The Billionaire's, Contract Bride

Seraphina's View

I jolt awake on a bed feeling like floating on thin air. Briefly, I lose track of my location. Then, I spot giant panes and the metropolis unfurling below like an open storybook.

This is how I exist now. This lasts a year, give or take.

The washroom dwarfs my former room. Everything is bright stone and gold knobs gleaming like treasures. I start the water and it pours like rain from above. At home, our shower trickles down.

Putting on garments feels odd, clothes worth more than half a year's pay. The glass shows a face I don't know. Someone fit for a spot like this one.

But this isn't my place. It's just a big act.

I spot the kitchen by sniffing out some fresh brew. Adrian sits at the table scanning news on a pad. He dons a sharp suit and perfect hair, like he's from a magazine.

"Hey," I say low.

He peeks at me. Briefly, a glint sparks in his eyes. A flash that looks vaguely like fury. Then it fades out.

"Hey there. Coffee's ready."

I grab a cup from some gizmo worth more than a car. The brew tastes great, more so than anything, ever.

"Worried for today?" Adrian asks.

"Just a bit." I sit facing him at the huge desk. "And you?"

"Nah." He goes back to reading his pad. "It's a simple form."

Simple forms. Marriage is simple to him. I need to recall, it's not love for him. It's just work.

"Adrian?"

"Hmm?"

"Once we're hitched, then what? Like, what's my daily gig?"

He puts down the tablet, staring straight at me. "Anything that grabs you. Go shopping, read books, watch shows. This place is now your zone."

"I've been a worker bee forever. I can't just chill and do squats."

"Find a gig, then. Classes, new quirks. You are getting two million smackers soon. Your hobby choices are endless."

How he says that makes me feel tiny and foolish. Like a pampered hamster in a glitzy cage.

"Can I see my mom, by the way?"

"Sure, go see your mom." His voice turns gentle. "I fixed it so she gets a sweet room at the top city hospital."

My heart takes a leap. "You did that?"

"The move's happening this afternoon. She'll have nurses all the time, plus docs that money just buys."

Tears fill my eyes. "Thank you so much. That's... just awesome."

"It's part of the deal." Adrian gets up, shrugs on his jacket. "The car comes at nine-thirty sharp. Don't slack."

After his exit, I'm alone in the huge kitchen. Everything's so perfect, costly, and distant. The fridge dwarfs my old closet. The stove looks like a spaceship central.

I try to eat, but my gut feels jumpy. In two hours, I'm marrying a stranger. A man who chats about our wedding like it's just getting teeth cleaned.

The car pulls up right on time. The driver opens up and calls me Mrs. Kane, which makes me blush hard. I'm not Mrs. Kane just yet. I'm just Sera Wells who spills coffee on big spenders.

The town hall buzzes loud, far from movie vows. Folks with files, babes, droopy eyes crowd round. Adrian greets me, shades on, like a spy.

"Okay?" he then says.

"As okay as one gets for a bogus vow."

His lip jumps as if he'd grin. "Just play, our love burns bright. Hands glued, see?"

"I'll hold back, I guess."

Now he smiles, lighting his hard face. Brief flash, young and soft. A real soul hides deep down under wealth.

Ten minutes seal us. Papers signed, words feel odd on the tongue. Adrian slips on a ring, a star's faint spark. When told to kiss, Adrian dips fast, a cold peck.

"Congrats, Mr. and Mrs. Kane," says the judge.

Mrs. Kane. I'm now really Mrs. Kane, wow.

Outside, a lensman snaps shots. Adrian hugs me, smiles big, so glad. I grin too, but it feels like a lie.

"Sweet pair," the lensman beams. "Love just shines."

If only he knew the real deal here.

Back in the car, Adrian phones, does deals. I stare out at folks, their lives so plain. None wed a stranger just for the cash.

"We must shop," Adrian says, done with calls.

"Shop for what, now?"

"Clothes, gems, the works. You're a rich wife now. Looks must wow them all."

I haven't got a clue about fancy stuff.

That's why I got someone to give you a boost. Adrian checks the time. We see her in sixty minutes.

The spree feels like a dizzy swirl of gems. The lady Adrian picked is Claire, and she acts like I'm royalty. She makes me wear clothes while Adrian sits, seeming tired.

"This one," Claire says, holding a blue dress that's worth more than my wages for months. "It matches your eyes."

I stare at my own reflection. The girl I see isn't really me at all. She seems fake, rich, and perfect.

"Adrian?" I glance in his direction. "Your opinion?"

He glances up from his device. Briefly, his eyes grow big, as if shocked. Then his face goes blank once more.

"It's okay," he tells me. "Take it."

Okay. Not nice or pretty or awesome. Just fine, nothing more.

We get so many things that they must be sent to the flat. Adrian pays with a card like he's buying bread.

That night, I'm in my large room with many bags of pricey items. The ring on my hand catches light, making small rainbows on the wall.

I'm wed. I have more wealth than I thought I'd see. My mom gets great health care on Earth. I ought to feel joy.

Then why do I feel stuck in a gilded cage?

I drift near the glass and stare into the town below. A piece of my past self exists way down there. My small home, jobs times three, buddies at the food place. All of it shaped who I turned out to be.

Now, I'm a new person. I'm Mrs. Adrian Kane now. A pretend spouse wearing a pretend happy face but a real sad soul.

My cell rings with a text from an unknown phone number.

Hi, kiddo. We gotta hang out finally. Meet tomorrow at 3 in the afternoon, Central Park. Come solo. Keep it secret from your guy. - Pops

The device slips out and hits the floor with a loud smash. Pops? But I know my pops is not alive. He passed away in a wreck when I was super young.

Unless mom had fooled me my entire life.

I grab the device, hands trembling, reading that text once more. The words stay the same. Someone pretending to be my father figure wants to meet up. Someone knows I'm now married.

Someone has had their eyes on me.