Chapter Eight
1025 Words
Madeline's perfectly polished nails dug into the soft armrest of her chair tightly, till her knuckles almost turned white.
She clutched the phone in her hand as she read the headline news with her wide eyes full of shock and burning with anger. "Sinclair Heir Ties the Knot—Mystery Bride Shocks High Society"
The pictures in the newspaper showed her own Jack walking out of a chapel with an unknown woman.
Madeline's breathing quickened, with her chest rising and falling rapidly. "No, no, no!" Madeline repeated continuously in a trembling voice. In a fit of anger, she threw the phone across the room.
The phone smashed against the wall with the screen shattered like the future she had painstakingly built.
Madeline paced around the room with her thoughts running wild and her high heels clicking loudly on the marble floor. "How could he? How could he dare to humiliate me like this?" Madeline hissed under her breath.
Madeline pushed he hair back with her trembling hands, her face burning with anger.
She had spent years in transforming herself to becoming the perfect CEO's wife. She has stood by Jack through everything, believing that the title of Mrs Sinclair would be hers.
And now… this. Madeline's heart pounded painfully in her chest as intense anger surged through her veins.
"Does he really think he can toss me aside for her? Never! I won't allow it" Madeline muttered under her breath.
Madeline's lips twisted in disgust as she recalled the face of the woman. Ordinary. Unrefined. Completely insignificant.
But what hurt her the most was the sting of betrayal. Jack was supposed to her hers. Madeline could not bear the thought of someone else taking what belongs to her.
"If that woman think she has won, then she has no idea what is coming." Madeline gigged, a sinister smile spreading across her lips.
"Enjoy your moment, sweetheart. Because I will make your life a living hell." Madeline's eyes sparkled with malice as she stared at the broken phone.
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Meanwhile, in Jack's luxurious penthouse.
The atmosphere in the room was thick, like a calm before the storm. Eleanor stood close to the windows gazing outside the night sky with her hands crossed.
"You actually expect me to put on a show in front of the cameras for the media?" Eleanor muttered with disbelief.
"I do not want any of this more than you do. But this is something my father wants. And believe me, I would rather do anything than allow him to control me." Jack replied, his voice laced with frustration.
Eleanor quickly turned to Jack with a blazing eyes. "Then why are you letting him control you? Stand up for yourself and refuse him?"
"You do not understand. Once my father wants anything, he will whatever it takes to get it. And if I don't do as he says, he will make the both of us regret our lives." Jack muttered, clenching his jaws.
"So what now? We just going to roll over and allow him to control us like pawns in business games?" Eleanor crossed her arms, raising her voice in outrage.
"This is just about the game, it's also my reputation on the line. If we walk out of this marriage now, the press will rip me apart. And my father will make sure your life, every aspect of it, is destroyed alongside mine." Jack responded in a low, deadly tone.
Eleanor's throat tightened. She hated the fact that everything Jack said was the truth. The headlines were already a wildfire, one wrong move and it would consume them both.
But the thought of always putting on a show on cameras for the sake of public approval did not sit well with her.
"I won't do it. I already agreed not to annul the marriage for our life's sake, and that's it. I did not sign up for any circus show, so I won't pretend to be something I'm not." Eleanor countered, her voice quivering slightly.
Jack's piercing gaze locked onto Eleanor's eyes. Then, his expression seemed to shift slightly. The frustration on his face seemed to softened, replaced by a calm expression.
Jack suddenly thought of a plan. "What if I offer you a deal that could make this marriage beneficial to both of us?" Jack slowly proposed. Eleanor squinted her eyes. “How do you mean?”
Jack straightened up. "A six-month contract. We maintain the marriage in public and we play the perfect couple for the cameras. Once the six months is over, we part ways, no strings attached." Jack proposed to Eleanor.
Eleanor’s brows furrowed. “And why would I agree to that?”
Jack’s lips curled into a faint grin. “Because I’ll make it worth your while.” Eleanor's eyes fluttered, "You are offering... money?" She asked with curiousity.
“And more. Financial security and connections. Whatever you need to get your career back on track. You walk away from this with your life better than before.” Jack replied smoothly
Eleanor's breath hitched. The pain of her recent failures, the client she lost, and the threat of becoming unemployed was still fresh in her memories.
Jack's offer was very promising and tempting. Too tempting. But the thought of selling herself into a corporate game made her skin crawl with disgust.
"So, you are basically buying me?" Eleanor replied with contempt. "I'm offering you a deal. One where we both win. You get what you need, I get to handle my father's insanity without losing everything." Jack responded.
Eleanor really wish to accepting the offer, bit something kept telling her this could be a dangerous decision.
But then she thought about her financial struggles. The career she had painstakingly built from the ground up, now on the brink of collapse.
Six months for a future she might never have otherwise. Eleanor's lips pressed into a thin line. “And after six months?” Eleanor asked in a quiet voice.
“We part ways. No strings attached . Nothing else.” Jack responded, his gaze never leaving her. A quiet and uncomfortable silence suddenly filled the room.
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