005: A deal with the devil

Anastasia's POV

I did not sleep at all the night before meeting Leon.

I kept tossing and turning on the old couch in my tiny apartment and thinking about what he could possibly want to discuss. He said he wanted to help me but nothing in life was free and especially not from billionaires, much less from rejected ex boyfriends. There had to be a catch and I spent hours trying to figure out what it could be.

By the time morning came I looked even worse than before and the dark circles under my eyes had gotten darker. I put on the nicest outfit I owned which was not saying much. It was a simple black dress that I used to wear to church before I stopped going. I tried to do something with my hair but gave up and just pulled it back in a ponytail.

The café on Fourth Street was one of those expensive places with marble tables and chandeliers and a menu that did not list prices because if you had to ask, you could not afford it. I felt completely out of place in my cheap dress and worn shoes.

Leon was already there when I arrived and he sat at a corner table with two cups of coffee in front of him. He looked up when I walked in and stood to greet me like we were at some business meeting instead of two people who knew each other in college.

"Anastasia, thank you for coming," he said and pulled out a chair for me.

"Of course." I sat down and wrapped my hands around the coffee cup he pushed toward me. It was still warm. "You said you wanted to discuss something?"

"I do." Leon sat back down and studied me for a moment. "How desperate are you to save your bakery?"

The question caught me off guard and I did not know how to answer it. "Very desperate. It's all I have left."

"Would you be willing to do something that might seem unconventional?"

My stomach twisted with nerves. "What kind of something?"

Leon leaned forward and his gray eyes were intense. "I need a favor and in exchange, I'll pay off all your debts. Every single penny."

I stared at him because that could not be right. "What kind of favor?"

"My grandmother has been pressuring me to settle down and get married. She's getting older and she wants to see me happy while she still can. She has, to this effect, threatened to give away our family fortune and my inheritance to someone else if I am not married by the new year." He paused. "I need someone to pretend to be my fiancée for the Christmas season. Just until New Year's. Just enough pretense for her to sign the Hart family fortune to me, it's original sole heir."

I must have heard him wrong. "You want me to pretend to be your fiancée?"

"Yes. You would attend family events with me, spend time with my grandmother, act like we're in love. But it will be strictly business, nothing real about it."

"Why me?" The question came out before I could stop it.

Leon smiled but it did not quite reach his eyes. "Because you need help and I need a fiancée. It's convenient for both of us."

I should have said no right then and walked out of the café. Every instinct I had was screaming that this was a bad idea. But then I thought about the bakery and the foreclosure notice and Lucas' threat to take everything from me.

"What exactly would I have to do?" I asked.

"Attend every family and even office events with me. Have dinner with my grandmother a few times. Maybe spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at the family estate. Act affectionately in public." He made it sound so simple. "In exchange, I'll pay off your eighty thousand in debt. I'll also give you money for repairs and upgrades to the bakery, pay off your mortgage so you own it free and clear, and provide extra funds for ingredients and stock. Call it two hundred thousand total."

Two hundred thousand dollars. That was more money than I would see in five years of running the bakery. It was enough to save everything and still have money left over.

"This is a business arrangement," Leon continued. "I've already had my lawyer draw up a contract outlining all the terms. You'll be compensated fairly for your time and everything will be legal and above board."

"I don't understand why you need to hire someone for this. Can't you just find a real girlfriend?"

Leon's expression darkened for just a second. "I don't have time for a real relationship and my grandmother is running out of patience. This solves both our problems."

He pulled out a folder from his briefcase and slid it across the table. "The contract. Take a look."

I opened the folder and saw pages and pages of legal text that made my head hurt just looking at it. Leon started explaining what it all meant and something about terms and duration and compensation and termination clauses. I tried to pay attention but all I could think about was two hundred thousand dollars and saving my mother's bakery.

"Do you have any questions?" Leon asked when he finished explaining.

I should have read every single word of that contract and I should have asked a million questions. But I was drowning and he was offering me a life raft and I was too desperate to think clearly.

"Where do I sign?" I asked.

Leon looked surprised like he expected me to take more time to think about it. He flipped to the last page and pointed to a line at the bottom. "Right here."

I picked up the pen he offered and signed my name without reading another word. My hand was shaking and the signature came out messy but it was done.

Leon took the contract back and signed his own name below mine. "It's official then. You're my fiancée for the next few months."

The words made it real and panic started creeping up my throat. What had I just agreed to? Why would a billionaire like Leon Hart need to hire someone to pretend to be his girlfriend? Why me specifically after I rejected him six years ago?

But I had already signed the contract and it was too late to back out now.

"When do we start?" I asked.

"Tomorrow actually." Leon closed the folder and put it back in his briefcase. "I'll pick you up at noon to meet my grandmother. She's expecting us for lunch."

"Tomorrow?" My voice came out higher than I meant it to. "I thought we would have time to prepare or practice or something."

"My grandmother is impatient and I already told her I was bringing someone to meet her. The sooner we start, the better."

I felt like I was drowning all over again but this time I had done it to myself. "Okay. Tomorrow at noon."

Leon stood and I stood with him. He held out his hand and I shook it. His hand was warm and strong and the handshake felt more binding than the contract I just signed.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Anastasia," he said.

I nodded and watched him walk toward the corner of the café to make a phone call. He pulled out his phone and turned his back to me as he dialed.

I was about to leave when I heard him speak and one word made me freeze.

"Lucas."

My heart stopped and I stayed perfectly still trying to hear more. But Leon noticed me standing there and he turned slightly, lowering his voice. The door closed behind me as I walked out and I could not hear anything else.

Why was Leon calling Lucas? What did Lucas have to do with any of this?

The bad feeling I had been ignoring all morning came back full force. I had just signed a contract without reading it with a man who was making phone calls about my ex-husband.

What had I just gotten myself into?