Genre: Billionaire Romance / Contract Marriage
Tagline: She was the collateral. He was the shark.
Chapter 1: The Final Hammer Fall
The air in the private auction room smelled of expensive cologne and desperation. Elena stood in the shadows of the velvet curtains, her hands trembling against the silk of her dress.
Her father's voice, once booming and confident, was now a thin, reedy thing. "He's here, Elena. If he signs the buyout, the family company survives. The employees keep their jobs. We keep the house."
"And what does he want in return?" Elena asked, though she already knew the answer. In their world, men like Julian Vane didn't do favors. They made acquisitions.
The doors swung open. Julian Vane didn't walk into a room; he took command of it. He was dressed in a charcoal suit that cost more than Elena's college tuition, his eyes the color of a winter sea—beautiful, but capable of drowning you.
He didn't look at her father. He looked straight at Elena.
"The debt is thirty million," Julian said, his voice a low, smooth baritone. He tossed a leather-bound folder onto the mahogany table. "I will clear it today. Every cent."
Elena's father exhaled a sob of relief, reaching for a pen.
"Wait," Julian's hand clamped down on the folder. He leaned forward, the light catching the sharp angle of his jaw. "There is a second page to the contract. A personal security clause."
Elena stepped out of the shadows. "What kind of clause?"
Julian stood up, walking slowly toward her until she could feel the heat radiating from him. He was a head taller, forcing her to look up. "I'm tired of the dating games the board of directors expects from me. I need a wife who understands that this is business. One year. You live in my home, you attend my events, and you play the part of a woman hopelessly in love."
He leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a whisper that sent a shiver down her spine. "In exchange, I save your father from prison. Do we have a deal, Elena?"
Elena looked at her father's pleading eyes, then back at the man who was essentially buying her freedom. She took a breath and reached for the pen.
"One year," she whispered. "But don't expect me to be good at the 'in love' part."
Julian's lips curved into a cold, predatory smile. "Oh, I think you'll find I'm a very convincing teacher