Chapter 2 A Business Proposition

The Thorne Enterprises tower at nine AM was a different beast than it had been at five PM. The lobby was a silent, sun-washed canyon of marble, each footstep echoing like a gunshot. The same sleek, silent elevator carried Elena up, but this time, Clara Reed was waiting for her.

"Right this way, Ms. Torres," the assistant said, her smile polite and impermeable. She led Elena not back to the intimidating boardroom, but to a private suite on a higher floor. The space was an exercise in controlled luxury-floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Central Park, low-slung modern furniture in shades of charcoal and cream. It felt less like an office and more like the set for a very expensive, very serious film.

Alexander Thorne stood by the window, a silhouette against the morning light. He turned as she entered. He was out of his suit jacket, shirtsleeves rolled to his forearms, and the casualness of it was more disarming than any power pose.

"Elena. Thank you for coming." The use of her first name was deliberate. This was not a client meeting.

"Mr. Thorne." She set her portfolio on a low table, opting to remain standing. Her armor today was a tailored sheath dress, the color of dark espresso. Professional, but with an edge.

He gestured to a seating area. "Please." Once she was seated, he took the chair opposite, not behind the imposing desk. Another calculated shift. "I'll be direct. The public narrative for the merger is failing. Analysis shows a seventeen percent dip in positive sentiment since the engagement was announced. The problem isn't the deal. It's the story."

Elena nodded. "Greenway's CEO is beloved, a 'family man.' Your public profile is..."

"Aesthetically cold and strategically barren," he finished for her, without a hint of offense. "Correct. A grand, storybook wedding to a suitable partner would recalibrate the narrative. Provide the emotional leverage the numbers lack."

"And you have a suitable partner in mind?" Elena asked, mentally reviewing the shortlist of eligible heiresses and celebrities.

A ghost of something-amusement, perhaps-flickered in his gray eyes. "I do. You."

The word hung in the air, absurd and impossible. Elena's perfectly composed expression didn't crack, but internally, the world tilted. She replayed the sentence. You.

"I'm a wedding planner, Mr. Thorne. Not an actress."

"You are a narrative engineer," he countered, his voice low and steady. "You understand the mechanics of public perception better than any actress ever could. This would be the ultimate production. And you would be its star, as well as its director."

He picked up a tablet from the table and slid it toward her. On the screen was a document titled CONFIDENTIAL: PROJECT UNITY – STATEMENT OF WORK.

"The terms," he said, as if discussing a software license.

Elena's eyes scanned the text, her heart thudding a slow, heavy rhythm against her ribs. It was all there, rendered in sterile legal prose.

· Duration: Twelve (12) months from the date of contract execution.

· Primary Objective: To publicly perform the roles of an engaged, and subsequently, a married couple to secure the successful closure of the Thorne-Greenway merger and ensure a minimum one-year stability of the unified entity's public stock value.

· Living Arrangements: The Party of the Second Part (Elena) will reside in a designated wing of the Primary Residence of the Party of the First Part (Thorne) for the duration.

· Public Appearances: A minimum of two (2) joint public or social events per month, with approved conduct and branding.

· Compensation: Upon successful fulfillment of the contract term, a sum of $1.2 million, payable in a lump sum, non-refundable.

The number was a physical blow. It was freedom. It was the launch of her own firm, security, a life unchained from client whims. It was also a price tag on her entire life for a year.

She looked up from the blinding figure. "And the termination clauses?"

"Breach of confidentiality results in total forfeiture and significant legal liability," he stated. "A mutual, private agreement to end the arrangement prematurely results in a pro-rated payout. A public scandal, or you walking away unilaterally, results in forfeiture and my legal team ensuring you never plan a corporate event again, let alone a wedding."

The ice in his voice was real now. This was the glacier, not the man.

"And the... culmination?" she asked, forcing the words out. "The wedding itself?"

"A real ceremony, legally binding. Followed by a twelve-month marriage. At the conclusion of the term, we file for a quiet, uncontested dissolution. A clean end to the narrative."

A real marriage. A real divorce. All fake.

Elena stood, needing to move, to breathe. She walked to the window, looking out at the park where real people lived real, messy lives. "You're asking me to sell my life. My name. My... autonomy."

"I'm offering you a partnership in a high-stakes business venture," he corrected, coming to stand beside her, not too close. "Your expertise for my capital. Your performance for my stability. It's the pitch you made yesterday, Elena, simply applied with full commitment."

He was using her logic against her, and it was infuriatingly sound. She thought of the mountain of debt from her mother's final illness, the relentless hustle of freelancing, the distant dream of her own studio. This one contract would erase it all and build the foundation for everything after.

"Why me?" she whispered, finally asking the real question. "You could hire a model, an actress, a desperate socialite."

For the first time, he hesitated. When he spoke, the purely transactional edge was gone, replaced by something quieter, more analytical. "Because you see it as a job. A complex, demanding, professional undertaking. Anyone else would see it as a fairy tale or a trap. You..." He looked at her, and his gaze was assessing, but not cold. "You see the wiring behind the magic. I need that clarity. I need someone who won't confuse the performance with reality."

In that moment, she saw not just the billionaire, but the man trapped by a billion expectations. He was as bound by this merger as she was by her bank statements. They were both in cages; his were just gilded.

She turned from the window to face him fully. The panic had subsided, replaced by a surreal, hyper-focused calm. This was the biggest negotiation of her life.

"The compensation is insufficient," she heard herself say, her voice steady. "For complete life integration, total privacy forfeiture, and assuming the legal risks of a marriage, the fee is two million. Half payable upon contract signing, half upon dissolution. I also retain the right to use select, anonymized elements of this experience in future professional materials."

A slow, genuine smile touched his lips-the first she'd seen. It transformed his face, revealing a sharp, approving intelligence. He didn't haggle. He simply gave a single, definitive nod.

"Accepted."

He extended his hand. Not to shake, but to seal.

Elena looked at his hand, then at his face. She thought of fairy tales and wiring, of prisons and portfolios. She thought of a million dollars now, and a million later.

She took his hand. His grip was firm, warm, and utterly final.

"Welcome to the partnership, Elena."

The deal was struck. Her old life was over.