CHAPTER 9: THE CONTRACT BREAKS
1353 Words
88 days left.
The contract was supposed to be a secret.
Now the whole world knows.
---
It started with a notification.
*BREAKING: Voss Group CEO Damian Voss in Contract Marriage. Prenup Details Leaked.*
My phone blew up at 6 AM.
50 messages. 20 missed calls. All from Rina.
I opened Twitter. Trending #1: #VossContractBride
There was a photo of us. From the charity event.
And under it, pages from our contract.
Clause 4.2: *Marriage duration: 90 days*
Clause 5.1: *Compensation: $5,000,000 upon completion*
Clause 7.3: *No physical intimacy required*
My hands shook.
Damian was already in the living room when I came out. In a suit. No tie. On the phone.
"No comment," he was saying. "Hang up the press. I don't care."
He saw me and ended the call.
"How bad?" I asked.
"Bad." He ran a hand through his hair. "Someone from legal leaked it. Victoria's doing."
"They know everything. The money. The timeline."
"Yes."
I sat down. "What do we do?"
Damian looked at me. Really looked at me. "We tell the truth."
"That it's fake?"
"That it's complicated." He sighed. "Press conference. 10 AM. You and me."
---
Voss Tower was chaos.
Reporters everywhere. Cameras. Flashes.
Rina tried to shield me. "Keep your head down, Mrs. Voss."
Mrs. Voss.
The title felt dirty now.
We walked into the press room together. Damian's hand was on my lower back.
The room went silent, then exploded with questions.
"Is it true you were paid $5 million?"
"Did you love him?"
"Was the marriage a lie?"
Damian stepped to the mic first.
"Good morning." His voice was steady. "I will make one statement. Then we leave."
He looked at me. Then at the cameras.
"Yes. The marriage was arranged under a contract. Yes, there was compensation involved. And yes, my wife and I agreed to keep it private to protect her family and my company."
Gasps.
"But what the contract doesn't say," he continued, "is that in the last 30 days, this arrangement became something real. To me."
My heart stopped.
"What he means," I said, stepping forward, "is that we started this for the wrong reasons. But we're trying to do the right thing now."
More flashes.
"Are you in love?" a reporter shouted.
Damian and I looked at each other.
"I care about my wife," Damian said. "Deeply."
I nodded. "And I care about him."
It wasn't a lie. Not anymore.
We left.
---
The car was silent.
"Why did you say that?" I asked finally. "That it became real?"
"Because it did." Damian stared out the window. "Didn't it?"
I didn't answer.
My phone buzzed. Aira.
*Maya. Are you okay? Everyone at the hospital is talking about you.*
I called her immediately.
"Maya!" she cried. "Is it true? About the money?"
"Yes," I whispered. "But Aira, I--"
"I don't care about the money." She cut me off. "I care about you. Are you safe? Is he good to you?"
I thought about the strawberries. The floor. The hand holding.
"Yes," I said. "He is."
"Then that's all that matters."
We hung up.
---
By evening, the internet had opinions.
Half called me a gold digger.
Half called Damian cold and calculating.
And a small group called us #Damaya and said we looked cute together.
Victoria posted: *Some people will do anything for money. Even sell themselves.*
Rina showed Damian.
He didn't react. Just closed his laptop.
"Don't read it," he said to me. "Any of it."
"Too late."
"Then stop." He sat beside me on the sofa. "Maya. Look at me."
I did.
"This was my fault. I should have protected the contract better. I should have protected you."
"You didn't know."
"I should have." He paused. "I'm sorry."
It was the first time I heard him say it.
---
That night, we couldn't sleep.
The bedroom felt different. Like the walls had eyes.
At 2 AM, I got up for water.
Damian was in the kitchen. Drinking coffee. Black.
"Can't sleep?" I asked.
"No." He poured me a cup. "You?"
"Same."
We sat at the island. In silence.
"Do you regret it?" he asked suddenly. "Signing?"
I thought about it. Aira's hospital bills. The debt. The fear.
"No," I said. "But I regret that people know now. That they think I'm using you."
"They think I'm using you too." He smiled bitterly. "Tit for tat."
I laughed. Then stopped. "Damian."
"Yeah?"
"Thank you. For what you said at the press conference."
"I meant it." He looked at me. "Every word."
The coffee went cold between us.
---
Friday.
The board called another meeting.
Victoria was already talking when we entered.
"--clear breach of trust. He lied to us. To the shareholders."
Damian sat down. Pulled me to the chair beside him.
"I didn't lie," he said. "I omitted. There's a difference."
"Not to the law," Mr. Tan said. "We need to vote. On your position as CEO."
The vote took 10 minutes.
6-6 tie.
Victoria smiled. "Looks like we need the chairman's vote."
The chairman was Damian's uncle. He hadn't voted in 5 years.
He walked in. Old. Tired.
He looked at Damian. Then at me.
"Damian," he said. "Is she good for you?"
The room held its breath.
Damian took my hand. In front of everyone.
"Yes," he said. "She is."
The chairman nodded. "Then I vote no. To removing him."
We won. 7-6.
Victoria slammed her folder and walked out.
---
Back at the penthouse, we collapsed.
"We did it," I said.
"Barely." Damian loosened his tie. "But we did it."
He looked at me. "Are you mad? That I dragged you into this?"
"Yes," I admitted. "And no. Because if I hadn't signed, Aira wouldn't be alive."
Damian's face softened. "How is she?"
"Good. She sent you a message." I showed him my phone.
*To Mr. Strict Boss: Thank you for taking care of my sister. -Aira*
Damian read it twice. "Tell her you're welcome."
---
Saturday.
No press. No board. Just us.
Damian suggested we go out. "Somewhere normal. No cameras."
We went to a bookstore. The same one from before.
This time, he didn't let go of my hand.
Not when we browsed. Not when we paid. Not in the car.
"People will see," I whispered.
"Let them." He squeezed my hand. "I'm tired of hiding."
Back home, it rained.
We ended up on the sofa. With a blanket. Watching a movie.
Halfway through, I fell asleep on his shoulder.
I woke up at 3 AM. Still there. His arm around me.
He was awake.
"Did I make you uncomfortable?" I asked, moving.
"No." He pulled the blanket up. "Stay."
So I did.
---
Sunday.
Rina called. "Sir, legal found who leaked it. It was Ms. Victoria's assistant."
Damian closed his eyes. "Fire her. And file charges."
"Yes sir."
After the call, he looked at me. "It's over. The leak. The worst of it."
"Is it?" I asked. "88 days left, Damian. What happens after?"
He was quiet for a long time.
"I don't know," he admitted. "The contract says 90 days. After that..."
"After that we go back to normal?"
"Is that what you want?" His voice was low.
I thought about Daniel. About the press. About the $5 million sitting in my account.
"I don't know what I want," I said honestly. "But I know I don't want to pretend anymore."
Damian nodded slowly. "Then we won't."
He stood up and walked to his study.
Came back with a folder. Our contract.
He held it up.
"Do you want to tear it up?" he asked. "Now. Before the 90 days."
My breath caught. "Can we?"
"Only if we both agree." He held out the folder. "Your choice, Maya."
I looked at the contract. At the clauses. At the money.
Then I looked at him.
I took the folder.
And I didn't tear it.
"Not yet," I whispered. "I need to think."
Damian nodded. "Okay."
He put the folder back on the table.
Between us.
88 days left.
But the contract between us felt thinner than paper.
And heavier than steel.
- Writer
