PRETEND WIFE FOR HIRE

Chapter three

ONE WEEK AGO

CATHERINE POV

Hiding behind the pillar, I watched as my manager screamed at Rose, my friend and colleague.

Seeing as she was occupied, I quickly bent down, moving behind pillars toward my work position.

I was late again today, and was already on my last chance.

My eyes met that of Rose for a while, signaling for her to distract the manager while I quietly integrated myself with other workers successfully.

Smiling triumphantly, I breathed out, before straightening my hair and clothes.

“Hello ma, can you direct me to the female section?” a man asked, staring down at me.

Gritting my teeth, I forced a smile out, before walking towards the female section, the man and his goons behind me.

“Here you are sir, is there anything else I can help you with?”

He signaled for me to come closer, bending his head a little.

“When are you going to pay my money?" he asked, smiling tightly.

“Please not here,” I whispered out, glancing around as my nossy coworkers stared at us.

“Meet me at the stairway,” he says, before leaving.

I clenched my hands together, nodded at him, before going back to my post.

If I left now, I could successfully avoid him for today, but also could lose my job.

My only option was to meet him.

My eyes followed his movements, watching as he bought what he wanted, before heading towards the stairway.

I waited for a while, not trying to be obvious, before following him.

He was casually leaning against the stairway, his goons flanked around him.

“You know the thing about people like you,” He says, blowing out his smoke, “You like playing smart.”

“Sir…” I stuttered out, “please I promise, give me more time, I will pay back the money.”

“I know you will, because if you don’t, then we are going to have issues, and believe me, you don’t want issues with me.”

He stretched out his hands to one of the goons, collecting the envelope he was holding.

He gave me the envelope, gesturing for me to go through it.

Nervously, I opened the envelope, bringing out a single paper with a contract on it.

My eyes widened at the ridiculous amount written there.

“Sir… this is beyond what I own,” I exclaim in panic, my eyes flickering between him and the piece of paper.

“Yes,” he says, blowing out the smoke in his mouth. “Due to my new policy, interest increases by fifteen percent.”

“Are you crazy?” I shout in anger, completely forgetting who I was talking to. “Where do you expect me to get the money from?”

Well.. loud painful slap on my face, quickly reminded me.

I gasp in shock, my face throbbing from the force of the slap.

“Mind who you are talking to,” Martin as the name on the paper says coldly.

“I give you two days to pay back my money, or you bear the consequences.”

He stared at my crying face for a while, before leaving me.

Crying, I slumped down on the floor, frustrated with everything.

After a while, I fixed myself up, before walking towards our shared changing room.

Solid chest stops my movements.

“I am so sorry, I didn’t see you," I say, apologizing quickly.

A dark haired man was standing there, dressed neatly in a suit.

He was handsome beyond measure, but was currently sporting an irritated expression on his face as he typed furiously on his phone, not even bothering to glance at me.

“Watch where you are going,” he states coldly, still glancing at his phone as he walks away.

I stared at his back, shaking my head, before walking quickly towards my changing room.

I dropped the envelope in my locker, quickly hurrying back to my post.

This time around, it was an expensively dressed woman that ran into me.

“My pearls,” she cried out, gasping as her expensive pearls scattered all over the floor.

Quickly, I apologized, before kneeling down to pick them up.

I worked in a high rise unisex fashion house, meeting this kind of people was my daily life, and apologizing for what wasn’t my fault is also a normalized part of my life.

Picking up the pearls scattered around the floor, a huge diamond ring rolls towards my leg, before stopping.

I picked it up, confused about where it had come from.

“Excuse me, that’s mine,” a calm voice spoke out.

The first thing I saw, was expensive customized Louis vinton new released heels, before my eyes trailed up the smooth legs, to the face behind the voice.

I froze in shock, confusion swirling around my mind.

I was staring at my exact replica.

Exact face and body structure.

The only difference was the expensive clothes adorning her body.

We both stared at ourselves intensely, trying to comprehend what we were seeing.

If not for the fact I was sure I am the only daughter of my mother, I would have believed her to be my twin sister.

“Hello…., You need to pick up my pearls,” a shrill voice shrieked out, breaking apart our staring match.

“Sorry,” I muttered. My replica took her ring from my hand, staring at the ring, before staring back at me.

Shakily, I bent down to pick up the remaining jewelry.

By the time I stood up again.

My doppelganger was gone.

My thoughts were jumbled up, my mind not fully concentrating on what I was doing, occasionally reliving what just happened.

It was a known fact that we all had someone who looked exactly like us somewhere in this world.

But witnessing it was a bit overwhelming.

Soon enough, the event of today was filtered to the back of my mind, my debt problems, quickly consuming my thoughts.

Finally I was done with work, checking my phone for any notifications.

A simple message was there from one of my classmates, reminding me of our school reunion.

I sighed, changing out of my work clothes. I had initially planned not to go, but I knew one or more people there I could at least borrow from.

It was humiliating, bending down to whatever childish behavior they would put up today. But I needed money, and having the opportunity to study at one of the most prestigious schools in this state meant I knew some really rich spoiled brat.

I needed to raise money, my pride would have to be pushed far far down below.

I was going to that reunion.

I just needed to look the part of a rich successful con woman.