Chapter 1
The first time Khloe Roswell saw Adrian White, he looked like a man who had never needed anything from anyone.
He stood at the end of a long glass table inside the tallest building in the city, his dark suit perfectly cut, his expression calm in the kind of way that made people nervous. The afternoon light from the floor-to-ceiling windows cast a silver glow across the room, but it didn’t soften him. Nothing about Adrian White seemed soft.
Khloe had heard of him before that day. Everyone had.
Billionaire. CEO. Ruthless in business. Cold in everything else.
And yet, somehow, she had been called into his office.
Her fingers tightened around the strap of her bag as she stood near the door, feeling painfully out of place among the polished marble floors and expensive art hanging on the walls.
Adrian didn’t look at her immediately. He finished reading the document in his hand, placed it calmly on the table, then finally lifted his eyes.
Those eyes were sharp.
Observant.
The kind that made you feel as if nothing about you could remain hidden.
“So,” he said evenly. “You’re Khloe Roswell.”
Khloe straightened a little. “Yes.”
His gaze lingered on her face for a moment longer than necessary.
Not in admiration.
In evaluation.
Like she was a decision he was still considering.
She swallowed.
“You asked to see me.”
Adrian nodded slightly and moved toward the table, resting one hand against the edge. “Sit.”
It wasn’t a request.
Khloe sat.
She had no idea why she had been invited here. The email from his company had been brief. It simply asked her to attend an interview regarding a “private opportunity.”
Normally she would have ignored something so vague, but desperation had a way of making people take risks.
Her rent was overdue.
Her part-time café job barely covered groceries.
And her savings had disappeared months ago.
So she came.
Adrian studied her for another moment before speaking again.
“You’re twenty-six,” he said.
“Yes.”
“You studied architecture for two years.”
Khloe blinked.
“Yes… but I had to drop out.”
“I know.”
Of course he knew.
Men like Adrian White didn’t invite strangers into their offices without knowing everything about them first.
“What exactly is this job?” she asked carefully.
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he opened a drawer and pulled out a thin folder.
He placed it on the table and slid it toward her.
“Read it.”
Khloe hesitated before opening it.
Inside was a document.
A contract.
Her eyes moved slowly over the first lines.
And then she froze.
For a moment she thought she had misunderstood.
She read it again.
And again.
Her heart started beating faster.
Finally she looked up at him.
“You want me,” she said slowly, “to pretend to be your wife.”
Adrian’s expression didn’t change.
“Yes.”
The word settled in the room like something heavy.
Khloe stared at him.
“Is this a joke?”
“No.”
“You’re serious?”
“Completely.”
Her mind raced.
Of all the strange things she had expected to hear today, this had never crossed her mind.
“You’re a billionaire,” she said. “You could marry anyone.”
“I don’t want to marry anyone.”
“Then why…..”
“A business agreement,” Adrian interrupted calmly. “A very large one.”
He walked toward the window, looking down at the city far below.
“The investors I’m negotiating with believe strongly in… traditional values. They prefer to partner with men who appear stable. Settled. Married.”
Khloe frowned.
“So you want to pretend.”
“Yes.”
She stared at the contract again.
“You’re asking a stranger to fake a marriage.”
“Not a real marriage,” he said. “A contract.”
“How long?”
“Six months.”
The room went quiet.
Six months.
It sounded both short and impossibly long.
“What exactly would I have to do?” she asked cautiously.
Adrian turned back to her.
“Live in my house. Attend certain public events with me. Appear convincing.”
Khloe felt her face grow warm.
“And that’s all?”
Adrian’s gaze was steady.
“That’s all.”
She wasn’t sure she believed him.
“And after six months?”
“The contract ends. You leave.”
Simple.
No strings attached
Like a business deal.
Her eyes drifted to the final page.
And then she saw the number written there.
Her breath caught.
It was more money than she had ever imagined holding in her life.
“Is this real?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
“Why me?” She asked still curious
Adrian studied her quietly before answering.
“You have no public reputation to damage. No ties that complicate things. And according to my research…” his gaze sharpened slightly, “you’re honest.”
Khloe almost laughed.
Honest.
Maybe that was the only thing she had left.
Still, something about the entire situation felt dangerous.
