Love for Rent

Chapter1

Defne Talker, a determined young lady who works as a waitress, began her first day at work very early.

Determined not to be late on her first day, she left her home ahead of time. She reached into her purse and took out two dollars to pay, knowing she'd have no other money left to go home with. After a while, she realised she had given her money to the wrong person, and because of that, she had to get off the bus halfway to avoid drama.

***

Defne started working after she changed into her work clothes with her mind so occupied with lots of thoughts of her grandmother's chemotherapy. At 68, her grandmother had brain cancer, and Defne was willing to do anything to prolong her life and also send her little sister to school again.

Missing another session because she had exhausted all the government aid, and she had already spent all her little savings. She had no money with her for another session that was due next week and all her various gigs didn't do much.

Defne shook her head, wanting to forget the night she slept with a stranger all for the money offered to her to make him fall in love with her afterwards. The scenes of her accepting such an offer and committing an atrocity struck her to the bone, but there was no regretting it because the money was for her grandmother's treatment and her little sister's studies.

While offering tea to a customer, the same man claimed he was her husband to dismiss the strange and disturbing lady who was fixed for him as a blind date.

How are you darling? Said Omar Henshaw to Defne, pretending he was her husband.

As she turned, she immediately recognised the face, those deep hazelnut eyes, perfect eyebrows, pointed nose, succulent and kissable lips, and fine jaws. It was the man who she was paid to make him fall for her and whom she had a thing with.

Defne tried avoiding him, but he grabbed her by the hand and kissed her forcefully. She still had an item of his which she took by accident on their first meeting.

She looked at him, but it didn't seem like he recognised her at all. He had been drunk and she looked entirely different that night. She angrily cursed at him and was fired from the restaurant as a waitress. Her anger boiled over-the man made her lost her job.

Mrs. Henshaw, Omar's Aunt, saw all this and approached Defne for a job, which she agreed to do after considering a lot the money wil settle.

***

"Hi, Aunt!" Omar said.

"Just reminding you about your date tonight at 6:00 p.m.," Mrs. Henshaw Annika reminded him.

"I'm tired of all these dates. I don't like any of the women you introduced me to," Omar complained.

"Omar Dave Henshaw! Until you introduce me to your girlfriend, I won't stop finding girls for you," Mrs. Henshaw retorted.

"I've found a new girl and I hope she doesn't have to go through your nagging and quit just like the previous ones," he said to Mrs. Henshaw.

"Nice! Bring her to meet me tonight for dinner. I'm sure she's going to be a great fit for a wife," she said, smiling.

Omar smirked and murmured to himswelf because he had another problem. Does he really have to introduce his secretary to her? She has alwaalways been nagging about him being cold and not having even a girlfriend of his own.

Suddenly, he got disturbedand got out of bed to check what was happenimg in his kitchen and met a woman preparing breakfast.

"You?" the woman said, looking confused. It was the woman he had fired, Defne.

He quickly prepared for work and asked her to get his luch packed. She stirred at him while he ordered her around like they had never met before. She stopped him and said "What happened between us was a mistake and...," He stopped her and told her to stop thinking and stop discussing personal things, but rather she should be professional.

As she tried leaving with her head buried down, he said, "You need a job, right? You said your grandmother was sick."

Defne stopped and slowly stepped back.

"Alright, Mr. CEO, what's the plan? Marriage?" she asked in a sarcastic way that earned his glare, knowing fully well that she also got an offer from Mrs. Henshaw to lure him into loving her.

Sbhe agreed and went out with him.

"I'll introduce you as my girlfriend to my Aunt. Pretend it's love at first sight," Omar instructed.

Defne seemed distracted by something else, busy struggling with her thoughts and almost embraced him. Her scent was one he couldn't forget.

"Sir, I didn't think you would want me to pretend to be your girlfriend. You now know how cold-hearted you are, and no woman wants to be with such a man." She said, making a funny face.

She was a little bit tense because she didn't know how Mrs. Henshaw would react if she found out she was the woman Omar had a one-night stand with.