The boardroom was freezing, but the coldness radiating from the man sitting across from me was worse.
"Sign it," Adrian Thorne said, his voice as sharp as his tailored suit. He pushed a thick stack of papers across the mahogany table.
I looked down at the bold heading: LEGAL PARTNERSHIP & MARITAL AGREEMENT.
"I have three conditions," I said, trying to keep my voice from trembling. I needed the money for my father's medical bills, and he needed a wife to secure his position as CEO. It was a simple transaction. Or so I told myself.
Adrian leaned back, his dark eyes tracking my every move. "Go on."
"First, no one outside this room can know this is a fake marriage. Second, we live in separate rooms. And third..." I took a deep breath. "You stay out of my personal life."
A faint, mocking smile touched his lips. "Deal. But remember, Elara, in front of the cameras and my family, you are the woman I love. If you break that act, the deal is off."
I picked up the pen. My hand shook for a split second before I pressed the ink onto the paper. With one signature, my life was no longer mine. I wasn't just Elara Vance anymore; I was the future Mrs. Thorne.
"Welcome to the family," Adrian said, though his eyes remained like ice.
The game had officially begun.