THE CEO CONTRACT BRIDE

THE PRENUP

*Day 6. 6:30 AM.*

Lily didn’t sleep.

She stared at the text until her eyes burned.

_He’s lying to you. Ask him about the prenup._

Prenup.

There was no prenup. The contract was 3 pages. Money for time. No assets. No claims.

Right?

At 6:30, her door opened.

Damian. Coffee in hand. He froze when he saw her sitting up in bed.

"Rule 2," Lily said flatly.

Damian held up the coffee. "I knocked. With caffeine."

He looked wrecked. Same clothes as last night. Dark circles.

"Did you sleep?" Lily asked.

"No." He set the coffee on her nightstand. "You?"

"Not really."

Silence. The fight from last night hung between them.

Damian cleared his throat. "Eleanor wants us at brunch. 11 AM. To 'discuss the wedding'."

Lily laughed. It came out bitter. "What wedding, Damian?"

"The fake one." He winced. "The one my mom thinks is real."

Lily picked up the coffee. Didn’t drink it. "We need to talk."

"I know." Damian leaned against the doorframe. "About last night. I’m sorry I—"

"Not that." Lily cut him off. She held up her phone. "This."

Damian read the text. His face went blank. CEO mask.

"Who sent it?" he asked.

"No idea. Unknown number." Lily watched him. "Prenup, Damian? What prenup?"

Damian didn’t answer right away.

And that was the answer.

---

*Day 6. 8:00 AM. Hart Tower. Damian’s Office.*

Lily closed the door behind them.

"Talk," she said.

Damian walked to his desk. Opened a drawer. Pulled out a folder. Thick. Legal.

He set it on the desk between them.

"Lily, sit."

"I’ll stand."

Damian sighed. Opened the folder.

The first page: _PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT. DAMIAN HART AND LILY CARTER._

Lily’s stomach dropped.

"I didn’t know," Damian said quickly. "My lawyers drafted this the night before the wedding. 3 years ago. I told them to shred it. I never signed it."

Lily flipped through it. Clause after clause.

_No claim to Hart Enterprises. No spousal support. NDA. $2 million payout if divorce initiated by Damian._

Her hands shook. "You were going to pay me to leave you?"

"No." Damian stepped closer. "I was 26 and scared. My dad got destroyed in his divorce. My mom told me every woman after that was after the money. I was an idiot."

"And you never told me?"

"I was going to. The morning of the wedding." Damian’s voice broke. "Then you walked in and I realized how stupid it was. I told my lawyer to burn it."

Lily looked up. "But they didn’t."

"No." Damian ran a hand through his hair. "Someone kept a copy."

Lily closed the folder. "So who sent me the text?"

"I don’t know." Damian was lying. Badly.

"Damian."

"Fine." He paced. "It could be my mom. It could be Sophia. It could be someone in legal who’s still bitter I didn’t sign it."

Lily laughed. No humor. "So you had a prenup to protect yourself from me, and now someone’s using it to blackmail us?"

"It’s not blackmail. Yet."

"Yet." Lily threw the folder on the desk. "Rule 4, Damian. No lying. You broke it the second you kept this from me."

"I was trying to protect you!"

"From what? The truth?"

"From this!" Damian gestured between them. "From my family thinking you married me for money! From people like Sophia—"

"Don’t bring her into this."

"Why not? She was there last night! She’s probably the one who sent it!"

Lily went quiet.

Damian stopped pacing. "Lily. I’m sorry. I should’ve told you. I was a coward."

Lily looked at him. The man who held her hand under the table. The man who made her coffee. The man who lied.

"I need space," she whispered.

"Lily—"

"I need space, Damian."

---

*Day 6. 11:00 AM. Hart Estate. Brunch.*

Eleanor had set up the entire garden. White tables. Flowers. Champagne.

It looked like a wedding.

Lily walked in on Damian’s arm. They hadn’t spoken in the car.

"There they are!" Eleanor gushed. "My son and my new daughter."

Richard kissed Lily’s cheek. "Good to see you, dear."

The brothers waved.

And Sophia was there. Again. In white. Like a bride.

Lily’s blood went cold.

"Lily, darling," Eleanor said. "We were just talking venues. Sophia had some lovely suggestions."

Sophia smiled sweetly. "Hi, Lily. You look tired. Rough night?"

Damian’s hand tightened on Lily’s back.

"We’re not discussing the wedding today," Damian said.

"Oh but we must!" Eleanor clapped. "The press is already asking. After that proposal at the Tower—"

Lily froze. "What proposal?"

Eleanor pulled out her phone. Showed her the news headline.

_HART CEO RECONCILES WITH EX-WIFE. PROPOSES AT PRESS CONFERENCE._

It was a photo from Chapter 6 of CEO EX-WIFE. Wrong story. Wrong Damian.

But it looked real.

"Where did you get this?" Lily asked.

"Sophia sent it to me," Eleanor said. "Isn’t it romantic?"

Lily looked at Sophia. Sophia winked.

Damian stepped in front of Lily. "Mom. That’s not us. That’s a different story."

"Really?" Eleanor squinted. "Looks like you to me."

"It’s not." Damian pulled Lily away. "We’re leaving."

"Damian—"

"Now."

---

*Day 6. 1:00 PM. Car.*

Lily stared out the window.

"That photo," she said. "It’s from a novel."

Damian glanced at her. "What?"

"CEO EX-WIFE. It’s a book. Someone’s using scenes from it to mess with us."

Damian cursed. "Sophia."

"Or your mom."

"Or both."

Lily turned to him. "The prenup. Did you sign it or not?"

"No." Damian’s voice was firm. "I swear to you, Lily. I never signed it. I never wanted it."

Lily believed him. And hated that she did.

"Then why is someone pretending we did?"

"To break us." Damian pulled over. "Lily, look at me."

She did.

"I messed up 3 years ago. I’m messing up now. But I’m not lying to you about this." He reached over and took her hand. "No prenup. No payout. No contract after 90 days unless you want it."

Lily pulled her hand away. "Rule 3."

"Forget Rule 3." Damian’s eyes were desperate. "I don’t want to pretend with you anymore."

Lily’s heart hurt. "Then what do you want?"

"I don’t know." Damian laughed, frustrated. "I want you to stop looking at me like I’m the enemy. I want you to stay for dinner tonight. I want... I want to figure this out with you."

Lily was quiet.

Finally: "Okay. Dinner. But we’re rewriting the rules."

"Deal."

---

*Day 6. 8:00 PM. Penthouse.*

They ordered takeout. Sat on the floor. No table.

It was the first time it felt normal.

"New Rule 1," Lily said, writing on a napkin. "No secrets. About legal stuff. About exes. About anything."

Damian nodded. "Agreed."

"New Rule 2: We tell each other when someone’s trying to mess with us. Immediately."

"Agreed."

"New Rule 3: No touching unless we both want it."

Damian paused. "Agreed."

Lily set the napkin down. "Good."

They ate in silence.

Then Damian’s phone buzzed.

_Unknown: Told you. He lied. Check page 7._

Damian showed Lily.

Page 7 of the prenup. _In the event of reconciliation, all assets prior to marriage become joint property._

Lily looked up. "Damian. Did you reconcile with anyone before me?"

Damian’s face went pale.

"Sophia," he whispered. "3 months before you. For 2 weeks. It was a mistake."

Lily stood up. "You reconciled with your ex and didn’t tell me?"

"I ended it!" Damian stood too. "Lily, it meant nothing—"

"To you, maybe!" Lily’s voice cracked. "To the prenup it means everything!"

Damian grabbed her arm. Gently. "Lily, please. Let me explain—"

Lily yanked away. "No. I’m done being lied to."

She walked to her room. Locked the door.

Damian knocked. Once. Twice.

"Lily. Please."

No answer.

He slid down the door. "I’m so sorry."

Inside, Lily cried. Not because of Sophia.

Because she was starting to believe him.

And that was dangerous.

---

*Day 6. 11:59 PM. Text from Unknown.*

_Lily: He’s going to choose her. He always does._

Lily deleted it.

Then blocked the number.

Day 6 of 90.

And the prenup is now a weapon.

*TO BE CONTINUED