Beneath Her Gilded Mask

Chapter 4 A One-Billion-Dollar Deal

After getting dressed, Calista didn't even bother to fix her messy hair. She rushed out of the room, not caring about the strange looks she got along the way.

All she wanted was to get home as quickly as possible, eat one of her favorite cream puffs, and calm herself down.

But of course, traffic was a nightmare. It took her five hours just to get back home.

She barely made it inside, not even taking a sip of water to soothe her dry throat, when the deafening phone ring rang.

Groaning, Calista put her cup down and answered the call.

"Hello? This is Calista," she said, holding the phone to her ear, her voice a bit tired.

She waited for a while but heard nothing on the other end. Just as she was about to hang up, thinking it was some prank call, a sharp and professional voice came through. "Hello, Calista. Are you interested in taking on a one-billion-dollar deal?"

The water cup slipped from her hand, spilling all over her legs and splashing across the floor in a mess.

But Calista barely noticed. Her brain froze for a moment. 'A billion dollars? Did I hear that right?'

"Hello? Calista, is everything okay? I heard glass breaking. Are you alright?" The voice on the other end seemed concerned.

It snapped her back to reality, and she immediately replied, "N-no, nothing's wrong. Um, can we discuss the deal this afternoon at Starry Café? I have something to take care of now." She didn't even notice how fast she was speaking, almost like she was afraid the deal would disappear or that she was dreaming.

"Of course, we can. How about 3 PM?" said the other party.

"Okay."

Calista hung up and stood frozen in place. Her mind was blank.

Her mind screamed, 'A one-billion-dollar deal? Was this a joke? Yet, it felt so real, like it had landed right on my head.'

She thought to herself, 'With the money, I can finally pay off the debt.'

Snapping out of her trance, she dashed to her bedroom and rifled through her drawers until she found the most formal outfit she could find.

Looking into the mirror, she saw herself as bright, confident, and ready.

At 2 PM, Calista left home early, hailed a cab, and spent the entire ride rehearsing the conversation she would have in her head.

At exactly 3 PM, she walked into Starry Café.

By the window, a woman in a brown suit dress was sitting there and reading through some documents.

Her suit looked simple, but it was clearly crafted by a top-tier tailor.

Calista couldn't help but notice that next to the woman's coffee cup was a sleek, minimalist pen. The luxury brand logo on the cap of the pen gave away its origin. It was another luxury brand renowned for its quality and detail.

Calista was certain—this was the person she was here to meet.

She approached the woman and extended a polite hand. "Hello, ma'am, I'm Calista."

The woman looked up, feeling surprised for a split second, but quickly masked it with a faint, knowing smile. "Hello, I'm Anna. Miss Calista, you're even smarter than I expected."

She gestured to the seat across from her, inviting Calista to sit down.

Once Calista settled, Anna gracefully folded her hands on the table and spoke. "I'm sure you're already familiar with the nature of your job. This task isn't too complicated. It requires you to infiltrate a man's life for a while and pretend to be his first love."

The mention of "infiltrate" made Calista frown slightly. Though confused, her years of professionalism kept her calm. She replied, "Ma'am, I won't beat around the bush. A ten-million-dollar payment means this task isn't going to be a walk in the park. I need all the details to decide whether to accept. For instance, why the need for infiltration, and does this man have any... particular preferences, like a tendency for abuse?"

Anna's eyes glinted with approval. "You can relax. This man is of a special background. There's no chance he would engage in anything crude. As for the infiltration, it's because he already has a wife."

Calista froze for a moment, almost feeling like Anna was mocking her, but then she quickly dismissed that thought.

'People in high society, they all had their own secret quirks, right?'

She nodded slightly and continued, "And what's his health situation like? I don't want to take on a job only to have it derailed because of his medical issues."

"He's in perfect health. No diseases," Anna replied concisely.

Calista thought for a moment. The task seemed tricky, but with her skills, it wasn't impossible.

She then asked, "When can I meet this man?"

Anna set her coffee cup down and sharpened her gaze. "Before we proceed, I'll need you to sign a confidentiality agreement to ensure the details of this task stay between us."

Anna reached into her bag, pulled out a document, and handed it to Calista.

Calista took the file and skimmed through it quickly.

After reading, she looked up at Anna. "You didn't mention anything about making this man fall for me. I'm backing out of this deal."

In Calista's opinion, getting someone's interest was one thing, but making a married man fall for her? That was crossing a line.

Anna wasn't surprised by Calista's reaction, and she insisted, "Miss Calista, you should understand ten million dollars isn't easy money. But I suggest you take a look at the man's profile before you make a final decision."

Anna pulled out an envelope from her bag and handed it to Calista.

Calista hesitated for a few seconds before opening it. But once she saw the photo and the information inside, her entire body froze.

The man in the photo wasn't just her first love. He was the one who had caused her to be cast out of her family and left her drowning in debt—the very enemy who had ruined her life!

Calista took a deep breath, fighting to steady her voice. "I accept the job."