She sighed, looking like it pained her. “Again, I know you don’t want to hear about my personal life, but I have one. So…”
“You said you have a younger brother and sister?”
She nodded.
“What’s the custodial arrangement?” I knew about such things because of my brother and Gigi. They’d fought over Luke for a year, even though all Gigi wanted was more money.
“There isn’t one,” the girl said. “Our mother took off with her boyfriend, and I’ve been taking care of the kids since then. We moved in with my grandmother, so they’re with her now. That’s why I was able to come here in the first place.”
“Can’t they just stay with your grandmother?” I asked. It seemed simple enough.
“I mean—maybe. But I want to be able to see them and take care of them. And I’m worried that if I’m gone, my mom might come back and mess with their heads. I don’t want any trouble, and I don’t want the state getting involved.” She held up her hands. “Sorry if that’s TMI about my life.”
“TMI?” I arched my eyebrow.
“Too Much Information.” She snorted. “You made it really clear that you don’t want to hear about my stuff.”
“True,” I said, “I don’t.” But the details of her situation gave me an idea, which I decided to use as a bargaining chip. “What if I offered to pay for you to get full legal custody of your brother and sister? That way, your mother wouldn’t have rights to them anymore.”
She sat forward, eyes wide. “You would do that?”
“If you agree to stay, yes. I have an excellent legal team—they never lose.”
“Can I see them sometimes?” she asked, her voice hitching with emotion. “I don’t want to never see them again.”
“Of course,” I said, without thinking it through. When my legal team had prepared the contract for this arrangement, we’d discussed money, terms, and non-disclosure provisions. We hadn’t considered the more personal side of things, but now I didn’t have a choice. I had to get married as soon as possible.This girl was here, she was willing, and Miranda had already seen her. I had to make this work.
I was, in essence, trapped.
“It’s not going to be a secret that we’re getting married. Everyone has a family—including you. I value privacy over most everything else, but I’m sure we can present this to your relatives in a way that they understand. You can see them at agreed-upon intervals, and no one will be the wiser about the origins of our relationship. Is that satisfactory?”
She nodded, and I didn’t hesitate. I pulled out the contract and handed it to her. “Excellent. Please read this and sign on the last page.”
She handed it back to me. “Can you please write in the part about me getting custody of Josie and Bo, and you paying for it?”
“Of course.” I longed to level her with a withering stare, but I would wait until the ink of her signature was dry.
Once I’d finished, I handed the contract back to her. To my surprise, she took her time reading it, frowning when she read some sections, eyes widening in surprise over others. When she’d finished, she put the contract on my desk without signing it.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“I have a couple of questions.” Her brow furrowed, and it was impossible not to notice her unselfconscious beauty. “Why do I get paid all the money at the end? Most jobs, you get paid as you go.”
“Most jobs don’t have the underpinnings that this one has—I only get fully vested control of Barrington Enterprises if I’m married for five years. If I offer you a contract that pays, say, by the year, I’m screwed if you decide three million dollars is enough, and you leave at the end of year three. I need protections in place so that you’ll stay.”
“That makes sense, but…” She tilted her head and looked at me. “I don’t understand why getting married is a term in your trust.”
I met her gaze. “That makes two of us.”
“But seriously, you must have some idea. Why would your family make you get married to inherit the company? Why would they make youstaymarried for five years?”
I eyed the contract, then her. “Why aren’t you signing?”
She sighed. “Because what’s wrong with you? What don’t I know? Why would anybody make their kid get married and stay married in order to run the family business?”
I sat back in my chair. I hadn’t anticipated her line of questioning. I thought she’d see the dollar signs, and the custody provision, and gladly sign her life away. “I don’t know,” I answered honestly.
That disarmed her a little, and her shoulders relaxed. “Why do youthink?”
