The Heiress's Hidden Contract Husband

Chapter 1 Is This a Shakedown?

The sun beat down on the sidewalk.

Ryan Carter stood at the curb, wiping sweat from his forehead as he scanned the street for a cab.

His bastard of a mentor had tricked him into spending five years as a combat medic with a covert military unit. As soon as he was discharged, Ryan had headed back to their home in the mountains to settle the score.

The old man had already skipped town.

All he’d left behind was a letter.

“My dear apprentice,

“Haven’t you always wanted to know where you came from? Well, now’s your chance to find out.

“When I found you as a baby, there was a jade pendant beside you.

An unusual piece, too. It might hold a clue to your origins.

Unfortunately, I was short on money at the time, and I owed someone a favor.

So I gave the pendant to the Morgan family in Asheville as a token of your engagement to their daughter.

They contributed a little money to seal the arrangement, which helped me raise you through years of hardship and sacrifice.

“The money’s long gone, so we ought to honor the agreement. But don’t worry. I checked on Grace for you. She’s gorgeous, and she runs a company. Brains and beauty. You hit the jackpot, you little punk.

“Settle down and enjoy married life. I’ll drop by once you two have a little grandbaby for me to spoil.

“Try not to miss me too much!”

Just thinking about the letter made Ryan grind his teeth.

The old bastard had promised him to some family and charged them for the privilege. What was he, merchandise?

And now what? Was he supposed to move in with them and play the dutiful son-in-law?

Ever since he was a kid, Ryan had done the laundry, cooked the meals, and made the beds. He’d waited on the old man hand and foot while the shameless bastard drank his days away.

Years of hardship and sacrifice? For whom?

Then the old man had secretly arranged for him to join that military unit—and kept the bank card for the account where his pay was deposited. Supposedly, he was “saving up for Ryan’s wedding.”

Five whole years.

Ryan had never even laid eyes on the damn card.

Unbelievable.

“Dad, seriously? With everything going on, Grandpa’s still on about that? … I told you, I have a boyfriend. … What do you mean, I’m wasting my life? Look, I have to go.”

A woman’s voice rose behind him, sharp with impatience.

Still on her phone, she passed him on his right and stepped off the curb.

A heavy truck was barreling toward her from the left.

Ryan moved before he had time to think. His hand shot out, caught her, and hauled her back onto the sidewalk.

The truck thundered past, close enough for him to feel the rush of air.

“Are you trying to get yourself kil—”

He turned to look at her.

And stopped.

She was tall, probably twenty-three or twenty-four, with delicate features and long, burgundy hair. Her strappy dress showed off a figure that would have caught his attention under considerably less awkward circumstances.

In his haste, he’d grabbed one of her shoulder straps. The force of his pull had dragged the top of her dress and her bra away from her chest.

From where he stood, he could see far too much.

“Sorry!”

He released her as if the strap had burned him.

She steadied herself, pale and shaken. A second earlier, she’d nearly stepped under a truck.

Then she caught his expression and glanced down.

With a startled cry, she folded both arms over her chest.

Ryan had no idea where to look.

“Be more careful next time,” he said. “Watch the road when you’re crossing.”

He turned and walked away. He could find a cab farther down the street.

He’d barely gone a few steps when heels clattered after him.

“Stop.”

Ryan glanced back. The woman was coming straight toward him.

“Need something?”

She stopped in front of him and looked him up and down.

“You’re not from around here, are you? Your accent’s different.”

“No.”

She studied him for another moment.

“You’re decent-looking, I suppose. Since you saved my life, how about I give you a chance to make some easy money?”

Ryan frowned. “Doing what?”

“Pretend to be my boyfriend for two hours. Come meet my family.”

“No.”

He didn’t even have to think about it.

She snorted. “Fifteen hundred dollars.”

Ryan blinked.

Apparently, she had money to burn.

He still wanted no part of it. Their first encounter had been embarrassing enough.

She took his silence as an invitation to negotiate.

“Seventy-five hundred.”

“It’s not about the money. I have somewhere I need to—”

“You saw my breasts.”

Ryan went still.

“I was saving your life. If I hadn’t pulled you back, that truck could’ve hit you.”

“That doesn’t change what you saw.” She held his gaze. “Help me out, or I’ll start screaming that you were looking down my dress.”

He stared at her.

“This is how you thank someone for saving your life? You blackmail him?”

“You’re taking the money,” she said flatly. “Whether you want to or not.”

For a moment, he could only stare.

Then he sighed.

“Fine. As long as you’re willing to risk your family seeing through it. But I want the money up front.”

If she insisted on dragging him into this, he might as well get paid.

Besides, he was practically broke. The old man had cleaned out the house before leaving and taken every cent Ryan had earned over the past five years.

Her lips curved into a cold smile, and contempt flickered in her eyes.

“Bank details?”

Ryan gave them to her.

She tapped at her phone. A minute later, the payment appeared in his account.

Seven thousand five hundred dollars.

“Come on.”

He fell into step beside her.

“What’s your name?” she asked.

“Ryan Carter.”

“Okay. You’re Ryan Carter, a senior executive at an import-export company in Raleigh. Your father owns a third of the business.”

She rattled off his new identity without slowing down.

“My name’s Chloe Bennett. I’m twenty-four. When we’re with my family, just call me Chloe…”