THE 20 MILLION CONTRACT

THE ICE KING

The guest wing was too big. Too quiet.

My footsteps echoed on the marble as Sandra, the PR stylist, walked me in with 3 suitcases I didn’t own. Designer tags. Perfume I couldn’t pronounce. Shoes that cost more than my mom’s hospital bill.

“Mr. Charles picked these out,” Sandra said, dropping them by the bed. “Don’t ask why.”

I ran my hand over the silk duvet. “It’s… nice.”

“It’s cold,” Sandra corrected. She wasn’t looking at me. She was looking at the door at the end of the hall. The double doors. Dark wood. Gold handle.

She lowered her voice. “Listen. No one’s ever been allowed in the master suite. Not the last 4 girls. Don’t try.”

My stomach dropped. “Girls?” I asked before I could stop myself.

Sandra’s mouth snapped shut. Her eyes went wide. “Forget I said that.”

She grabbed her bag. “House rules are on the nightstand. Dinner is at 8. Don’t be late. And don’t wander.”

Then she was gone.

I was alone.

The room had a king bed, a sitting area, a bathroom bigger than my kitchen. And windows that looked out over a garden I wasn’t allowed in.

There were no photos. No books. Nothing personal. Like no one was ever meant to live here.

At 7:55 PM, a maid knocked. “Dinner.”

The dining room was worse.

Chandelier. Table for 12. White plates. Silver cutlery. One setting. Mine.

Candles lit, but no one to eat with.

I sat there and pushed food around while the house stayed silent.

Upstairs, through the glass walls of his office, I could see him.

Stephen Charles.

Phone to ear. Signing papers. Sleeves rolled up.

He never looked down. Not once.

I wondered if the last 4 girls sat at this same table.

I wondered why they left.

I wondered if he’d even notice if I did too.

After, I went back to the guest wing.

The contract was on the nightstand. 6 months. $200,000. NDA. Clauses I didn’t understand.

I folded it in half. Then in half again.

That night I slept with it under my pillow like it would disappear if I didn’t watch it.

Like if I let go, this whole thing would be a dream.

At 3 AM I woke up to footsteps in the hall.

They stopped outside my door.

Paused.

Then kept going.

Toward the master suite.

The door I wasn’t allowed to touch.

I didn’t sleep after that.