THE CONTRACT

The elevator doors opened with a soft chime, and Elena Rodriguez stepped into the executive suite of Blackwood Industries with fire in her veins. She'd been waiting three weeks for this meeting. Three weeks of unanswered emails, blocked phone calls, and a security guard who'd politely told her to leave or be escorted out. Today, she wasn't leaving until she got answers. The receptionista woman with perfect posture and a fake smilelooked up. Miss Rodriguez. Mr. Blackwood is Expecting me, Elena finished. I know. He's been expecting me for twentyone days. She didn't wait for permission. She walked past the desk, her heels clicking against the marble floor like a countdown. Miss Rodriguez! You can't just Watch me. Elena pushed through the double doors at the end of the hallway. The office was enormous. Floortoceiling windows overlooked the city skyline. A desk the size of a small car sat in the center. And behind it, looking like he owned the worldwhich, honestly, he probably didsat Marcus Blackwood. He didn't look up from his laptop. Elena Rodriguez, he said, voice flat. I was wondering when you'd show up. You've been avoiding me. I've been busy. He finally glanced up, and Elena felt the full weight of his stare. Dark eyes. Sharp jaw. A face that belonged on a magazine coverif magazines did spreads on men who destroyed families for sport. Busy buying my father's company out from under him? She dropped a folder on his desk. I know about the stock purchases. I know you've been buying shares for months. What I don't know is why you're pretending you're trying to help us. Marcus leaned back in his chair. He didn't blink. Because I am trying to help you. By threatening to call in our debt? By making sure we can't get a loan from any bank in the city? I'm the only one offering you a way out. Elena laughed. It wasn't a happy sound. A way out? You want to buy my father's company for pennies. You want to strip it for parts and sell it off. Don't pretend this is charity. Marcus stood. Slowly. Deliberately. He was tallsixthree, maybeand the movement made her want to step back. She didn't. Your father, he said, owes me twelve million dollars. He's been dodging the debt for six years. I have every legal right to bankrupt him. And you'd enjoy that. He tilted his head. I'd enjoy getting what I'm owed. Then why the meeting? Elena crossed her arms. Why not just do it? Why call me here? Marcus walked around the desk. Stopped a few feet away. Close enough that she could smell his colognesomething expensive and cold. Because I have a proposition. I'm not interested. You haven't heard it yet. I don't care. Whatever it is, the answer is no. He smiled. It didn't reach his eyes. Here's what I want. One year. You marry me, publicly, for one year. Play the happy wife. Smile for the cameras. Attend the galas. And in exchange, I'll forgive your father's debt. Completely. I'll also invest two million into his company to keep it afloat. Elena stared at him. For a long, long moment, she said nothing. Then she laughed. Hard. You're insane. Probably. You want me to marry you? I want you to pretend to marry me. What happens behind closed doors is none of my concern. But in public? You'll be Mrs. Blackwood. Why? Because I need a wife. Preferably one who isn't after my money. Someone who makes it clear I'm not available. Someone who... He paused. Someone who looks at me like I'm the devil himself. It's refreshing. Elena shook her head. No. Absolutely not. I'd rather watch my father's company burn. Would you? Marcus's voice dropped. Because I've seen the numbers. Your father's company is hemorrhaging money. He's missed three payrolls. His employees are about to walk. And your family He stopped. Your family's house is mortgaged to the hilt. Your sister's college fund? Gone. Your father's health? He's been hiding the chest pains, hasn't he? Elena's blood went cold. How do you know that? I know everything about the people I do business with. This isn't business. This is She stopped herself. Took a breath. This is insane. This is the only offer you're going to get. She wanted to hit him. She wanted to scream. But underneath the rage, something else flickereddesperation. Her father. His health. The company he'd built from nothing. What's the catch? she asked. No catch. Liar. Marcus's jaw tightened. One year. You play the part. You don't embarrass me. You don't ask questions about my business. And when it's over, we divorce quietly. Your father's debt disappears. His company survives. Your family gets to keep their home. And what do you get? He didn't answer right away. Something shifted in his eyessomething she couldn't read. Control, he said finally. Of the narrative. That's it? That's it. She didn't believe him. But standing there, in his office, with the weight of her family's future pressing down on her shoulders, she realized she didn't have a choice. Let me see the contract. Marcus smiled. This time, it almost looked real. Monday. 9 a.m. My lawyers will have it ready. And if I say no? He walked to the window. Looked out at the city like he owned it. Which he did. You won't, he said quietly. Because you're not the kind of woman who lets her family drown. Elena's hands were shaking. She hid them behind her back. You're a monster, she said. No, Marcus said, turning back to face her. I'm just someone who's been waiting a long time to collect what's mine. He walked toward her. Slowly. When he stopped, he was close enough that she could see the faint scar above his eyebrowsomething she hadn't noticed before. His voice dropped to a whisper. Monday, Elena. Bring your best dress. We're having lunch with my board. I hate you. I know. He leaned in. That's what makes it fun. And then he walked past her, out of the office, leaving her standing alone in the enormous room with her heart pounding and her world crumbling. The elevator doors closed behind him with a soft chime. Elena exhaled. Then she picked up the folder she'd broughtthe proof of his stock purchasesand threw it against the wall. Damn you, she whispered. Damn you to hell. But even as she said it, she knew she was going to sign. Because Marcus Blackwood was right about one thing: she wasn't the kind of woman who let her family drown. Even if it meant drowning herself.