The lawyer slid the document across the table without ceremony.
Arielle Kingsley did not touch it.
Across from her, Lucien Blackwood leaned back in his chair, suit immaculate, expression carved from indifference. He looked like a man attending a meeting he had already won.
"You're late," he said.
"I was summoned," Arielle replied. Her voice was calm. Measured. The kind of calm that comes from having no leverage left. "Not invited."
The lawyer cleared his throat. "Miss Kingsley, this agreement outlines the terms of a twelve-month engagement, followed by a legally binding marriage if conditions are met."
Arielle's fingers curled slowly against her thigh.
Engagement. Marriage. Words people chose. Words people celebrated.
Not this.
She looked at Lucien. "You could have asked."
"No," he said. "I couldn't."
That was the truth. Asking implied refusal was possible.
The lawyer continued, professional, detached. "You will be publicly introduced as Mr. Blackwood's fiancée within seven days. The engagement will stabilize the Blackwood Group's board confidence and neutralize ongoing acquisition threats."
Arielle finally reached for the contract. The pages were thick. Expensive. Final.
"And what do I get?" she asked.
Lucien leaned forward for the first time. His gaze was sharp now. Assessing. As if she were an asset being priced.
"Your family's debts disappear," he said. "Your brother walks free. The lawsuit dies quietly."
Her breath did not change. Her pulse did.
"So this is leverage," she said. "Not a proposal."
"You don't marry for romance," Lucien replied. "You marry for survival. We're aligned."
Aligned. A clean word for coercion.
She flipped to the final page. Her name was already typed.
"You hate me," she said, not accusing. Observing.
"I don't feel strongly enough for hate," he answered. "Which makes this arrangement ideal."
Arielle picked up the pen.
The room was silent as she signed.
When she looked up, Lucien was watching her with something unreadable in his eyes.
"You'll move into the Blackwood estate tomorrow," he said. "We'll play our parts convincingly. No emotions. No expectations."
She stood. Smoothed her dress. Met his gaze evenly.
"You should know something," she said. "I don't break quietly."
Lucien smiled for the first time.
"That," he said, "is exactly why I chose you."
The contract lay between them.
The engagement had already begun.