Chapter Six.
1273 Words
The Proposal.
Fear had a sound.
long after everyone else had gone home, the low whirr of the air conditioner, the muted glow of the city through floor-to-ceiling glass, the echo of her own thoughts growing louder with every passing minute.
She sat behind her desk, sleeves rolled up, hair pulled back in a way she only did when she was bracing for war. Legal documents lay scattered before her like pieces of a puzzle she hadn’t asked to solve. Her grandfather’s will. Addendums. Clauses. Conditions.
Married.
The word mocked her.
She read the line again, even though she already knew it by heart. '...To retain controlling interest in Cole Industries, the primary beneficiary must remain legally married. Divorce initiated by the beneficiary would trigger a review by the board and a potential redistribution of shares.'
Potential.
A word that carried teeth.
She exhaled slowly and leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes. Losing the company wasn’t just about money. It was about legacy. About the nights she’d slept in the office as a junior executive, the battles she’d fought to be taken seriously, the sacrifices she’d made while everyone assumed things were handed to her.
Cole Industries was hers because she had earned it.
And now, because of a marriage built on lies, it was slipping through her fingers.
I need a solution, she thought. And I need it fast.
Too fast for emotions. Too fast for healing. Too fast for dignity.
Her gaze drifted to the window, where her reflection stared back at her, polished, composed, untouchable. No one would ever guess she was terrified.
She straightened abruptly, decision clicking into place like a lock.
If marriage was the requirement, then marriage was what she would give them.
Just not love.
Her phone buzzed softly on the desk. A message notification.
Car is ready whenever you are, Ms. Cole.
Adrian.
Her driver. Her constant. The one person in her orbit who had never asked for more than his job required. Who never looked at her like she was a prize to be won or a resource to be drained.
The idea came so suddenly it stole her breath.
No. That’s ridiculous.
And yet… it wasn’t.
She stood, heart pounding, and grabbed her coat.
By the time she slid into the back seat of the car, her pulse was racing, not from attraction, but from the sheer audacity of the thought forming in her mind.
Adrian sat in the front, hands steady on the wheel, posture professional as always. “Home, Ms. Cole?”
“No,” she said, surprising them both. “My penthouse. And… Adrian? When we get there, I need to speak with you.”
He glanced at her in the rearview mirror, curiosity flickering briefly across his face before he nodded. “Of course.”
The ride passed in silence, but it wasn’t the comfortable kind. Selena stared out the window, rehearsing words she’d never imagined saying to anyone, let alone him.
When they arrived, she dismissed the security staff and led him into the living room. The space was expansive, immaculate, glass, steel, and quiet wealth. She turned to face him, folding her arms as if that might steady her.
“Please,” she said. “Sit.”
Adrian hesitated for half a second, just enough to remind her of the invisible line between them, before taking a seat opposite her.
She didn’t sit.
“I’ll be direct,” she began. “Because I don’t think there’s a gentle way to say this.”
He nodded slowly, attentive, cautious.
“I’m at risk of losing my company.”
His brows drew together. “I thought the divorce was finalized.”
“It is. That’s the problem.” She let out a humorless laugh. “My grandfather’s will requires that I remain married to retain full control of Cole Industries. The board is already circling. They’re just waiting for the legal window to open.”
Adrian absorbed this quietly, his expression unreadable.
“I don’t have time to fight them,” she continued. “And I refuse to let my ex-husband be the reason I lose everything I’ve built.”
She paused, then said the words that had been sitting like dynamite on her tongue.
“So I’ve decided to get married again.”
The silence that followed was sharp.
Adrian blinked. “Again.”
“Yes.”
“I see,” he said slowly. “Is there… someone?”
Selena met his eyes. Held them.
“Yes,” she said. “You.”
The room seemed to tilt.
For the first time since she’d known him, Adrian looked genuinely stunned. “Me?”
“This would be a contract marriage,” she said quickly, before he could speak again. “Purely legal. Strategic. No emotions involved. I need a husband on paper. Someone discreet. Someone trustworthy.”
She swallowed. “Someone I can trust not to hurt me.”
He stood abruptly, running a hand through his hair. “Ms. Cole...”
"Please call me Selena... "
"I think this is...."
“Inappropriate?” she finished. “Unusual? Desperate?” Her smile was thin. “You’re not wrong.”
He turned to face her fully now, conflict written plainly across his features. “I’m your employee.”
“You’d be compensated fairly,” she said immediately. “Generously. And if this ever interfered with your future, I’d make sure you were protected.”
“That’s not the point,” he said quietly.
She faltered. “Then what is?”
Adrian hesitated, the pause heavy with words he wasn’t saying. “This isn’t something you propose lightly. Marriage, even a contract, isn’t just paperwork.”
“I know,” she said. Her voice softened despite herself. “But I don’t have the luxury of pretending this is about romance.”
"Right..."
He studied her then, not the billionaire heiress, not the CEO, but the woman standing in front of him, shoulders tense, eyes shadowed with fear she hadn’t fully hidden.
“You’re scared,” he said.
She didn’t deny it.
“I am,” she admitted. “And I hate that you can see it. But I need a solution. Fast. And you’re the only person I trust enough to even ask.”
Adrian looked away, jaw tight. “This would change everything.”
“Yes.”
“For both of us.”
“Yes.”
“And if I say no?”
Her chest tightened, but she kept her voice steady. “Then I’ll respect it. Completely.”
Silence stretched between them.
Finally, he exhaled. “I need to understand the rules.”
Relief flickered through her, cautious and restrained. “Of course.”
“No expectations,” he said. “No intimacy. No emotional obligations beyond what’s necessary for appearances.”
“Agreed.”
“And when this ends,” he added, “we walk away clean. No leverage. No strings.”
She nodded. “Clean.”
He searched her face one last time, as if looking for something, truth, perhaps. Or reassurance.
“I’ll do it,” he said finally. “But only because you need this. Not because you’re asking as my employer.”
Something in her chest loosened.
“Thank you,” she said quietly.
“This doesn’t mean it won’t be hard,” he warned.
“I know,” she replied. “But I’m done letting fear make my decisions.”
As Adrian turned toward the door, Selena sank onto the couch, heart pounding.
She had found her solution.
She just hadn’t realized how much it would cost them both.
- Writer
