PREGNANT AFTER SIGNING THE ALPHA'S CONTRACT

Chapter One

***Bella's Pov***

I sat across from Adrian Blackthorn, staring at the two documents he had just thrown onto the table.

They landed one over the other, the first bearing the name Laurent Industries and the second carrying the words I never expected to see in a business meeting.

Marriage Contract.

I looked from the papers to him. “What’s this?”

“A marriage contract.”

I stared at him like he'd told me a joke.

“I thought this was about you making an offer for Laurent Industries?”

“That comes with it,” he answered sharply.

He leaned back, his expression completely unreadable. “You get Laurent Industries back on track while I get whatever I want to get from the marriage.”

“And what exactly are you getting?”

“That is simply my business. Yours is to agree to the contract and get what you want. For one year, Laurent Industries will be fully funded by Blackthorn Group. Shareholders will come back, investors will find their way back, and everything will be restructured just like you want.”

A dangerous smile touched his lips.

“No foul play.”

I stared at him, trying to understand what I was hearing.

Two months ago, Laurent Industries had been thriving. Then everything had started collapsing. One investor withdrew, then another. Shareholders began selling their stakes, banks tightened their demands, and creditors who had once begged for our business suddenly treated me like an enemy.

I had spent every hour trying to stop the bleeding.

Nothing worked.

My parents had built Laurent Industries with everything they had. When they died, the company had been willed to me, and for two years, I had carried their name, their work, and everything they had sacrificed to build.

Now it was draining away in front of me.

In less than twenty-four hours, there would be nothing left to save.

I had contacted companies across Blackridge City, begging for partnerships, investments, and financial backing—anything that could keep Laurent Industries alive. Every proposal had been rejected. Some people stopped returning my calls.

Laurent Industries had been removed from business clubs, private investment circles, and elite society groups where my family had once been welcomed without question.

I had become a joke.

So, yes, Adrian Blackthorn helping a dying company wasn't surprising.

He was famous for it.

Everyone knew what happened when Adrian stepped into a failing business. He rebuilt it, but he never walked away empty-handed. He always made sure he benefited.

I had expected that, but I had never expected him to place a marriage contract in front of me.

Adrian was known for being ruthless, bold, fearless, and powerful. He had enough influence to make investors reconsider decisions they had already made.

And now he wanted a wife for a year.

I shook my head, forcing myself back into the room.

“No. I can’t sign this.”

Adrian stared at me for a moment without saying anything.

Then he stood. “Very well.”

He picked up the documents and turned toward the door.

I blinked. That was it?

He wasn't going to argue? He wasn't going to offer me better terms?

“Stop.”

He stopped without looking back.

My throat tightened. “It’s okay. I’ll sign.”

He turned, walked back to the table, placed the documents down, and sat.

I swallowed. “What are the terms?”

“Everything is in the contract. You can read it.”

His gaze remained serious as I pulled the papers toward me.

I read every term carefully.

The marriage would be public. We would appear together as husband and wife whenever necessary, and the public would know we were married. Privately, it would remain a business arrangement.

There would be no sexual intercourse.

No emotional involvement.

No prying into each other's personal information.

We would live in the same house, but in separate rooms.

My eyes stopped on that last part.

I looked up.

“I do not accept the term of living in the same house.”

“That is the rule of the contract. Without it, no one will believe we are really married.”

“Since this is a contract marriage, it shouldn't be a problem at all,” I shot back.

“It’s a contract marriage. That doesn’t mean you get to ignore my terms.”

Adrian’s expression remained unreadable. “You can object when you’re the one funding Blackthorn Group.”

I scoffed. “Oh, come on. Don't act like you aren't benefiting from this marriage contract, even if you refuse to say how, which is already ridiculous.”

“You need this more than I do.”

The words landed harder than I expected.

I stiffened.

I hated that he was right.

He held my gaze. “You are the one with a falling company that will be drowned in the next twenty-four hours.”

I lowered my eyes before he could see the tears gathering in them.

I had cried countless times over the past two months. I had cried in my office, my car, and alone in the mansion my parents had left me.

“It had been hell, but I couldn't cry here, not in front of him.”

“Fine, I’ll sign,” I said, my voice unsteady as I stretched out my hand.

Adrian placed a pen in my palm.

I opened the contract again and held the pen tightly between my fingers.

Everything replayed in my mind—my parents, their company, the years I had spent protecting it, and every person who had walked away when things became difficult.

I didn't know whether I was making the right choice.

But I knew one thing.

I would never give up Laurent Industries.

If marrying Adrian Blackthorn was the last thing I had to do to save what my parents left me, then I would do it.

My hand shook as I lowered the pen and signed.

Then I removed the pen from the paper, closed the contract, and handed it back to Adrian.

He took it immediately and stood.

“Tomorrow, I’ll come and pick you up. You’re moving into my mansion.”

Before I could respond, he walked out.

I remained in my chair, staring at the empty space he had left behind.

The table was there, but the contract was gone, and it felt like my entire life had just changed with one signature.