Contract marriage

Jared's pov

"Deal," Amelia whispered.

She placed her small hands in mine and I felt a strange, unexpected jolt of electricity shot up my arm the moment our skin met.

I squeezed her fingers just tightly enough to let her know I owned her now, before pulling my hand back and shoving it into my pocket.

Up close, she was breathtaking.

Even with tear stained cheek and tangled blonde hair, she had a magnetic beauty.

For a split second, something dark and primal stirred in my chest. I wanted to touch her jaw, to trace the line of her throat down her.....

"Get a grip, Donovan" I reminded myself, ruthlessly shoving the thought down.

She was Arthur Quinn’s daughter.

The blood of the man who had spent a decade trying to bankrupt my family ran through her veins.

I turned away from her, breaking the tension that had settled between us, and snapped my fingers. "Liam bring the papers."

My right hand man, Liam, stepped forward carrying a sleek leather folder and a heavy silver pen laying them on the metal table right in front of Amelia.

"What is this?" Amelia asked, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the stack of papers.

"The official terms of our arrangement," I said, leaning back against the edge of the table, crossing my ankles. "I don’t do verbal agreements, blondie. In business, if it’s not on paper, it doesn’t exist."

She picked up the pen with a trembling hand, flipping through the pages. "You move fast."

"That’s why I’m a successful billionaire," I replied smoothly. "Read Section Four. Carefully."

Amelia’s eyes scanned the document. Suddenly, her head snapped up, her gaze drilling into mine. "This says that upon our marriage, one hundred percent of my inherited shares, legal rights, and future claims to Quinnix Innovations are legally transferred to you, Forever even after a divorce."

"Correct."

"You told me you’d give me a five percent carry over share," she barked, her voice rising as she slammed her hand on the table. "This contract strips me of everything! If I sign this, I walk away with absolutely nothing of my father's company."

I didn’t flinch as I leaned forward, bringing my face right back into her personal space and I could see the red creeping up her cheeks.

"You walk away with your son, Amelia. That was the deal. I am investing millions of dollars, my global security team, and my own reputation to fight your battle. I am risking a massive public scandal. My price is Quinnix. All of it, who knows I might feel a little generous after the company is mine and offer you a share."

"It's theft," she hissed, her breath hitting my lips. She was so close I could see the blue in her eyes.

"It’s business," I corrected, my voice dropping low. "Dean already stole it from you. I’m just taking it from him. Look at me, Amelia. You have no money. No identity. No legal standing. Right now, you are a ghost in a rusted chair. You can sign that paper, get your revenge, and hold your boy again... or you can walk out those doors with your pride and see how far you get before Dean’s security puts a bullet in your head."

She stared at me, her chest heaving as she breathed in heavily.

She hated me.

I could feel it radiating off her and God help me, it turned me on.

Slowly, deliberately, Amelia lowered her eyes to the paper. She pressed the silver pen to the page and scribbled her signature at the bottom.

"Smart girl," I murmured, taking the folder from her and handed it back to Liam, who vanished into the dark. "Now, pack your things. Well, you don't have things, Just get up we’re leaving."

Amelia stood up, her legs a little shaky. "Where are we going?"

"My estate. You’ll be living with me from now on. I need to keep an eye on you 24/7 to keep you safe."

She froze, her expression turning suspicious. "Your estate? As in your mansion?"

"Do you have another one?"

"Jared, everyone knows your wife lives there," she said, shaking her head. "Claire Sterling. I am not moving into a house with your wife. That’s insane. She'll have me thrown out, or worse."

I let out a short, dismissive laugh. "Claire won't do anything. I assure you, your safety is guaranteed under my roof. Claire knows exactly where she stands in my life. You worry about playing your part, Amelia. Leave my wife to me."

Amelia looked like she wanted to argue, but the sheer exhaustion finally caught up to her.

She simply nodded, crossing her arms over her chest adorably.

Then I signaled for two of my guards to escort her to the secure SUV waiting out front.

Once she was out of sight, I could finally sigh in relief

I was a step closer to acquiring Qunnix Innovation, eclipsing what my cold hearted father couldn't dream of achieving.

I needed a distraction.

I pulled out my silver cigarette case, clicked it open and walked out the side door into the cool night air.

I lit the cigarette, inhaling the smoke deeply, letting the tension leave my shoulders.

"Well, well look who finally decided to join us."

I didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

Standing near the sleek black limousine parked in the alley was Lorenzo, my childhood best friend and top lieutenant, alongside a woman wearing a pristine white fur coat and diamonds that literally glowed in the dark.

Claire Sterling.

My wife.

She was leaning against the limo, holding a glass of expensive champagne, a deep, ugly pout on her perfectly sculpted face.

Claire was a billionaire's daughter through and through, beautiful, spoiled and entirely useless in a real crisis

"Is she as pathetic as she looked in the news?" Claire whined, her high heels clicking loudly against the floor as she stomped over to me. "Jared, this is getting ridiculous. I’ve been sitting in this disgusting alley for an hour. There are literally rats over there!"

"Shut up, Claire," I said evenly, not even looking at her as I blew out a cloud of smoke.

"Don't tell me to shut up!" she snapped. "You’re bringing her into my house? A woman who just got dragged out of a African prison? What will my father say? What will the country club say?"

Lorenzo let out a soft chuckle from the shadows, leaning against the car with his arms crossed. "Relax, Claire. It’s just business, Jared’s got it under control."

"Oh, easy for you to say, Lorenzo!" Claire cried, turning her furious gaze back to me.

She grabbed my arm, her manicured nails digging into my suit jacket. "Jared, look at me. Are you doing this to hurt me? Is this because I spent too much on the yacht last month? I don't understand why you need her."

I slowly looked down at her hand on my arm, then up at her face before reaching down, peeling her fingers off my jacket, and stepped back.

"Claire you're overreacting," I said calmly. "Six months ago, we stood at an altar because your father needed my tech infrastructure to save his shipping lanes, and I needed his sailing connections, we signed an agreement. We have never loved each other. We don't even sleep in the same wing of the house."

A flicker of genuine hurt flashed across Claire's eyes, breaking through her spoiled exterior for a brief second.

Even though I never loved her, I knew, like many women she was infatuated with me.

"But... we're married, Jared you can't just replace me with a criminal!"

"She isn't a criminal. She is valuable," I said, tossing my cigarette into the gravel and crushing it with the heel of my shoe.

"When I marry her, I take control of the most powerful tech corporation in the world. Donovan Tech will become an untouchable global monopoly."

Claire sniffled, crossing her arms tightly over her fur coat. "And what about me? What happens to me when you're done playing husband to her?"

I stepped close to Claire, patting her cheek gently.

"You will play the heartbroken, betrayed wife for the media while your father gets a quiet, multi million dollar settlement, and you will get to file for divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. You get your freedom, your money, and your dignity but until then..." My voice dropped to a dangerous whisper.

"...you will go back to the mansion, you will stay in your wing and you will not say a single word to Amelia Quinn. Am I clear?"

Claire swallowed hard, looking at me with a mixture of fear and bitter resentment.

She knew better than to push me when I spoke in that tone.

"Perfectly clear." she muttered.

"Good." I turned to Lorenzo, who was wearing a knowing smirk. "Get Claire into the limo, I’m riding in the SUV with my fiancée."

"You got it, boss," Lorenzo said, opening the door for Claire, who practically threw herself into the backseat in a fit of rage.

"And what about your father?" Lorenzo asked, tapping a cigarette out of his pack. "He'll lose his mind when he hears his son is marrying a Quinn."

"Then he better start looking for a good doctor," I murmured, opening the door to the SUV where Amelia sat waiting.

"Because nobody not even my father stands between me and what I want."