Chapter 4

As Emily left Alex’s office, her mind was spinning with thoughts about his shocking proposal. She was so distracted that she didn’t see the person in front of her until she bumped into them.

The files in her hands fell to the floor. “Oh no! I’m so sorry!” Emily said quickly, bending down to pick them up. Her heart raced as she looked up and saw Max, one of the company’s directors.

Max, tall and dressed in a sharp suit, gave her a kind smile and crouched to help her. “It’s okay. Are you alright?” he asked gently.

“Yes, I’m fine. Thank you,” Emily replied, her voice shaky. She stood up and adjusted her skirt, avoiding his gaze.

Max looked at her closely for a moment. “Are you an employee here?”

“I’m Mr. Sterling’s secretary,” Emily said quietly.

Max raised an eyebrow as if thinking about her answer. Before he could say anything else, his secretary walked up and reminded him about a meeting.

Max gave Emily a small smile. “I hope we meet again, Miss…?”

“Emily. Emily Smith,” she said nervously.

“Nice to meet you, Emily. See you next time,” Max said before walking away.

Emily let out a deep breath, feeling a little more relaxed. 

“Such an amazing being. If it was Alex, he would have caused a tantrum,” Emily whispered to herself as she stared at Max and his secretary walked away. Max is Alex’s cousin but despite the fact that they were related, they are both different in several ways. Max is more like Alex’s opposite. Emily took her file and went straight to the restroom.

******

Alex decided to take a break from his thoughts and grab a cup of coffee from the company's VIP cafeteria which is meant only for the company's top executives. As he rounded the corner, he nearly collided with someone stepping out of the elevator. Looking up, he found himself face to face with his Uncle, Robert Sterling.

"Uncle Robert," Alex greeted, forcing a smile. 

Robert stared at him, his expression unreadable for a moment before he plastered on a fake smile. 

"Ah, Alex. What a surprise to see you here.” Robert said.

“Oh yes, I decided to take a short break before I resume back,” Alex responded.

Robert nodded and turned to leave but suddenly faced Alex who was still standing and waiting for him to leave.

“Aha, I remembered,” Robert snapped before he continued, “Hope you are preparing for the presidential election?.” 

“Yes,” Alex responded with audacity.

“Because sooner or later, you won't be with the company again as the stakeholders are in my support than you,” Robert said as he adjusted his black deluxe suit.

“Thank you for informing me,” Alex replied with a warm smile and watched Robert leave with a smirk.

****

Emily finally took a deep breath and stared at the restroom's mirror. She had been pondering again and again on the proposal Alex had made but one question had been coming up over again which was why he chose her. 

As Emily was trying to put herself together, she got a message from her family doctor which reads;

Hi Emily. How's work? Has there been any luck on the money? It's dangerous to delay Dad's surgery. Much love.

Emily shut her eyes and gripped her phone tightly. She wasn't going to let anything happen to her father who is the only family member she had. She knew there was no magic she could do that would turn in the huge amount of money needed for the surgery. There was no one she could beg for the money and she didn't have any tangible collateral for a bank loan. At this point, the only solution she has at hand is to give into Alex's proposal.

“It's just a fake marriage after all with no strings attached,” Emily mumbled to herself.

Emily, well aware of the decision she's about to make and what will be ahead of her, marches out of the restroom with the determination that she would rather take in Alex’s offer and face the challenges ahead than watch her father die.

***

Emily typed a message to Alex later that evening about agreeing to the contract marriage. Soon, he replied with a time and place to meet later that night at one of Alex's fancy clubs. When Emily got there, one of Alex's bodyguards took her to a private office inside the club and led her to the brown leather chair. 

The office was very large and fancy. There was a big, elegant wooden desk in the middle of the room, with lots of cool gadgets and neat stacks of papers. The windows stretched from the floor to the ceiling, giving a great view of the city. There were comfy leather chairs for important meetings. On the walls, there were fancy certificates and trophies showing how great Alex was at leading. Being in that room felt ambitious and important, showing how much Alex ruled the business world. Alex entered a few minutes later and went straight to his desk while nodding at Emily's presence.

“Welcome, Emily,” Alex said, trying to pour Emily a cup of wine. He stretched his hand for Emily to take the cup.

“I don't drink alcohol,” Emily said politely while Alex took the cup back to his table.

“Well, So back to business, I'm glad you agreed on the plan, and here's the contract that explains our deal.” Alex picked a 3 page paper and handed it to Emily. "Take your time to read it before we talk more."

Emily took the paper, feeling curious and nervous at the same time. She kept wondering if the decision she was about to make was the right one. Each part of the contract laid out what they agreed on, making it clear their marriage was just for show.

As Emily read, Alex explained more about the contract, making sure she understood everything. "Our personal lives won't mix," he said firmly. "And when we're together in public, we will put up a show but when we're alone, we won't have anything together."

Emily nodded, trying to take it all in. Even though it was a serious situation, she felt a bit relieved knowing exactly what to expect.

“But would we do this forever?” Emily asked not sure of when the contract will be over.

“It's written there. After a year of my inauguration, we will tell the world we are divorcing where we will go our separate ways,” Alex responded, sipping some wine.

Emily read through the compensation and gasped. With a steady hand, Emily signed the paper, showing she agreed to everything. As she finished, she felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, knowing she had made a decision. To be honest, Emily liked how Alex came through for her earlier. It made her feel relevant. But she knew for sure that Alex would never have any emotional feelings for her and what he did earlier was for a show. She handed the papers to Alex who glanced through it one last time.

“Nice. The first meeting we will have together in public is to meet my family this weekend.” 

“What??” Emily blurted.