I regret the second my eyebrows shoot up in protest but I roll with it and counter, "I'm punctual." I fight the urge to lift my chin with the defiance I feel flooding my veins at his cold tone.
The corner of his mouth twitches. It’s not quite a smile. Heaven forbid he show an ounce of emotion, after all. But it’s close enough that I feel something dangerous flutter beneath my ribs.
He gestures to the chair in front of his desk. "Sit."
The word is a command, not an invitation. I can tell from the lack of emotion on his face he’s testing me. That’s cool. Again I’m here for my sister and mom. He keeps them safe, he can use me as a doormat all he wants. He said last night it was for a year. I’ve done five with Victor, I can do one more with a man like Drake.
But he said heir and baby and bed all in one sentence last night, too, and that it was all part of the same deal, my inner vice chimes in.
I wipe my face of all emotions. It’s not as easy, but I clear my head and heart, too. Two can play the game of indifference.
I cross to the chair positioned in front of his desk only because the alternative is standing here until my knees give out. My legs are trembling beneath the thin fabric of my slacks, and I press my palms flat against my thighs to hide the evidence of my nerves as I lower myself into leather soft enough to feel like sin.
Drake doesn't sit. He reaches for something on his desk and slides it across the polished surface toward me.
I look down to see large chunks of legal words.
“A contract?” I ask.
Drake looks down and I know he sees the horrified expression on my face because I feel it tugging at the corners of my eyes and I feel the tightness of my pursed lips. I force my face back into neutral territory. I mean, what did I think would happen? He dropped three hundred grand on me. Of course he’s going to want something in return. Can someone demand a baby in a contract? Is that a thing? Damn it, why didn’t I think of researching that?
I shake off my internal freak out moment and turn my attention back to the papers in front of me.
I pick up the contract and begin to read, forcing my eyes to focus on the words despite the way they want to blur and swim.
One year. That's the first thing I see. One year as his executive assistant, with duties ranging from scheduling to correspondence to whatever else falls under the deliberately vague umbrella of "administrative support." Room and board provided at his residence here in Redthorne Holdings. I pause on that, reading it twice to make sure I understand. I'll be living here. In this building. Under his roof.
My throat tightens, but I keep reading.
Monthly allowance for dependent family members, to be deposited directly into accounts of my choosing.
The number stops me cold.
I read it again. Then a third time, because surely there's a decimal point I'm missing, a zero that shouldn't be there. But the figure remains the same, stark and impossible on the page, and something hot pricks at the backs of my eyes.
That amount would cover my mother's mortgage. Her medical bills. Gemma's tuition. It would lift the weight that has been crushing my family since the day my father decided a deck of cards mattered more than the people who loved him.
My eyes sting with unshed tears I’ve never allowed to fall. One escapes and Drake stands close enough that he reaches out and brushes it away.
I find the strength to finally look up at Drake to find him calmly watching me. I don’t know what to expect to find when our eyesconnect. Judgment, maybe. Arrogance, most definitely. Like his brother. There was never a day that went by that the younger Moses brother didn’t make me feel inferior in every sense of the word. Looking back I realize the man only kept me around to make himself look good amongst his friends. I was a game to him. He wanted to show how easily he could control, manipulate and ultimately break for all his wealthy friends.
“Continue reading, please,” Drake softly urges.
I blink rapidly and force myself to continue reading. I will not cry in front of this man. I will not show him weakness despite how gentle he is being right now. Once a Moses always a Moses. Didn’t I learn that the hard way?
I read another couple of paragraphs of my payment. Modest given I’m being given room and board. And then I reach the clause near the bottom.
Additional duties as required, including but not limited to the expectation of producing an heir for the Moses family line.
My breath catches. I knew it was coming and yet...
I remember his words from last night, thrown at me like weapons in my cramped apartment. An heir. He wants me to have his child.
"You mentioned this last night." I keep my voice steady through sheer force of will. "I need to know more. Please."
Drake moves back to his side of the desk and settles his substantial weight into his chair. The leather creaks softly beneath his weight. He steeples his fingers in front of his chest and regards me with an expression I can't read.
"I expect us to discuss it when the time is right. The clause is there because I made a promise to my mother."
