Billionaire’s Contract: A Baby to Claim"

CHAPTER 001: EMILY'S POINT OF VIEW! The weight of Derek’s words crushed me more than anything I had ever felt before. I had no idea it would happen this way—not here, not now. We were sitting at a fancy LA restaurant, the kind where every dish feels too expensive to pronounce. I could barely taste the food I had been so excited about, and now, it didn’t matter anyway. “You’re not who I thought you were,” Derek’s voice sliced through the air, cool and dismissive. He didn’t even look at me when he said it, his eyes fixed on his phone as if he was already over this whole thing. “I need someone who can keep up with me. You’re... not it.” He didn’t wait for a response before he stood up and walked out, leaving me frozen in place. I stared at the empty chair across from me, a sharp pain twisting my chest. People around me were going about their dinners like nothing was wrong, but my world had just shattered. It didn’t make sense. Why was he leaving me? And for what? I was suddenly a stranger to him, just some girl who didn’t measure up. My hands trembled as I wiped away the tears threatening to spill. I could feel every eye in the restaurant on me, but I didn’t care. The humiliation was like a blanket wrapping around me, suffocating me. Just as I was about to get up and leave—wanting to escape the pitying stares—someone approached. His voice was calm, smooth like velvet. “You handled that like a queen,” he said. I looked up, wiping my tears quickly, and found myself face to face with a stranger. Tall, dark hair, piercing eyes that seemed to take in everything in one glance. He was dressed like someone who belonged in a place like this. “Let me make you a deal,” he continued. I blinked. My heart raced. “A deal?” “Yes. $500K. Six months. You pose as my fiancée,” he said, his gaze intense, like he was sizing me up. I stared at him, trying to make sense of what he was saying. What kind of person walks up to a broken woman and offers her money like that? “Why would you—” “Because I need someone for an image, and you need money,” he cut me off smoothly. His words weren’t rude, just confident, like he had done this a hundred times before. “I’m Xander King. I’m willing to pay for your time. The only catch is no intimacy, no real relationship, and total confidentiality.” Something about the situation felt too strange to ignore, but I was desperate. My rent was overdue. I had no plan, no way forward. Derek had just dropped me like I was nothing, and I didn’t know where else to turn. “You’re serious?” I asked, still not quite believing what was happening. “Completely,” he said. “Think about it. You get the money. I get the image. We both win.” The silence between us stretched. I felt my heart racing, my thoughts bouncing between skepticism and the desperate need for something—anything—to get me out of this hellhole I had found myself in. But how much of myself was I willing to give up for $500K? And what kind of man offers that kind of deal without expecting something in return? I glanced around the room, wondering if anyone was watching. The weight of the decision pressed on me, but there was a small part of me—just a whisper—that said this might be my way out. But was it really? Or would it make everything worse? His voice broke through my thoughts. “Well?” I swallowed hard, feeling the tension in my throat. Was I really going to do this? My mind screamed at me to be cautious, but my body ached for an escape. “You have to sign a contract. No exceptions. No intimacy, just a front. That’s the only way this works,” he added, his eyes piercing through me like he was already calculating my every move. I nodded slowly, my heart racing. “I’ll think about it,” I said, though I knew deep down I was already making up my mind. The words left me before I could stop them, a mix of fear and excitement bubbling up inside. What was I getting myself into? “Take your time,” he said with a small, knowing smile, his eyes glinting with something I couldn’t quite place. “But don’t wait too long.” I looked at the half-empty glass of wine in front of me, the sting of Derek’s rejection still fresh. Would I really take Xander’s offer? What was I willing to sacrifice to escape the mess I was in? How much of myself would I lose if I went through with this? I couldn’t answer that yet, but I knew one thing for sure—whatever happened next, my life would never be the same. I stood up, still feeling the weight of Xander’s gaze on me as I left the restaurant. The night air hit my face, and for a moment, I felt something like clarity. But there was a gnawing feeling in my gut that wouldn’t go away. Was I really ready to accept his offer? “Would I be making a deal with the devil?” The question echoed in my mind as I walked into the cold night, the city lights blurring around me. The future was unclear, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but for the first time in a long while, I didn’t feel completely alone. But how far was I willing to go to escape the pain?