Chapter 6 - It's A Deal

Lucas thought his life was perfect. He had almost everything.

Everything was complete, and he couldn't complain about his life. But that changed when his grandfather passed away. For the first time, he faced a problem that might ruin his life entirely.

Willy, Lucas's friend, asked if he agreed with his idea. Lucas was at Willy's apartment, sitting on the balcony, enjoying the breathtaking view of the night. "What else can she do besides agreeing? She no longer needs to work as a prostitute, and I will give her a lot of money. She only needs to be my wife for a few months, and everything will be over." Lucas was desperate, thinking that there was only a dead-end for his problem. For the first time in a while, he thanked his friend Willy because he gave him an idea that he had never thought of before.

"I was just talking nonsense back then, Luke. Are you sure my idea can help you?" Willy asked, feeling a bit uncertain. "Do you have any better idea?" Lucas asked Willy, who remained silent, unable to answer because there was no better solution they could think of.

Lucas knew very well how his grandfather disliked Sophia, his lover for the past few years. Without giving a clear explanation, his grandfather would always look at her cynically and even openly ridiculed her. But he didn't know that his grandfather could be so cruel. Asking Lucas to choose between Sophia and his family was like asking him to choose between his right and left hand. He would be destroyed if he gave up Sophia, whom he loved so much. But he was also not sure if he would have a good future if he gave up the Winter family name. Was it that difficult for him to live happily with Sophia as part of the Pierce family?

Lucas admired his grandfather. Even until the end of his life, he wanted to make sure that he and Sophia could not be together. But his grandfather was also wrong if he thought Lucas would just accept all the terms in his will. Lucas would fight.

"Listen, Luke," Willy said, catching Lucas's attention. "I'm not trying to degrade her. But why her, Luke? If your family knows what she does for a living—"

"That's why I need your help, Will," Lucas interrupted. He looked seriously at his childhood friend. "You'll help me, right?"

"You know I'll never disappoint you," Willy replied, smiling and messing up his hair until it was a mess. Lucas was grateful, at least he still had Willy, who could be a place to share his burden.

"Despite her job, she's a good woman," Lucas remembered his conversation with Jane in the bar that day. "She's just a sister who tries to do everything so her younger sister can live a little bit longer in this world."

That was the reason Lucas chose Jane to be his temporary wife. He had at least some sympathy for Jane's life. It was foolish to believe someone he had just met, but Lucas was sure that Jane was a good and honest woman. He did not misjudge her, and only Jane could help him.

"I'll go to the bar tomorrow. I'll make Lexa 'forget' that Jane used to work there," Willy said, making Lucas raise his eyebrows in confusion. "I just need to slap her with some stacks of money, and in no time, she won't even remember who Jane is."

Lucas smiled as he shook his head, understanding Willy's words. Dealing with Lexa was quite challenging, but not as difficult as one might imagine. As long as there was money, everything will undoubtedly work out.

As one of his subordinates whom he seemed to love enough because she could give him a lot of money, Lexa seemed hesitant when Lucas said he would give her a fair amount of money as long as Lexa was willing to give Jane to him. But in the end, everything could still go according to his wishes thanks to the amount of money he offered to the woman.

"What's your next plan?"

"What else? Introduce her to my family. Then marry her."

"Do that, but only after you prepare her to be a woman who is equal to you. Okay?"

The next day, Lucas remembered Willy's words clearly when he met Jane to discuss everything further. He handed her two sheets of paper that were a contract and a paper that was proof of a transfer to Jane's account.

"You can read the agreement and sign it if you're satisfied with the content," he said, then yawned widely. For the sake of this agreement, he sacrificed his precious sleep.

"So, when exactly are we going to get divorced? Why isn't the specific time written in here?" asked Jane after reading some of the letter. It sounded funny to her that she was already curious about when they would get divorced even though they weren't married yet.

"I don't know either. Maybe a few months. My family will be suspicious if we divorce immediately after I get my inheritance rights," said Lucas.

"You didn't include all the conditions I requested here."

Lucas was puzzled. As far as he could remember, he had included all the conditions Jane requested. What did he forget to include?

"You must love me with all your heart until the end of your life~" Jane teased, making Lucas only smile thinly at her.

"Listen, Jane. No matter how long it takes, I will not include that condition because why?" asked Lucas. "Because the only person I love in this world is my girlfriend," he answered.

"I'm not serious, ok? I'm just joking," Jane pouted. "You're not my type either," she added, looking at the letter in her hand again.

"What if in the middle of our marriage, I find the man I love?"

"Well, fight for your love. I won't stop you. I have no right to do so either."

Jane nodded her head and started to sign her signature next to Lucas's, which was already there. She handed a sheet of the agreement to Lucas and kept the other one for herself.

Lucas, who received the signed letter happily, said, "I've sent some money to your account. That's the proof." With his chin, he pointed to a sheet of paper that Jane had not touched since earlier. "You can use it for anything, including your sister's hospital bills."

Jane took the paper and hugged it tightly. She may not have expected to get money without having to satisfy the lust of men like she used to. Lucas then stood up from his seat and extended his hand to shake hands with Jane, which was warmly welcomed by her.

It was a sign that the agreement had been made between them.