Chapter 1: The Proposal

Chapter 1: The Proposal

The thick scent of old books and burnt coffee filled the air of my father’s study, an oppressive atmosphere that only deepened the heaviness in my chest. My fingers tightened around the paper in my hands as I stared at the pile of unpaid bills in front of me. The numbers blurred as a tight knot formed in my throat. My father—once a proud businessman, an inspiration—was now a man who had lost everything.

"Father, tell me this isn't true," I whispered, my voice barely audible over the pounding of my heart.

He sat slumped in his chair, his usually immaculate suit now wrinkled and disheveled. His face, once confident and full of authority, now seemed to have aged decades in a matter of days. He looked at the papers in front of him with a mix of guilt and despair. "Sophia… we’ve lost everything."

The words hung in the air like an execution sentence. My father had always been a man of pride, someone who never showed weakness. But now, the man who had once carried our entire family on his shoulders seemed to be breaking under the weight of our financial ruin.

I didn’t know how to react. The shock was too much to absorb in a single moment, but a deep, cold rage bubbled up inside of me. Everything I had worked for, everything my father had built, was crumbling before our eyes. My hands trembled as I gripped the paper tighter, almost as if holding onto the words would somehow make them disappear.

I had to think. I had to act.

The sound of my breath coming in shallow bursts filled the room as I fought to control the storm of emotions raging inside me. This wasn’t the time to collapse, to grieve. I couldn’t afford that. Not when my family’s future hung in the balance.

Without saying another word, I stood up and walked out of the study. I needed to get out of that suffocating room, away from my father’s helpless eyes.

In the distance, I could hear my mother’s voice as she tried to comfort him, but her words fell flat in the face of impending disaster. It was time for me to take control, to save the one thing my father had given his entire life for—our family name, our legacy.

I didn’t have a plan, but I knew someone who did. Someone who had the power, the wealth, and the ruthlessness to fix this.

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Later That Day – Alexander Knight’s Office

The sound of my heels echoed through the cold, marble hallway as I walked toward the towering glass doors of his office. The building itself seemed to mock me with its cold elegance. Alexander Knight, the CEO of Knight Enterprises, was a man who didn’t believe in kindness, in second chances. He believed only in power.

And right now, I needed power.

It wasn’t the first time I had been in this building. As a woman from a respected family, I had occasionally rubbed elbows with business elites, but none of them had the sheer dominance of Alexander Knight. He was ruthless. Unforgiving. A man who could destroy me with a single word. And yet, he was also my last hope.

I reached the doors of his office, and they slid open without a sound, revealing the cold, imposing figure that was Alexander Knight. He sat at his desk, his back straight and posture perfect, as if every inch of him was a controlled weapon. The city below seemed insignificant through the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him, a stark contrast to the intensity of the man who stared at me with that usual unreadable expression.

I took a deep breath and stepped inside. There was no turning back now.

“Ms. Carter,” Alexander said, his voice a smooth, indifferent drawl. “What brings you here today? I trust this isn’t a social call.”

I didn’t waste time with pleasantries. If I was going to do this, I needed to get straight to the point.

“I need your help, Mr. Knight,” I said firmly, placing a contract on his desk. The papers rustled softly as I slid them toward him. “And in return, I’m offering you a solution to your own… problems.”

Alexander raised an eyebrow, a small but genuine flicker of curiosity in his eyes. It was rare for anyone to capture his attention, and yet, here I was—doing exactly that.

He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. “I’m intrigued. Go on.”

“I need a marriage,” I said, keeping my tone steady despite the turbulence in my chest. “And you need a wife.” I forced myself to meet his gaze. “This is a business proposal. I’m offering you a contract marriage.”

The air between us seemed to thicken as Alexander’s gaze sharpened. “A marriage? A business arrangement, I presume? Not a love match?”

I nodded, relieved that he wasn’t immediately rejecting the idea. “Exactly. We’ll get married for three years. You’ll have a wife to satisfy your public image, and in exchange, I’ll use your influence and wealth to restore my father’s company. After three years, we go our separate ways. No strings attached.”

I had rehearsed this moment over and over in my mind, but now that I was finally saying the words, I couldn’t help but feel the weight of what I was asking him to do. Alexander Knight wasn’t just any man. He was the man who could have everything and anyone. To ask him to marry me—even if it was a contract marriage—felt like a risk I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready to take.

But there was no other choice. My family needed him, and I needed to do whatever it took to save us.

The seconds stretched into eternity as Alexander sat still, his gaze fixed on me. His face remained as unreadable as ever, but there was a dangerous flicker in his eyes.

“So, you want to sell yourself to me for three years in exchange for money?” he asked, his voice low and tinged with a mixture of amusement and something darker. “And you think I’m going to accept this proposal?”

I felt a spark of defiance stir inside me. Yes, I thought. I believed he would. Alexander Knight wasn’t a man who turned down profitable deals, and this one was no exception.

“I’m offering you exactly what you need, Mr. Knight. A wife who won’t ask for your love, a woman who won’t try to tie you down.” I kept my voice steady. “This is a business agreement—and I’m prepared to honor it. The question is… are you?”

For a long moment, there was only silence. Then, as though he had been weighing the situation in his mind, Alexander finally spoke.

“Alright, Ms. Carter. Let’s get married.”

I blinked, certain I had misheard him. “What?”

He stood up from his desk, the smooth, controlled movements of a man used to getting what he wanted. His eyes met mine, and I felt the force of his stare penetrate deep into me.

“I’ll marry you, but make no mistake. This will be my terms, not yours,” he said, his voice a dangerous whisper.

The air between us felt charged now, like the calm before a storm. I swallowed, my heart racing. I had just made a deal with a man who could ruin me. But strangely, a part of me felt a strange sense of satisfaction.

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Chapter 2 Preview:

The wedding is arranged quickly, and media buzzes around it.

Sophia moves in with Alexander into his penthouse, setting ground rules for their contract marriage.

Tension builds as they start living under the same roof.

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