The Fake Contract Bride

Chapter Two

Adrian's Pov

“Your father would never have tolerated this.”

The words were the first thing out of Richard Hale’s mouth the moment the boardroom door closed behind Elena Marquez.

I didn’t look at him. I didn’t look at anyone. I simply stacked the papers in front of me, aligning the corners until they were perfect, and said, “I’m not my father.”

The truth was, I spent every day of my life making sure of that.

But Richard wasn’t wrong. Victor Kael would never have allowed someone like Elena to stand in his boardroom and humiliate him in front of his own directors. My father would’ve crushed her with one sentence, ended her career before it had begun.

And yet here she was.

Her fire still burned in the room, long after she’d stormed out. That sharp tongue. That look in her eyes. That fury she carried.

Elena Marquez was dangerous, not because she was reckless, but because she was brilliant and brilliant people always came at a price.

“She’s trouble,” another board member murmured. “Why did we even bring her in?”

“Because she’s the best,” I said simply, rising to my feet. “And Kael Global doesn’t settle for less.”

That shut them up, at least for a moment.

But not Richard. He leaned forward, clasping his hands on the table. “Your father always knew the value of appearances, Adrian. Right now, you’re playing with fire. Investors are uneasy, competitors are circling, and what do they see? A CEO with no family, no stability, no……”

“Wife,” I finished for him, my tone flat.

The word hung in the air like a challenge.

Richard’s mouth curved into a thin smile. “Exactly.”

I exhaled slowly, turning toward the window. The city stretched beneath me in glass and steel, cold and endless. My empire. My burden.

The board had been pressing me on this for months. They wanted stability, something solid they could wave in front of shareholders and investors. They wanted a family man at the helm, not the cold, unattached son of Victor Kael.

I had resisted. Marriage was a complication I didn’t need. Attachments were liabilities.

But today had shifted something.

Elena Marquez.

The way she looked at me, like she wanted to tear me apart piece by piece. The way the board leaned in when we fought, their eyes alive with interest. The way Richard’s expression sharpened when she called me my father’s son and left me standing in silence.

They had noticed. They had seen the spark.

And suddenly, I could almost hear them plotting. If Adrian Kael wants stability, why not tie him to the one woman who could give us the illusion of it? A lawyer with fire in her eyes and a family name people hadn’t forgotten, no matter how tainted.

A perfect show. A perfect distraction.

But Elena would never agree. Not willingly anyways.

I turned back to the room. “If this meeting is finished, I have other matters to attend to.”

Richard rose as well, his gaze steady. “Think about it, Adrian. Stability isn’t optional anymore. It’s survival. Without it, you risk more than your father ever did.”

The mention of my father again made my chest tighten. I brushed it off, grabbing my jacket and leaving the boardroom without another word.

My office was silent when I stepped inside, the kind of silence that pressed against your ears. I loosened my tie, sank into my chair, and stared at the skyline.

I had built this company up from my father’s ashes. I had clawed respect back with my own hands. But no matter what I did, his shadow followed me. Every deal, every headline, every whisper. Adrian Kael, son of Victor Kael.

And now, Elena Marquez had stormed into my world, reminding everyone, including me, of a past I had spent years burying.

My phone buzzed. A message from Nathan, my COO.

Board dinner tomorrow. Don’t be late.

I smirked faintly. I was never late. That was Elena’s crime.

Elena.

Her name lingered longer than it should. I thought of the way she had leaned across the table, eyes blazing, refusing to yield. The way her voice trembled, not with fear but with fury, when she said I schemed like my father.

She was wrong, but God, she was sharp.

And if the board got their way, she might become more than just a thorn in my side.

*****************

The next evening, the board dinner was held at a private club uptown, all glass chandeliers and hushed elegance. The kind of place where deals were sealed with a handshake and a glass of hundred-year-old whiskey.

I hated it already.

Richard greeted me with a firm grip, his smile smug. “You’re in a good mood, I hope.”

“I’m in the mood to get this over with,” I replied, taking my seat at the long table.

The courses came and went, chatter filling the air, and I said little. I had no interest in their gossip. My focus stayed on the currents beneath the surface, the whispers, the subtle glances.

And then it happened.

Richard lifted his glass, his voice carrying over the table. “What we need, gentlemen and ladies, is not another strategy meeting. What we need is a show of stability. A show of strength. And I think we’ve already seen the answer.”

I froze.

Several heads turned toward me. Others nodded knowingly.

Richard’s smile widened. “The answer is sitting right under our noses. Elena Marquez.”

The table erupted in murmurs. Some amused, some approving, some skeptical.

I kept my expression cold, unreadable, even as irritation coiled in my chest.

“She despises me,” I said flatly.

“Which is why it works,” Richard countered smoothly. “The chemistry is undeniable. Every person in that boardroom saw it. Investors will see it too. It’s exactly the kind of narrative that restores confidenc, —a union that bridges old wounds, silences critics, and makes you untouchable.”

My jaw clenched. Untouchable. That word had haunted me my entire life.

The others nodded. Agreement spread like fire.

It was absurd, insane, impossible and yet…

In their eyes, I saw the truth. This wasn’t a suggestion. It was an order.

For the first time in years, my control slipped.

They wanted me tied to Elena Marquez and if I refused, they would find a way to make me regret it.

I lifted my glass slowly, masking the storm beneath my skin. “And if she refuses?” I asked quietly.

Richard’s smile didn’t waver.

“Convince her.”