Chapter 6 - The truth behind her yes.

"...I'll do it." The words hit Ethan so hard that he forgot to breathe.

He tightened his grip on the phone and stared at the dark window of his apartment.

"...Bianca?" She didn't answer. 

He swallowed. "Did I... hear you right?"

"I said I'll do it." Her voice was quiet. 

Nothing like the woman who had looked him in the eye two days ago and rejected him without a second thought.

He frowned. "Yesterday you told me to stay away from you."

"I remember."

"So... what changed?"

He almost apologized for asking quickly. Instead, he said carefully, "Can we meet? I don't think we should discuss something this important over the phone."

Another pause.

"Then— Fine, there is a café near Dubai Creek. I'll be there in an hour." 

She ended the call before he could say anything else.

Ethan lowered the phone. He looked at the blank screen for several seconds.

Whatever had happened...it had broken something inside her.

The café sat quietly away from the crowded business district. There was no businessmen holding loud meetings.

Just soft music, warm lights, and the smell of fresh coffee.

Bianca arrived first.

She chose the table furthest from the entrance and sat facing the window. She wasn't interested in the view, she simply didn't want to watch people walking in.

A waitress stopped beside her. "Would you like to order?"

"Just water, please." She replied calmly. 

The waitress smiled and walked away.

A few minutes later, the bell above the entrance chimed.

Bianca looked up. Ethan had changed out of the suit he'd worn to the office.

He looked exhausted, there were faint shadows beneath his eyes, and his tie was nowhere to be seen.

When he reached the table, he hesitated. "Hi."

Bianca gave a small nod. "Sit."

He pulled out the chair across from her.

Neither of them spoke for a while then the waitress returned. "What can I get for you, sir?"

"Black coffee."

As soon as she left, Ethan rubbed his palms together. "I've been thinking about how to explain this."

"Then explain it." There was no anger in Bianca's voice and that somehow made it harder for Ethan. 

Ethan reached into his briefcase and placed a folder on the table. "This is the agreement."

She didn't even look at it. "I'll read it later. I'd rather hear it from you first."

He nodded. "Okay."

He opened the folder. "The arrangement lasts eight months."

She waited.

"We'll attend family dinners together, company events, anything either family expects us to attend, and we'll act like we're giving this marriage a real chance."

"And after eight months?" she asked.

"We tell both families it didn't work out." 

"Just like that? They won't be happy." Bianca muttered.

He managed a tired smile. "But they'll believe we tried."

She leaned back slightly. "So that's your plan."

"It is."

Her eyes stayed on him. "And your parents restore everything they've taken away."

"Yes."

"So this is about money." She asked, glaring at him.

"No." The answer came so quickly she blinked.

"It's about someone." He looked down at the untouched coffee the waitress had just placed in front of him.

His fingers wrapped around the warm cup. "You already know her name. It's Daisy."

Bianca nodded once. "You mentioned her."

He looked out the window before speaking again. "Daisy was born with a heart condition."

"The doctors always believed medication would be enough but they recently found complications and the surgery can't wait anymore."

His thumb traced the rim of the cup. "I promised her I'd take care of everything."

Bianca stayed quiet.

"I thought I could." A short laugh escaped him, "I had money, influence, and I thought nothing could stop me."

He shook his head."Then my father cut me off." He finally looked at her again, "I've tried everything Bianca, my savings, loans, friends but no one wants to help once they hear Richard Anderson has disowned his own son."

He let out a slow breath. "So yes. I need my parents' support, not because I want their money but because I need to save someone."

His jaw tightened. "I'm not asking you to replace Daisy. I'm not asking you to compete with her. I'm asking you to help me save the woman I love."

The words settled quietly between them. Bianca lowered her eyes, he's not lying. For the first time since they'd met, she saw a man who had nowhere left to run.

Ethan folded the agreement and slid it aside. "There is something I don't understand."

She looked at him.

"What made you change your mind?"

Her fingers tightened around the glass of water.

She didn't answer and the silence stretched so long that Ethan wondered if he'd crossed a line.

Finally, she spoke. "I went to see Daniel, my boyfriend."

She kept her eyes on the table. "I wanted to surprise him."

A small smile touched her lips. It disappeared almost immediately. "I didn't knock."

Ethan frowned.

"I heard voices." She swallowed really hard, "There was another woman inside."

His brows pulled together. "I stood outside his apartment and listened....When the woman with him asked him why he stayed with me..." Bianca stopped, she closed her eyes for a second before continuing. "He laughed and said that loving me was never part of the plan."

Ethan's fingers tightened around his coffee cup.

Bianca continued. "He said being close to my family opened doors. He said people like him never get opportunities unless they take them." She gave a quiet laugh. "I defended him for years and my parents warned me about him but I fought with them. I chose him every single time."

She looked at Ethan. "I thought I knew the man I loved."

The café seemed quieter than before, even the music had faded into the background.

Ethan stared at her. The image of that dinner flashed through his mind. "She's so fat, she's not even my type."

At the time, he hadn't cared what his words would do.

He had only wanted to end the conversation, now those same words felt uglier than ever.

He lowered his gaze. "I'm sorry, this isn't because I need your help." His voice was quiet. "I was cruel, I had no right to speak to you like that, and I know saying sorry doesn't erase it."

"It doesn't." She answered honestly.

Then she surprised him. "But... I appreciate that you said it."

Bianca reached for the agreement.

"Let's go through the rules."

Together, they read every page.

No romantic expectations. No physical intimacy unless necessary to maintain appearances. No interfering in each other's private lives and absolute honesty if either of them wanted to end the agreement early.

Shared appearances whenever their families requested them. When they reached the final page, Ethan handed her a pen.

She signed first. He signed beneath her name.

The sound of the pen scratching across the paper seemed unusually loud. It was done.

Ethan closed the folder and stood.

He hesitated before extending his hand. "So...a deal?"

Bianca looked at his hand, then she slipped hers into it.

Nothing about it suggested that, months from now, neither of them would remember where pretending had ended and something real had begun.

She picked up her handbag. "I should go."

"I'll walk you outside." He offered. 

"You don't have to."

"I know." He walked beside her anyway.

Outside, the evening air carried the cool breeze from the water.

They stopped beside Bianca's car.

"I'll let my parents know tomorrow," Ethan said.

She nodded. "So will I."

She unlocked the car.

Before getting in, she glanced back at him. "I hope Daisy gets her surgery."

The words caught him off guard. "Thank you!"

She gave a small nod and got into the car. Ethan stood on the sidewalk as her taillights disappeared into the traffic.

He looked down at the signed agreement tucked beneath his arm.

For the first time since that disastrous dinner...

He wished he had never looked at Bianca Ellington...

...and said, "She's not my type."