Sex Contract

He took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. "Luke King."

When my brows were this close to touching my hair, I knew I was in trouble.

Luke's identity is a mystery to me.

I saw his name from magazine. The ruthless, powerful, and boringly attractive lord of Empire Capital. He rose from nothing , leaving competitors and colleagues in his wake. Anyone in his way was killed without ceremony or emotion.

A marriage contract stared at me. It's his.

How come? I asked. We needed a catch. No way Luke King needed an arranged marriage to get married. He made money and fucked girls.

Dad turned away.

"You don't have to do this. This is a condition of his support."

"He'll save your life, and all he wants is to marry a woman he's never met?"

I nudged the contract, wondering if it was rigged to explode.

The contract in front of me felt heavy, as if it had its own gravitational pull that could derail my entire life.

"How is Mom now?" Then I asked.

He looked at his hands. Using his fingers, he pulled and kneaded.

"She is awful. But she didn't tell you because she didn't want you to worry."

He hesitated for a moment.

"He wants to see you first," my dad said.

"He said to come by whenever. It's always open. He wants to make sure you meet his wife needs."

My stomach was pinched by a cold fist.

"This is nuts,"

"I'll see him," I said.

I wanted to punch my father when I saw his relief. He destroyed my mother's life without thought, and now he wanted to destroy mine by using me as a pawn.

Well. My mom loved me, but I wasn't her. I left the coffee shop without telling my dad goodbye.

Empire Capital stood on Financial , as did most of its sister companies, which all had interchangeable names with dominant connotations.

I walked up to the receptionist desk, sleek and alone in the dark gray slate floor. Behind it, a receptionist typed on a keyboard and viewed a thin white monitor.

A minute passed before she looked at me.  As I stood still, flecks fell to the spotless floor.

Good. I wasn't going to be the perfect wife Mr. King wanted, and I showed it.

Finally, she looked at me. The perfect nose wrinkled.

"May I help? "she asked.

"Yes, I said. I want to talk to Luke King. He's expecting me," I said .

She blinked and I felt bad.

"Joyce. "

"Oh!" She widened her eyes. "Sure, Ms. I'll tell them you're here."

That's... odd. In my experience, powerful rich men set their own schedules, and others had to follow.

"Thanks, I said. "

While she quickly punched numbers into her computer's numberpad, I looked for a seat.

She grins at me.

"Yes, top floor."

"Thanks," I said lamely. I skirted the desk and receptionist and headed to the elevators. When I pushed the button for the top doors, they opened immediately. I enter.

My stomach dropped as they closed behind me.

Now that I was in the elevator and headed to see Luke King, my nerves failed. I should have ripped up the contract, thrown it at my father, and not come

The elevator stopped and the doors opened.

The top story of the building was white marble and gilded, and the ground floor was corrosion resistant and granite. In a business setting, the chandelier illuminates, expensive mahogany desk, and white marble floor stand out.

I assumed Mr. King's assistant was standing behind the desk and bowed to me. Bowing. My dim memories of my father's offices are of stately grandeur, not spa-weekend gaudiness.

"Ms. Green"He pointed to a pair of twin double doors on the right.

I lifted my chin despite stomach butterflies. As I passed him and entered, I enjoyed seeing his startled face.

Behind the doors was another foyer. This space was sparsely decorated with a large aquarium and zen fountains. Two frosted glass doors stood opposite me.

I inhaled and opened the door.

Luke King stared out a window at the France skyline. He turned when I entered and watched as I entered his office.

I didn't look. Depressingly, he was as stunning in person as he was on magazine covers. His dark hair was perfectly coiffed, and his eyes were bright green. The light fell on them beautifully, as if the world were made to highlight his beauty. His full, sensual lips framed his high cheekbones and straight, powerful nose. His chin was diamond-cutting. He had the body to match his comfortable yet GQ attire.

Holy shit, he's hot.

Hormones! I hadn't gotten laid in six months since I broke up with Gino .

"We're getting married?" He just stared at me.

My words fell like silverware between us. As he stared, I realized he was no ordinary looking man. Even across the room, I could feel his magnetic pull. It was intense and terrifying. His personality far outweighed his beauty, even when he wasn't moving.

Finally he smiled. He greeted .

I wanted to sit down. He had a sinful voice.This was a voice you could turn up loud and sit on your speakers to. I'd never done that...

Shaking myself, I focused. "Yes, I said. Hello." I turned away and studied his office to avoid him.

Nothing was in it. One end of the room had his desk, chair, and computer, and the other had two sofas .

I had the wild idea that Luke King was like dumb old Gino, but with charisma.

He was still. Still smiling, he stared at me.

I said, "Looking is free, but touching costs money."

Slowly, he cocked his head. "Nothing's free, he said."

If he had been anyone else, the words would have been laughable, but the way he said it, screamed that he had given them serious thought and said them after a long struggle to find the truth.