The Best Lie

Layla's pov

"Sign here."

He slid the paper across the desk like it was some sort of memo or newspaper and not a contract binding me to him in exchange for my life.

I stared at the paper for a moment, my head still spinning and struggling to regain balance, then I stared at him for a shorter moment before refocusing my gaze on the paper.

Landon Cross was already leaning back in his chair shooting me an expression that I recognized anywhere, the expression of someone who had somewhere better to be and was starting to get impatient. His office was exactly what you'd expect from a man like him, it was aggressively clean and completely devoid of anything that suggested he had ever experienced a human emotion.

My gaze finally settled on the paper again.

"Am I allowed to read it first?" I asked, my eyebrows raised and my tone levelled enough to show that I wasn't growing balls just yet.

His eyes scanned me for a moment, like I had just said something I wasn't supposed to say. "Whether or not you do," he said leaning forward, his gaze piercing deep into my soul. "it doesn't change the outcome. You're getting married to me, that's the only way you're walking out of this building alive."

My pulse hammered as I picked up the paper with my shaky palms and read it anyway because I was not exactly about to sign my life away without at least knowing what my destruction entailed.

The clause was short, almost insultingly short for something that was essentially a life sentence. His handwriting was quite nice and his signature was already at the bottom of the paper.

The terms were very simple.

I had no right to say, do, or facilitate anything detrimental to the Cross empire, In exchange, I get to live. Also, I move into the Cross estate, I attended every function that require me to play the wife and I perform the role with very convincing commitment.

That was basically all, that was the deal.

I picked up the pen, without much dillydally even though my hand was still slightly shaking and I signed my name quickly before he could get funny ideas about adding more clauses and before I could think too hard about what I was doing.

Landon took the paper back without even glancing at it once and tucked it into the neatly arranged pile of files on his desk.

"I'll assign a team to follow you home and pack your things,"he said, his gaze focused on one of the files he had just opened. "Be ready within the hour."

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out, my brain wasn't even generating any ideas.

What do people say in situations like this?

Thank you for your hospitality?

No that doesn't sound right, since he wasn't very hospitable.

Thank you for sparing my life.

No that's way to cringe.

I gave up on thinking of what to say so I closed my mouth, nodded and walked out of his office with the posture of someone who was completely fine and not at all internally screaming.

-------------

The drive home was quite the experience.

Two men I had never met in my life sat on either side of me in the back of the car like I was actually going to run or fly out through the window or something. After a long hour drive we finally got to my house.

The apartment was exactly as I'd left it that morning but a sound was coming from the kitchen.

I tiptoed carefully to the kitchen even though I already had an idea who it was. Daniel.

Daniel Reed, my stepbrother, my best friend, the person who had been a permanent and safe figure in my life since we'd lost our father to,

I stopped that thought before it could run any longer.

He looked up the second I walked in and his eyebrows raised as he shot me that look, the one that he usually did when he already knew something was wrong and was trying to figure out how to ask.

"How was your day?" he asked, his eyebrows still raised as he crossed the kitchen in three steps and pulled me into a hug.

My chest tightened as I hugged him back.

I hugged him longer than I meant to, which was a mistake because Daniel notices everything and I knew the second I held on too long that I had already said too much without saying anything.

I pulled back, looked at him then looked slightly to the left because eye contact was not something I was emotionally equipped for right now.

"I need to tell you something," I said, fighting back the mountain of tears that was welling up in my eyes.

He went still, his eyes scanning my face, trying to meet my eyes but I kept avoiding it.

"What's wrong?" He asked softly. He reached up and touched my face, tilted it slightly, tried to get me to look at him but instead I focused my gaze on the wall behind his shoulder like it contained some sort of hidden information. His hand moved to my hair, gentle and familiar in that way that made my chest tighen. "Layla. What happened."

I took a deep breath unsure of how to phrase the word.

"I'm getting married." I said finally, blinking rapidly to push the tears back inside.

The silence that followed was so loud that a pindrop would have sounded like a loud bang.

Daniel took a step back like the sentence had physically moved him. His eyes were wide— and when it came to Daniel, wide eyes were significant because he was not the kind of man who really got shocked by anything.

"What..what…do you mean," he said slowly, knowing fully well that I wasn't in any forn of relationship, so I could see why he was shocked. "What are you talking about, Layla?"

"I'm getting married,"I said again, because repeating it was apparently my coping mechanism.

"To who?" He asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Landon Cross." I dropped the name like a bomb, which it was.

He stopped, his eyes and mouth opened even wider like something had just sucked the life out of him.

"Landon Cross."He repeated it like he was trying to process it and was failing woefully at it. "Layla. How is that? what are you, did you hit your head? Have you eaten today? What are you talking about?" His hand went to the top of his head. "Landon Cross, you're telling me Landon Cross."

"I am telling you Landon Cross, yes—"

Three aggressive knocks sounded on the door before I could complete my sentence.

The door opened before either of us could respond and I wasn't surprised because apparently the concept of waiting meant nothing to these people. Two of Landon's men stepped into my apartment like they were the actual owners.

"I told you to wait outside," I shouted at the top of my lungs, heat rushing through my veins in a way that it almost made the tears fall out.

They said nothing, they didn't even pay any attention to me. They just stood there, large and immovable making the apartment feel half its size.

I watched Daniel's face change as he looked at them. I saw the pieces connect in real time, the moment he understood that what I was saying was not hypothetical, not a joke, not the result of a head injury.

"Layla,"

I moved toward my room and he stepped in front of me.

Both hands on my shoulders and this time when he looked at me, the playful older-brother energy was completely gone. His jaw was tight, his eyes were serious in a way that made my throat constrict in a painful way.

"Tell me what's going on," he said quietly, stomping his left foot softly. "Are you being forced into this? Look at me. Talk to me right now, Layla, I need you to talk to me."

"Daniel,"

"Are you being coerced?"

One of the men moved, stepped forward and pulled Daniel back by his arm like he was ab empty bag of luggage.

Daniel fought it. He grabbed my arm as I slipped past him and my fingers brushed his for exactly one second before I was through the door and into my room.

I grabbed the small bag I kept packed under my bed old habit, long story and I was back out in under two minutes.

Daniel was still struggling, still reaching for me. His eyes found me across the apartment and the look on his face did something to my chest, something that finally made the tears fall out.

"Layla—" I heard him whisper before I walked out the front door.

I got into the car and I sat there in the back seat and felt the tears stream effortlessly down my face.

My chest hurts, my throat hurt too.

I looked at the tears on my palm when I wiped it away.

Then I leaned back against the seat, and exhaled slowly.

They always say the best lie sold is the one you believe yourself.

I looked out the window at the city passing by.

I just successfully infiltrated the Cross empire, all that's left now is to tear it down from the inside.