When she finally sat down beside me during her break, she handed me a plate of cookies.
“So,” she said, “what’s this strange proposal?”
“This might sound crazy,” I admitted. “But hear me out.”
She smiled. “Go on.”
“My parents are wealthy — very wealthy. And they’ve given me an ultimatum: get married by my next birthday or lose everything.”
“Seriously?”
“They even gave me a list of acceptable women. I don’t want to marry any of them… but I also don’t want to lose my life.”
Claire leaned back. “So… you want me to pretend to be your wife?”
“Exactly. One year. We marry, act the part, then divorce. I’ll pay you well. Everything will be written in a contract.”
