No More Contract
1064 Words
CHAPTER SIX
One year later, Alexer stood in front of the mirror in a quiet room overlooking Beverly Hills.She looked at her reflection,Everything had changed,She was no longer unemployed,She had started her own publishing company with Adrian’s encouragement, but she had built it herself.Sheila had graduated from university and was preparing for her first job,Victoria no longer treated Alexer like an outsider,Lucas Reed was no longer part of the Ashford story,Most importantly, Alexer and Adrian were no longer pretending.Their relationship had survived the scandal, the family pressure and the contract that had brought them together.Today was their wedding day,Their real wedding.Alexer adjusted her dress,Sheila entered the room.
“You look beautiful.” Sheila complimented Alexer
Alexer smiled.
“Are you crying?”
“No.”
“You are.”
“I’m emotional.”
“That’s another word for crying.”
Sheila laughed.
“You know, I still can’t believe this happened.”
“Neither can I.”
“You married a billionaire.”
Alexer rolled her eyes.
“Please stop saying that.”
“Why? It’s true.”
“It sounds ridiculous.”
Sheila smiled.
“How did you go from having eleven dollars in your account to getting married at a Beverly Hills estate?”
Alexer laughed.
“Bad decisions.”
“Apparently very successful bad decisions.”
They both laughed,A knock sounded at the door. Victoria entered,She looked at Alexer and smiled.
“Are you ready?”
Alexer nodded.
“I think so.”
Victoria walked toward her.
“I was wrong about you.”
Alexer smiled.
“You already apologized.”
“I know.”
Victoria adjusted Alexer’s veil.
“I still wanted to say it again.”
Alexer reached for her hand.
“Thank you.”
Victoria smiled.
Outside, guests were gathering.The ceremony was being held at a private estate overlooking the Pacific Ocean,The Los Angeles coastline stretched beneath the afternoon sunlight.Adrian stood at the front,For once, he looked nervous,Lucas was not there.There was no scandal,No contract,No business deal,Just family and friends.When Alexer appeared, Adrian’s expression changed.He smiled.She walked toward him,When she reached the front, he took her hand.
“You came.”
She laughed softly.
“I said I would.”
The ceremony began,There were no grand promises about wealth or success.Only simple ones,To support each other,To respect each other,To choose each other even when life became difficult.When it was Adrian’s turn to speak, he looked at Alexer.
“The first time I asked you to marry me, I offered you one and a half million dollars.”
Everyone laughed,Alexer smiled.
“That was not a very good proposal.”
“I agree.”
He continued.
“I thought I needed a wife for six months. I thought I needed someone who would help me satisfy a condition in my grandmother’s will.”
He paused.
“Then I met the woman who changed everything I thought I knew about my life.”
Alexer’s eyes filled with tears.
Adrian smiled.
“I don’t want a contract anymore. I don’t want an arrangement. I don’t want a deadline.”
He looked at her.
“I just want you.”
Alexer smiled.
“That’s better.”
Everyone laughed softly.
When it was her turn, she looked at Adrian.
“I agreed to marry you because I needed money.”
Adrian smiled.
“Honest.”
“Very.”
The guests laughed.
“But I stayed because I found something money could never buy.”
She looked at him.
“A home, a family and someone who challenged me every single day.”
Adrian raised an eyebrow.
“That sounds like a complaint.”
“It is.”
Everyone laughed again,Alexer smiled.
“But I wouldn’t change it.”
Before the vows continued,Adrian squeezed her hand gently.
“You know you can still change your mind,” he whispered.
Alexer smiled.
“After everything we’ve been through?”
“Yes.”
She looked into his eyes.
“I’m exactly where I want to be.”
His expression softened.
“Good.”
“And this time,” she added,“there’s no contract waiting for us.”
Adrian smiled.
“Just us.”
She nodded.
“Just us.”
For a moment,the noise around them seemed to disappear.They had started with an agreement that was never supposed to become permanent.Now they stood surrounded by the people who had watched their story unfold,ready to make a promise neither of them had been forced to make.
The ceremony ended with applause,Later that evening, the guests gathered outside while music played,Alexer stood beside Adrian overlooking the ocean.
“Do you ever think about the contract?” she asked.
“Sometimes.”
“Do you regret it?”
“No.”
She looked at him.
“Even though it caused so much trouble?”
“No.”
“Why?”
Adrian smiled.
“Because without it, I might never have met you.”
Alexer looked toward the ocean.
“I was so worried about the money.”
“I know.”
“I thought one and a half million dollars was the most important thing that night.”
“And now?”
She smiled.
“Now I know it wasn’t.”
Adrian looked at her.
“What was?”
She turned toward him.
“The choice.”
He nodded.
“Exactly.”
Their story had begun with a contract,Alexer had needed money,Adrian had needed a wife.Neither had expected anything beyond six months,But life had other plans.The contract had brought them together, but it had never been responsible for what came afterward,They had chosen to stay,They had chosen to trust,They had chosen to forgive,They had chosen each other.And that choice mattered more than any fortune, company or family name.Alexer looked at the ring on her finger,The first ring had represented an agreement.This one represented something completely different,A promise freely given.No conditions,No payment,No deadline,No contract.Just love, trust and a future they would build together.Adrian took her hand as they watched the Los Angeles lights begin to glow beneath the evening sky.
“Ready to go home?”
Alexer smiled.
“Always.”
Together, they walked back toward their family and friends,Their story had started with a billionaire searching for a wife.It had ended with two people who discovered that the greatest fortune was not money at all.It was having someone who chose you when they were finally free to walk away.
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