Chapter 14 The Contract
CHAPTER 14
The Contract
But he wouldn’t let him win.
“Better lonely than irresponsible,” Leo said quietly.
Trent’s fists clenched. “If you don’t give me the money… I’ll—”
Leo raised a hand. “Threaten me and we’re done completely.” The room fell silent. A thick, suffocating silence.
Trent’s face twisted with frustration. For a moment, Leo saw something raw in his eyes, not anger, but desperation, fear., and Leo hated that part of himself that felt… almost responsible.
Almost.
Trent stepped back, running a hand through his hair. “Fine,” he muttered.
“Keep your damn money.”
“I will,” Leo replied.
Trent grabbed his sunglasses, shoved them onto his face, and headed for the door. “Don’t come crying later when you realize family was all you had.”
Leo’s jaw tightened. “Family doesn’t bleed you dry.”
Trent froze at the door.
For a second, he hesitated—like he expected Leo to change his mind.
But Leo remained silent.
Trent clicked his tongue and walked out, slamming the door behind him.
The sound echoed through the large office.
Leo stood still for a long moment, breathing slowly, letting the anger settle in the pit of his stomach like a stone.
He rubbed his temples, exhaustion weighing down his shoulders. His brother was spiraling again, and he had a meeting in five minutes.
But all Leo could think was—
When did my family become a battlefield? He sat down in his chair, the one Trent had polluted with his presence and exhaled deeply, staring out the tall glass windows overlooking the city.
He wasn’t heartless. He just refused to let Trent ruin himself further.
“Work for your money,” Leo muttered under his breath. “Or drown. But I’m done saving you.”
His phone buzzed, a message, from the head maid.
‘Miss Ruby is awake.’
Leo’s heart clenched.
He stood, straightened his tie, and left the office.
××××××
Ruby was invited to meet Leo in his quarters, she sat opposite Leo in his private study. The room was enormous, walled with glass that overlooked the city lights far below. Everything about it felt powerful black marble floors, a towering bookshelf, soft gold lamps, and the intimidating mahogany desk between them.
Leo didn’t sit, he stood hands in his pockets eyes, hard expression unreadable.
Ruby stared into lost space, admiring the beauty of the room she was within.
“Ruby,” Leo said finally, breaking the silence that had stretched long enough to choke her. “I need an agreement with you. A real one and a binding one.” Her head snapped up.
Agreement?
She barely knew him.
“I—I don’t understand,” she whispered. “Why me?”
Leo exhaled sharply, like someone who had rehearsed this and still hated saying it.
“My father has given me a deadline,” he began, pacing slowly. “A deadline to prove that I’m capable of stability. That I can handle a relationship. That I can be… settled.”
His lips curled with dislike at the word.
Ruby blinked, confused. “But… why?”
“Because he wants to retire,” Leo replied. “He wants to step down from the Carter Group leadership. And he wants to announce the successor by the end of the year.”
“And you’re the successor,” she guessed softly.
His jaw tightened. “Only if I fulfill his condition. And that condition is that I must be in a committed relationship.”
Ruby swallowed. She suddenly understood.
He needed someone.
Temporarily……Conveniently.
Someone who could play the role.
Someone like her…..
But why her?
“You could choose anyone,” she whispered. “A model, a celebrity, someone rich, someone with status.”
Leo stopped pacing and turned to her. His gaze softened—not with affection, but with a strange, reluctant admiration.
“Because you don’t want anything from me,” he said quietly. “Not for fame, money and power. When I saved you, you didn’t even know who I was. And when you woke up, you didn’t beg me for help.
Ruby dropped her eyes. She didn’t tell him that she never asked for help because she learned long ago that nobody listened.
“I don’t want to force you,” Leo continued. “But I need someone I can trust. Someone who won’t spread rumors or leak information, someone who won’t turn this into a circus.”
“And what do I get?” Ruby asked in a trembling voice.
Leo reached for a black folder on the desk. The paper looked thick, expensive, and legal.
“You get protection,” he said slowly. “A safe place to stay, medical care, food, clothes, and… payment.” Ruby flinched, as if struck.
“Payment? You’re paying me to act like your girlfriend?”
He didn’t blink. “Yes.”
She felt humiliation burn in her cheeks. She wasn’t a charity case. She wasn’t someone’s toy or hired puppet.
But she also remembered the cold nights…hunger, insults, loneliness…..Vivian’s cruelty, Clara’s mockery and her father’s silence.
And she remembered collapsing on the wet road, with no one except this cold, impossible man to save her.
Leo moved to the desk, opened the folder, and slid the contract toward her.
“I want you to read it carefully,” he said.
Ruby’s fingers trembled as she touched the pages. The heading read: THE CARTER–RUBY TEMPORARY RELATIONSHIP CONTRACT
Her breath caught.
Temporary of course, she began reading. The relationship will last a minimum of three months and a maximum of six months, depending on the pace of Leo’s father’s retirement announcement.
“You’ll be free afterward,” Leo said, watching her reaction. “No ties. No obligations.”....Free. What a beautiful word.
Ruby read it twice because her mind refused to accept it.
“Ruby must stay in Leo Carter’s mansion for the entire duration of the contract.”
“Stay here?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because my father visits unannounced,” Leo replied. “And the media is relentless. It has to look real.”
Ruby’s heart pounded. Live here? In this palace? The next rule made her breath stop.