I’LL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT
Scarlett
The room fell silent. For a second, I thought I had misheard him, but Adrian didn’t laugh. It took me a while to realize that he
was serious.
“A…what?”
“A contract marriage,” He repeated calmly, without hesitation.
“We just met, Mr. Hartley. If this doesn’t feel sudden to you, it certainly does to me.”
“I’m not making this decision blindly.”
My brow tilted slightly. “Then, what’s the reason?”
“I need to be married before I turn thirty next month. It’s a condition to inherit Hartley Global.”
So he needed to get married in name only. Still, that wasn’t something I could bring myself to do. The word marriage still left a bitter taste in my mouth.
The last time I had gotten married, it had killed me.
My fingers curled. “Why me? There are countless women who would agree to your offer without hesitation.”
Not once did Adrian take his eyes off me. “Because I believe I can trust you.”
Trust? Wasn’t that word a bit too strong to use on someone you’d only met minutes ago?
Adrian reached into his pocket and placed something on the table between us. It was my business card—the same one I had handed over to Alfred earlier.
Realization dawned on me. “The client from earlier…”
“He works for me,” He confirmed. “From the moment I learned about our blind date, I intended to meet you.”
So, in a nutshell, he was trusting me because I was Alistair Gance’s daughter. Even if I needed Adrian in return, I didn’t want to
come off as desperate.
“What makes you so certain I’ll agree to your offer, Adrian?”
“I’m not, but I am holding onto some hope considering you’re still here after hearing such an absurd proposal.”
The corners of my lips tilted up with a smile. He had a point.
“I’ll tell you this, Scarlett,” Adrian said, stepping forward and closing the gap between us. “If you agree to this marriage, I intend for it to benefit both of us.”
I leaned closer, curious on what he had to offer. “How so?”
“In a fair exchange, I’ll do whatever you want.” He reveals. “Name it–with no questions asked.”
“I’ll need some time to consider your offer,” I said, at last.
Adrian nodded once as though he had expected nothing less. “Of course.”
I was taken aback by how easily he had given in. If his situation was as urgent as he had expressed it to be, I half expected him to add a bit more pressure, trying to convince me.
But he hadn’t. Reaching behind him, Adrian picked up a document from the table and handed it to me. “I prepared something for you. Think of it as a gift.”
ILL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT
+25 BONUS
My brow lifted as I accepted the file. “Another gift? Should I be worried?”
A quiet chuckle escaped him “You can relax,”
Those words didn’t exactly make me feel any better.
“Well then,” I said, slipping the document into my bag. “If that’s all, I should head back.”
“Take the car. Let my driver drop you off as I was the one who brought you here.”
It was at the tip of my tongue to refuse his offer, but I knew Adrian would only press further if I declined, and for some reason, I had a feeling Adrian wasn’t accustomed to hearing the word “no”.
“Thank you,” I said instead. Instead of returning home, I had Adrian’s driver drop me off at one of my father’s luxury hotels.
When the private suite door clicked shut behind me, a slow breath escaped my lungs. Only then did I realize how tightly wound my body had been the entire evening.
Loosening my heels, I freshed up, sat at the dining table, and opened the file Adrian had given me. It was the contract
agreement.
My eyes moved slowly across the pages. Each clause had been carefully drafted and heavily favored me, with no hidden attempt to seize my assets through marriage.
I leaned back in my chair. Adrian appeared to be a responsible man, but trust was not something I handed out easily anymore.
The last time I trusted someone completely, I ended up poisoned in my own home. My grip tightened around the document
before setting it down.
No matter how polished a snake appeared, it was still a snake until proven otherwise. I couldn’t hastily jump into marriage with Adrian just because I needed him without knowing what kind of man he was.
For all I know, he could be another Ethan. Picking up my phone, I dialed Mr. Hale’s number.
“Mrs. Scarlett,” he answered after the second ring. “What a pleasant surprise.”
“I hope I’m not interrupting your evening, Mr. Hale.”
“Not at all. What can I do for you?”
I hesitated. “I need you to investigate someone for me.”
“Is it Mr. Adrian?”
I let out a soft breath. Had I been that transparent?
“Yes,” I admitted. “I don’t need every little detail about him-just enough.”
“I’ll do my best, but information regarding Mr. Hartley is difficult to obtain.”
I wasn’t expecting it to be easy either. “Anything works.”
“Understood. And that reminds me, there’s another matter you should know about.”
My brows knitted together. “Go on.”
“Your stepmother, Clarissa, has requested to see you tomorrow morning.”
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