Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Billionaire's Wife by Contract : Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 5

The night my fiancé stole my future, he had the audacity to ask me to smile for the cameras."Come on, Mara. Just one smile." Daniel Hayes adjusted his cufflinks, his lips curving into the charming smile that had once made me fall in love with him. "Everyone is watching."I stared at him beneath the glittering chandeliers of the Ellison Grand Hotel's ballroom. Hundreds of guests filled the room, dressed in expensive suits and designer gowns, celebrating what my family had advertised as the beginning of a new era for our hotel empire.Funny. I hadn't realized the celebration was for my funeral."Why is my signature on the transfer documents?" I asked quietly.Daniel's smile didn't falter. He took my hand, pressing a kiss against my knuckles as though we were the happiest couple in the room. To anyone watching, we probably looked perfect.But his fingers tightened around mine."Not here," he murmured."Then where? In the room where you decided to sell my family's properties behind my ba

The first rule of being Adrian Blackwell's wife was that I had to look as though I was in love with him.The second was that I had to do it before breakfast.I discovered this at seven thirty the following morning when a knock sounded on my bedroom door. I was still sitting on the edge of my bed, struggling to tame my hair, when Adrian's voice came from the other side."Ten minutes, Mara."I glanced at the clock."Ten minutes for what?""Breakfast."I looked down at my oversized shirt and pajama shorts. "Unless you've developed a sudden interest in watching me eat cereal, I suggest you give me at least thirty.""We have somewhere to be at nine."I froze."Somewhere?""An event.""What event?""The Blackwell Foundation's annual charity breakfast."I stared at the closed door as though it had personally betrayed me."You cannot be serious.""I rarely joke before eight in the morning.""Then perhaps you should start. It might improve your personality."There was a brief silence."Twenty

The first thing I saw the following morning was a message from an unknown number.The second was Adrian Blackwell standing outside my bedroom door, looking like he had already dealt with three disasters before breakfast.I glanced at my phone again.Unknown Number: Stop asking questions about Blackwell Grand if you know what's good for you.For several seconds, I simply stared at the screen.Then I read it again, hoping the words might somehow become less ridiculous the second time.They didn't.I had spent six months being called a thief by people who had never bothered to examine the evidence. I had lost my position, my engagement, and nearly every relationship I once believed mattered. Someone threatening me over a hotel renovation was not exactly the fresh start I had imagined.Still, the timing was suspicious.Yesterday, I had questioned a financial report. This morning, someone wanted me to stop.That wasn't a coincidence I intended to ignore.A knock sounded on my door."Mara?"