chill ran down her spine.
Because it didn’t sound like a request.
It sounded like a warning.
End of Chapter 5
Next Chapter: Sophia discovers why Alexander fears betrayal more than anything, and an unexpected visitor from her past threatens to destroy the deal before it begins.
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