Bound By The Contract Novels & Stories

Paragraph after paragraph of binding conditions: total obedience in public, joint residences, mandatory appearances, strict non-disclosure penalties. I reached the final page. My name was already printed at the bottom in crisp black ink, right beside his bold, sprawling signature. "Six months," I whispered, holding my breath. "And then I walk away. Clean. No strings." "No strings," Jarrah affirmed, his voice unreadable. I lowered the tip of the pen to the line above my name. My pulse was pounding so hard in my ears it sounded like thunder. I pressed down, the dark blue ink soaking into the parchment, binding my life to his for the next hundred and eighty days.

I have been reading this damn contract repeatedly, and though the terms are simple - but reasonable, I'm still hesitant to sign. He is busy reading and editing some papers from work and drinking his second cup of coffee. "Ok, but why does it say if failed to comply-" "Layla, just sign the contract. Or are you looking forward to meeting someone else? I mean, that's pretty much what it means. While married to me, you can not date or see any other guy. Pretty simple!" "Well, this goes for the two of us," I say, narrowing my eyebrows as I grip the paper over my shoulder.

Fractionally shorter than the ones before it, fractionally closer to stopping without stopping. Then he was past me. Continuing down the corridor with the same unhurried certainty as always. I stayed against the wall. Listened to his footsteps until they turned the corner at the far end and disappeared. Then I stood there for a while longer. My right hand was warm again. I pressed it flat against the wall and felt the cold stone against my palm and thought about the word the elder had used. Binding. The ritual was called a binding. Something that held. Something you couldn’t undo by deciding you wanted to.

"You cannot risk yourself for your contractual wife, Adrien." "Oh, for god's sake, not you too!" He distanced himself from me and ran his hand through his hair. "I don't need to be reminded everyday that we are bound by a contract. Not by you, of all people." He released an exasperated sigh. "I thought we had been better than that." When his eyes zeroed to mine, I was met with a hint of disappointment. I gasped when he yanked me closer by my waist and slammed our bodies together.

"That’s not possible." His response hit me like a slap. "What?" "It’s not possible," he repeated, his tone as firm as stone. "You signed a contract, Brenda. Until you fulfill that contract, you’re not going anywhere. If you breach it, you’ll be paying me a fine. A very expensive one." A cold, bitter laugh escaped me. "Are you serious right now?" I asked, staring at him in disbelief. "After everything, you’re still talking about the contract? About money?"

Turning abruptly to Jason, I snapped, “This is all your fault, if you had gone through the contract properly we would not be in this mess right now. But instead, you decided to be irresponsible at a crucial time as this, Why on earth do I pay you handsomely to deliver this poorly?” He quickly bowed his head saying, “I apologize for my negligence Mr Liam, I failed to read up such an important section of your contract, but I promise this would not repeat itself.” Sighing, I tried to put my emotions under control, “This had better not repeat itself, I would not go with that stupid rule she just mentioned. I really don't care how you do it but make sure this whole contract with Miss Emma must co

“I didn’t come to be told a story.” “It’s the contract you signed, man,” Adam’s voice lost its normal banter. It sounded flat and lawyerly instead. “And it is a legally binding contract. You can’t just opt out, you know? You break a contract like this one… well…” Adam shrugged expansively. “It gets a bit hard to protect you from the law. I’m sure you understand.”

My eyes caught the bold letters on the front — Marriage Contract. My chest tightened. “What is this?” I asked, my voice shaky. Luca leaned back in his chair. “This is how we make things official, Sofia. You’re going to marry me.” For a moment, I thought I heard wrong. I blinked, trying to process his words. “You’re joking… right?” “I never joke,” he said flatly. “You sign this contract, and your father stays alive.” My throat went dry. “What do you mean stays alive?”

I clutched my mother's necklace tightly, as if begging it for strength. And on the final page of the contract, there was one small line that made my heart stop beating. This contract is absolute and can't be canceled once signed.

“Big day. Mind signing off a multi-million-dollar partnership with me?” Alex returned the smile, shaking his hand. “Wouldn’t miss it.” Daniel took a seat and set a thick folder on the table. “I reviewed the latest contract draft. Perfectly airtight. Your team exceeded expectations. And let me say, Lily is brilliant. You’ve got a star on your hands.” Alex hesitated, then laughed lightly. “She… she is.” “And she’s tougher than she looks,” Daniel added. “She challenged me on two clauses when we were talking at your house.”