CHAPTER TWO — THE MAN WHO BOUGHT A YEAR OF MY LIFE

POV: Myra Carter

I spent the entire next morning getting ready in the small bathroom of the cheap motel where I had checked my mother and brother in after the bank officers locked our front door, and I pulled out the simplest black dress from my suitcase because it was the only presentable outfit I had left to wear to the appointment.

The address the agency sent me led straight to the top floor of a private medical center in the middle of town, and when the elevator doors opened, three other women were already sitting on the long couch in the waiting area, all of them wearing expensive suits and holding leather bags while they talked quietly among themselves.

"Are you also here for the surrogacy interview with Blackwood Enterprises?" one of the women asked, turning her head to look at my simple dress while I walked over to take a seat on the chair near the glass door.

"Yes, I received an email confirmation last night after I submitted my application," I said, smoothing down the front of my skirt while I kept my hands folded in my lap so she wouldn't see them shaking.

"Well, you should know that they are looking for candidates with perfect medical backgrounds and university degrees," the woman replied, turning back to her friends with a small laugh. "My father is a surgeon, so I know I meet every single requirement they listed in the document."

Before I could answer her, the office door opened, and a man in a black suit walked into the room, followed immediately by Aiden Blackwood himself, and the moment he walked into the space, every woman on the couch stopped talking and sat up straight.

Aiden didn't look at any of us with interest or warmth, but instead he walked straight to the table in the middle of the room, picked up four thick folders, and glanced through the papers as if he was reviewing a routine business contract.

"We don't have time to interview everyone individually today, so my lawyer is going to go over the main conditions first," Aiden said, his voice flat and completely devoid of emotion as he looked over at the man standing beside him.

"Thank you, Mr. Blackwood," the lawyer said, stepping forward with a stack of papers in his hands as he looked around at the four of us. "The terms of this contract are non-negotiable, and if you are selected, you will sign over all parental rights immediately, undergo full medical testing today, adhere to a strict dietary regimen, refrain from any alcohol or travel, and reside in Mr. Blackwood's estate for the entire duration of the pregnancy."

"And what about contact with our own families during the year?" the woman sitting next to me asked, leaning forward on the couch while she stared straight at Aiden.

"You will be allowed limited phone calls, but you cannot have visitors or leave the property without permission from security, because the child belongs strictly to Mr. Blackwood and his fiancée, Miss Celeste," the lawyer explained, turning his head as the side door opened again.

A tall woman with blonde hair walked into the room wearing a light dress, and she gave all of us a small smile before walking directly to Aiden's side and placing her hand on his arm.

"Aiden, you don't have to be so formal with everyone," Celeste said, turning toward us with a look of soft concern on her face as she looked at each of our expressions. "I know this entire process is uncomfortable, and I want to apologize to all of you, because if I could carry my own child, we wouldn't be putting any of you through this situation."

I looked down at my hands, feeling a sudden pang of guilt because I knew I was only sitting in that room because of the two million dollars, while this woman was genuinely heartbroken over her inability to start a family with the man she loved.

"Celeste, this is a legal arrangement, not a social visit," Aiden told her, taking her hand into his while he looked down at the file resting on the table. "We need someone who understands the boundaries of this agreement so there are no complications later."

He turned his eyes toward me, staring at my plain outfit and the cheap shoes I was wearing, and he pulled my file out from the bottom of the stack.

"Myra Carter," Aiden said, reading my name off the page before looking up into my face. "Your background check shows your father's business went under three days ago, so tell me why you applied for this contract, because I do not want someone who is doing this out of pure desperation and might break down halfway through."

"My family needs the money, Mr. Blackwood, and I am not going to pretend otherwise," I said, meeting his gaze directly without flinching or looking away. "But I am fully capable of following every rule in your contract, following every medical direction your doctors give me, and walking away the moment the baby is born."

"She's the one, Aiden," Celeste whispered, pulling on his arm as she looked over at him with a gentle expression. "Look at her eyes, because she isn't looking at you like you are a billionaire jackpot like the other women did, and she is being completely honest with us about her situation."

Aiden looked at Celeste for a long moment, his face softening slightly as he looked down at her, before he turned back to me and set the pen on top of the file.

"If my fiancée wants you, then the offer is yours, Miss Carter," Aiden said, stepping closer to the table while his lawyer opened the document to the signature page. "We will pay your family's initial debt installment today, but before you sign that paper, you need to hear one thing directly from me."

"What is it?" I asked, taking the pen from the lawyer's hand while I looked up into Aiden's cold eyes.

"Don't mistake Celeste's kindness for affection, and don't mistake my presence for anything more than an employer," Aiden said, his voice dropping low as he leaned slightly over the table. "I love my fiancée, and that will never change regardless of what happens during this year."

"Don't worry, Mr. Blackwood," I said, forcing a small smile onto my face as I signed my name at the bottom of the page. "I don't want your love, I just need the compensation you promised."

Aiden picked up the signed contract, wrote his own signature right beneath mine, and handed the document back to his lawyer without saying another word to me.

I picked up my purse and walked out of the office into the hallway, but before I could even reach the elevator down to the street, my phone began to vibrate violently in my hand.

I answered the call immediately, pressing the speaker against my ear as I stepped into the empty elevator car.

"Miss Carter, this is the bank recovery department," a man's voice said through the speaker, cold and completely formal. "We are calling to inform you that because your father missed his final deadline this morning, we have moved the foreclosure date forward, and our team will be sealing the house and selling off your remaining family assets by four o'clock today unless the full initial payment is cleared immediately.”