Jake has to get married in order to access his inheritance and his father’s company. There’s one problem, he’s a playboy and the thought of settling down with someone unnerves him. With the help of his best friend, Kyle, they set up a marriage contract which entails that he’ll be married to whichever girl of his choosing for just a year then the marriage would be dissolved and they would go their separate ways. The girl chosen would be compensated generously with lots of money, which was what Olivia needed more than anything. Olivia sees the ad but is not sure if that was what she wanted for herself. After a little persuasion, she signed the contract with Jake knowing there was no chance of her falling in love with the billionaire because she liked girls. Just a year and she would be free to live her life again, with lots of money this time. Jake marries Olivia and couldn’t be any happier because he could still see a lot of girls and not have to worry about her nurturing any kind of feelings for him. A couple months in and Jake finds himself falling in love with Olivia as he sees a side to her that she hides away from the world.
View MoreOLIVIA
The hot water running out of the shower head reminds me how late I am on my rent again, especially with my heater cut off in this cold season.
I enjoy every bit of it knowing that this gym shower was the only place I could warm up before going back to my beat down apartment to die of cold.
When I’m done I wrap a loose towel around my chest and leave the bathroom stall. If I stayed there any longer then someone was going to get suspicious that I was the one always finishing the hot water.
I dry up, putting my wet hair up in a two braids. I pull on my basket ball shorts and tank top, my sneakers going on next.
I’m about to leave when my phone rings, I look at the caller ID to see its my landlady. I decline it.
My fingers swipe across my phone to check if Jess had replied my text but it was still empty making me sigh. She was my bestfriend and my only hope of paying my rent before I’m thrown out.
Yes, this was the thousandth time I was asking her to lend me some money and promising to pay back but I hoped this was the last. Her family was rich but I wasn’t going to keep taking advantage of that and living off her. I was going to find a job and everything would be okay.
I sigh.
The gym was the only thing keeping me sane at this point. It was a good thing Jess had a free membership that I was able to use because she couldn’t hit the gym to save her life.
My rings again and I know this time I cannot decline the call.
“Hello Ms. Wang, I was not expecting your call” I say with a grimace, that was a lie. I push the gym doors open and step into the busy street, making sure not to bump into anyone.
“You have been declining my call!” She yells making me shriek and put the phone away from my ear. When I put it back on she’s yelling a bunch of Chinese that I can’t even understand so I say the only thing that comes to mind.
“I’ll have your money by weekend, I promise. You know I always pay up” I say with a sweet voice that sickens me.
“You always say this, have it before midnight today or I’m throwing you out!” She yells something else again before hanging up on me.
Tonight?
She had to be joking.
It was literally impossible to have the money before then. I glance at my watch, I barely had fifteen hours before it would hit midnight, does she expect me to rob a bank or something? Jess was still not answering my text, I just hope she’s alright.
Lost in thoughts I bump into a wall, or a wall bumps into me… I’m not quite sure which. I rub my forehead to ease the pain from the contact, only to look up to see a pair of blue eyes staring at me.
Well, it’s not a wall but a guy. How crazy would he working out to have strong muscles like that, that they almost knocked me out.
The suit he was putting on hid some of it but not quite all, I can still make out the hard planes of his shoulders and his strong arms from it.
“If you’re blind the least you can do is apologize for bumping into other people” he says, his strong jaw ticking with the little patience I had.
“Excuse you!” I exclaim “You bumped into me so you should be the one apologizing. And I’m not blind!”
“Do you also not have manners that you’re yelling in the street and disturbing a whole lot of people?” he smirks at me and I want to punch the living daylight out of him. I was already having a bad day and do not want to deal with this.
“I’m not dealing with this” I say and take deep breaths to calm myself. I step to the side to g around him when he grabs my arm.
“You need to pick these up” he gestured to the bunch of flier scattered on the floor “After all you made me drop them”
I scoff unable to believe what he was saying “You mean I should bend and pick this for you?” I ask, putting emphasis on each word.
“Yes,” he answers simply, a small grin on his face like he was enjoying our entire ordeal. Well, I wasn’t.
“Let go of me this instant” I say but he doesn’t make any move, if anything he grip on me tightens and borders on becoming painful.
“Just do as I ask and you’ll be on your way” he removes his hand but doesn’t move away.
Why is he being so stubborn about this?
“Move”
He doesn’t even seem to be bothered by the anger that is widely displayed on my face, or the deepness of my voice “No” he just says simply.
The corners of my mouth turn up in a tight smile “I just need to pick it up?” I ask sweetly which takes him aback as he takes a step backward.
“Yes?”
I nod before bending down to grab the fliers. I slowly stand up, able to see the smile on his face. He probably thinks he won.
He stretches his hand to take them from me which leaves him unprotected and vulnerable to what I’m about to do next.
Folding all my fingers in. I throw a punch directly on his face, the loud crunch I hear giving me a deadly satisfaction as his expression takes in the one of agony.
I laugh.
Hard.
“Next time don’t mess with every girl you see” I say, patting myself on the back as he cradles his nose in his palm.
Despite the pain he manages a smile “If anything you’re hardly a girl”
I’m about to throw another punch when someone holds my arm from behind. I turn to see another human wall in a suit behind me.
“I’m not sure what is going on but I apologize for his behaviour” the new guy says, his voice calming and making me drop my fist to my side. If only Mr. Asshole here was just as nice.
“Did you just call me Mr. Asshole” he exclaims, grunting from pain.
Did I say that out loud?
I put my hand on my hips “And what if I did?”. I don’t even give him a chance to reply because I text pops up on my phone and it had me screaming in terror.
Oh no! My interview!
I look between the two guys unsure of what to say so I just run as fast as my legs could go. I had just two minutes to my entire I couldn’t afford to be late, if only that wall of a man didn’t bump into me.
When I push open the door to the cafe the place is already empty and I can tell that I’m more than late for the interview. I walk straight to the counter where a girl about my age is sitting with her headphones on.
“Hello, I’m here for the interview” I fiddle with my fingers.
She pops the gum she’s chewing before raising her eyes to me like I was an annoying kid that she wanted to get rid of “They finished like an hour ago, don’t know why you even bothered showing up”
I suck in a deep breath “I can’t even see the manager. Surely there’s something that can be done for me”
She doesn’t even answer.
Just keeps chewing her gum like no one was speaking to her. I look to the little office beside the counter where I’d first met the manager and she offered me a job, if only I was early. I would have gotten that job.
Everything was going well, until wall man showed up.
I’m fuming.
And if I ever see him again he’s dead meat.
I don’t even realize I’m still holding unto the flyer until I’m standing outside the cafe and trying to hail a taxi.
The colorful fonts grab my attention and soon I’m reading it all through. By the time I’m done I’m laughing like a maniac.
Wife for hire? Definitely something someone as arrogant as him could pull off, why is he looking for a wife anyway?
What am I even asking? He goes around bumping into girls and demanding they apologize instead, who would want to be with someone like that? Besides all men were so not worth the trouble.
I’m about to discard the fliers when something huge catches my eye. That can’t be… $20,000? That’s a lot of money. Even a half of it would solve all my problems this minute and even more.
I go through the instructions on the flyer with rapt attention this time, and it says that a lady is needed to pretend to be his wife for just three months and they would be paid handsomely with $20,000 as just the starting price and conditions are negotiable.
This had to be a dream.
How can he possibly give out this huge amount of money, and what would he even need a wife for? This is getting interesting.
My phone dings and I check it to see its a message from the bank and not Jess. This was turning into a sticky situation real quick. Why was she not answering my calls?
It was just me and my debt, in this entire city. No family, the one friend I have has most likely abandoned me to my fate. Maybe this was the end for me, I’ll move out and live under the bridge and maybe get a rich woman to fall in love with me.
This was totally not going to work.
As I went over my predicament in my head, the flyer I my hand got even more attractive. There was no harm in it, being someone’s wife didn’t seem that big of a job. I wasn’t even attracted to men so it was perfect.
No stress, for an entire twenty grand.
No! I can’t do this. But I have no other choice. Without Jess to help I was down for good this time.
I sigh.
I check the address on the flyer, there’s an interview in…five minutes? I might have missed the cafe interview but I couldn’t miss this one, it was my ticket out of hell.
With the last penny in my purse I hail a cab, it better be worth it because this was all the money that I had.
The cab stops in front of an expensive looking restaurant and I have to double check if its really the address.
It is. I stand outside the glass door and take a couple deep breaths before pushing it open. Here goes all or nothing.
It’s not the strong hospital smell that wakes me up or the warm hand on my cheek. But the twinge of pain that starts in my lower abdomen and spreads to my entire stomach. The first word I say is, “Jake,” followed by a sharp gasp. I hold the side of the bed tight and try to will the pain away. But the more I try to act like it’s not there, the more it eats me up from the inside out. Something warm touches my head at the same time I hear a faint voice ask, “Where are you hurt?” I’m in so much pain that I don’t jump with glee when Drew’s worried face comes into my line of sight. He’s alive but my brain is trying to process what’s wrong with me first. It’s a blood shattering battle. “The doctor-” I gasp, “Call the doctor. Oh my God Jake,” I clutch my stomach, bending over to try and ease the contraction that I’m feeling in there. My baby better be alright, he has to be. Drew removes the needles in his arm when he processes what is happening and leaves the room to get t
I’ve been paranoid since the meeting with Father, if Drew notices he doesn’t comment on it or ask any questions. . I sigh for the tenth time since we drove out of the house. I know Drew is being patient but with the way he’s tapping his fingers against the wheel I know he’s dying to ask me what happened during the meeting. It’s not like I’m hiding it from him, I’m just waiting till I’m sure what exactly is going on with Sherp till I tell him. There are so many questions that I’m afraid of what the answers will be. The first will be if Sherp has been working for Father the whole time he knew me, which from what Father said I think is the case. Still, he could’ve easily exposed my identity from the very beginning but he didn’t. I need to know what his game is in order to access this situation properly. I mean he gave me the very explosives I used to blow up the boat, why would he do that if he was working for Father? Most importantly, why is he helping Father look fo
Skipping dinner seemed like the best thing to do when we got home. After our make out in the office, I’ve not been able to look Drew in the eye.The smile on his face hasn’t left ever since and I’m worried he thinks we’re much more than a fake couple now.I can’t deny that what happened is the only sunshine I’ve had in my life since learning that I’ll be having Jake.It’s part of the reason I’m scared to think so much about it. I’m not ready to put a name or tag on how we both feel.My only mistake was skipping out on dinner and turning in early so I wouldn’t have to talk to him. Now I’m lying down wide awake because the hunger gnawing at me won’t let me sleep.I watch the rise and fall of Drew’s chest as he sleeps before slipping out of the bed. I’m careful not to wake him on my way out, carefully navigating through the dark room.When I make it to the stairs I almost leap in joy. Food at last. I take the stairs two at a time and run to the kitchen when I’m down.I cry out in relief
I don’t come downstairs until the doorbell rings. I’ve done a pretty good job of avoiding Jenny and now I was going to risk running into her. The entire house is quiet when I come down, she must be taking a nap. For some reason I tiptoe to the door and stifle a startle when I open the door to a rather grumpy looking Dr. Shelby. All since I’ve known him, he was always smiling, patient. There was this airiness that surrounded him, it always made you feel at ease with him. But all that is left now are deep frown lines on his face and I hate to be the reason for it. “How did you think drinking while being pregnant was a good idea?” he asks the moment he steps past the threshold. “Why keep a child you’re not going to take proper care of?” My breath seizes in my lung. With a slight tilt to my head I study his expression. His eyes are accusing as he glares at me. This right here is not Dr. Shelby. Someone has taken him and put in place this angry version that I’m not used to.
There’s a soft touch on my shoulder and I look up to see Drew’s worried eyes. He raises his brow asking if I’m okay and I nod. Daisy shakes in my arms, the sleeve of my gown stained with her tears. The meeting should go on but I also can’t leave her in this state when I’m the primary reason she has to go through this grief. “Let me take you home,” I whisper to her. The meeting can always wait, but for now I need to calm her down and make sure she’s okay so she doesn’t hurt herself. She nods into my shoulder. I turn to Drew, “Can you take over the meeting, I’ll take her home now,” I tell him. “Why? Everyone has agreed to you being the new chairman, so you have to finish up. And with Daisy we can’t risk them changing their mind” he whispers to me. I shake my head. “Her feelings right now are more important. You can explain the situation to them and have them vote now. They’ll understand why I have to leave right away,” I say. Daisy is already trembling from c
Never did I think I’d be back here, in this soulless city that has had nothing but pain to offer me. But here I am, sitting in Drew’s passenger seat with the window down. There’s a random song playing on the radio that fills the silence dwelling between us. I’m grateful for it because after the tense conversation we had, we both needed to process our thoughts. I have to think of myself as Cassie now, I need to slowly immerse myself into her persona. Above all, I have to become her for this irrational plan of mine to work. “Aren’t you cold, the window has been down for so long,” Drew says, his attention still on the road. “Oh, I didn’t realize,” I reply. My body chooses that exact moment to shiver. I don’t miss the smile on Drew’s lips. “What were you thinking so much about?” he asks. I twist slightly to him. “You said you want nothing to do with the company…” I start. His short laugh is nervous, “Yes?” “But I have no idea how to actually run the company
Everyday that I see the sun rise is torture to my soul. Every morning that I wake up without Don by my side, tears my heart into a million pieces. I don’t know where life ends and where death starts. They’ve both become the same to me. It has made me prisoner in this dark perilous place called my mind. I sit by the window every night and wait for a dawn that never breaks, but that even is too much to ask. This is my own hell. This is my own home. There’s nothing on the news about the explosion. If I hadn’t been there myself I wouldn’t even believe that it happened. No bodies have been found. That is both my hope and my nightmare. Two long months of emptiness and guilt, that is my punishment. What if he’s really gone? What if he didn’t survive? No one could be alive and stay hidden for that long. What if he’s out there looking for me? I deflate. The chances are unlikely, especially after the way we parted. I should have held onto him a little longer, laced his f
Something was wrong, even a blind man could see it from miles away. I listened through the entire meeting but barely heard a word. They talked mostly about shares and opening another branch in some city I didn’t catch the name. My eyes shifted to the jot pad Car had left on the table, his handwriting had to be the ugliest thing in the world as I scanned over what he had written. He was my assistant, but it felt like he was more, like I should care for him. The meeting was barely over when I stood up from the meeting and left. I went straight to the restroom, sure that a clue to whatever was wrong with him would be there. I went straight to the waste bin that was at the far end of the restroom. Lying at the bottom was a rumpled toilet paper that was stained with blood, and lots of it. There was a sudden panic as I closed the lid, there was something going on with him but what if it was something that wasn’t entirely my business. It was clear he was sick, but sick w
His lips. They tormented me more than my father. The things I had felt in those few seconds always rattled my heart and made butterflies flutter in my stomach. But then I always remembered, his panic-stricken face after and the fact that he hated me, just like they all did. “I’m sorry” I said as I detangled myself from him and stood straighter, adjusting my tie in the process. He said nothing. He didn’t even acknowledge the fall or the awkward moment his arms had been wrapped around me. Maybe he did this often, letting his male personal assistants fall into his arms. It hit me then! A scandal, Don involved with his male assistant, a gay relationship. It would ruin a respectable family like his. The doors dinged when we got to the ground floor. I walked after him making sure to put a decent space between us. I’ll rather fall on my butt than into his hands again. A black sleek limousine was already waiting when we got out of the building, the other staff glaring daggers a
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