Chapter 9

Olivia

He held out the folder. I didn’t take it. My hands remained firmly in my lap, though I couldn’t deny the curiosity building inside me.

“What is that?” I asked, eyeing the manila folder with suspicion.

“A draft of our agreement. Not finalized, of course. I’d want your input on the terms.”

I laughed without humor. “You already had this drawn up? Before even speaking to me?”

“I like to be prepared.” He placed the folder on the coffee table between us. “Take it home, read it, and then decide.”

My curiosity got the better of me. I reached for the folder and flipped it open.

The first page was a standard legal header, but what caught my eye was the figure: $1,000,000 to be transferred im- mediately upon signing. My eyes widened involuntarily.

“Keep reading,” Alexander prompted.

I flipped through the pages, skimming the dense legal text. Promotion to Senior Marketing Strategist. Relocation to the Carter estate. Public appearances as a couple. The divorce settlement: $5,000,000.

Then I reached a section that made my blood run cold.

“Duration of marriage: minimum one year, with potential extension based on the circumstances…”

“Extension?” I looked up sharply. “What does that mean?”

“Just a precaution. If my grandfather becomes suspicious, we might need to extend.”

I continued reading, my face growing hotter with each paragraph.

“Cohabitation in the same bedroom… public displays of affection… sexual relations as required to maintain the ap- pearance of a normal marriage…”

I slammed the folder shut. “Sexual relations? Are you kidding me?”

to look embarrassed.

the folder like it might

seat with the fluid grace of a predator and

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Chapter 9

up until my legs hit the

down my spine. “I have needs. Strong ones. I’m not the

flamed. “That’s not

cologne filling my senses. “If I’m seen visiting hotel rooms or bringing women to my house while married to

how my body was reacting to his proximity. “So

language. “Is that what you think this is? Me

back, waving the contract.

close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body. “I’m not some monster who forces himself on unwilling women. But I am a man with a

tightening traitorously beneath my blouse. I crossed my arms over my chest, hoping he wouldn’t

said, hating how

what you would

it doesn’t change what

hair behind my car. The casual

his touch. “I’d

flashed in his eyes: anger, maybe, or surprise that I’d speak to him so bluntly. Then it was gone, replaced by that

even. “Read through it. If

folder still clutched in

of heat through my body. “Think about it, Olivia. Five million dollars. Your

clean.”

did he know about my brothers? The fact that he’d dug so deeply into my personal life

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Chapter 9

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