Chapter 2. The Offer

Keira squinted, “Benjamin Mackey?” she muttered, trying so hard to regain her senses. Those six vodka shots made her quite drunk. “Ah, the CEO of Luxus Hotel Group, right?” she exclaimed, half-laughing.

“Yes, it’s me,” said Ben, nodding several times. Keira let out a long sigh. “I’m sorry, Mr. Mackey. I’m afraid you have to call Charlie and talk to him. I need to die right now...” she said while trying to stand up, but Ben’s hand held her. “No, you can’t!” he said firmly.

“Oh, come on! Why do you care anyway? You don’t know me!” snapped Keira, pulling her hand away from his grip, and then walked limply to the edge of the fence. Ben stood up and hugged her tightly from behind. “I don’t know you, and I don’t care about you, but I do care about my hotel. You’ll ruin my business by ending your life here. Do you understand that?”

Keira relaxed her body, no longer struggling. She was silent for a few moments before she finally said, “Okay, just let me go. I promise I won’t jump.”

Slowly, Ben withdrew his hands from her while watching her closely, afraid that she would jump when he was off guard.

“Okay, whatever, I’m leaving...” mumbled Keira, hobbling on her stilettos. “Where are you going?” asked Ben, half-yelling. Keira stopped, turned around, and shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. Unless I get a hundred thousand dollars, maybe I’ll just jump off the Brooklyn Bridge. No one will be harmed if I die there, right?” she said with heavy-hung eyes.

“Well, I don’t know, do you bring a car?” asked Ben, raising his right eyebrow.

“No, good to see you, Mr. Mackey. I hope we will meet in another life...” mumbled Keira as she dragged her feet away from him.

“I’ll take you there! Come on!” suddenly, Ben took her hand and made her glare in surprise.

“Okay, whatever,” replied Keira, half-squinted because she was too drunk to argue.

“Emma, give me that wheelchair,” said Ben to one of his staff.

“What? Is that for me? I’m not that drunk! I can walk!” exclaimed Keira irritably.

“Yes, you can, but it takes forever,” replied Ben. When Keira was off guard, he carried her and moved her into the wheelchair.

“You’re so weird. I know you don’t want me to die here, but this is too much,” mumbled Keira as Ben pulled the wheelchair to the elevator.

“Let’s talk when you’re sober,” said Ben, who signaled his staff to push the elevator button. Minutes later, they were already inside Ben’s car, and she was holding herself to not vomit.

“So, what happened? Are you in debt?” asked Ben casually. He glanced at Keira and caught her pale face.

“I need to throw up!” she exclaimed, covering her mouth. Ben glared in surprise.

“Not in my car!” he immediately pulled off, “Out!”

Keira immediately jumped out of the car and vomited brutally. After that, she went back to the car, feeling much better.

“Here,” said Ben, handing her a box of tissues.

“Thanks,” said Keira. She didn’t even dare to look him in the eyes.

“How are you feeling? You still want to end your life?” asked Ben casually, as if he were talking about something trivial.

“I don’t know, shit, I’ll just get out of here!” said Keira while trying to open the car door, but it was locked. She looked at Ben, “Open it!” she snapped, looking at him half-glaring.

“Look, if it’s about money, maybe I can help...” said Ben, looking at her sharply.

Keira squinted. “What? You’re gonna give me some money?” she asked, still trying to process everything. “Well, yeah, but I need you to do something for me,” he said firmly. Keira snorted, “What? Like sucking your dick? No, thanks!”

Ben chuckled. “Whoa, chill, lady! You know I could pay any whore if I want to, but that’s not what I mean,” he said, his smile faded and turned into a serious mode. Keira looked at him blankly, and seconds later, she shrugged. “Okay, I’m listening...” she said at last.

Ben nodded his head as if he was convincing himself to convey his intention. “Um, I need someone to be my wife,” he said flatly, too flat that it made his words sound like a joke. Keira snorted, laughing. She laughed out loud for seconds, then she stopped and stared at Ben sharply.

“My life is too messed up to listen to your bullshit right now. Just open the God-damned door. I need to go. I’m running out of time!” she hissed, starting to get angry.

Ben sighed. “You don’t get the point, do you? If you want the money to solve your problem, I’ll give it to you, but in return, I need you to be my wife. It’s just for two years, no more. After that, you can file for divorce,” he explained carefully. He didn’t want Keira to misunderstand his words.

Keira was dumbfounded. She opened her mouth and closed it again, lost for words. She just stayed silent for almost a minute. “Hey! You okay?” snapped Ben, waving his hand in front of her face.

Keira cleared her throat. “Sorry,” she straightened her back and tried to pull herself together. “So, you’re looking for someone to have a contract marriage with you. Is that what you are trying to say?” she concluded all the information she had just heard.

Ben nodded his head, “Yes, not only I’ll pay all your debt, but I’ll also give you a big amount of divorce settlements. It will be enough for you to travel around the world. What do you say?”

“Um...” Keira gulped. Ben’s words sounded very tempting. She knew she didn’t have a choice but to accept his offer. She took a deep breath and then nodded her head, “Fuck! Yes, I’m in!”

“Are you sober enough to talk about it?” asked Ben. His foot stepped on the gas pedal, and the car moved slowly.

“Yeah, but I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to take me to Dim Sum Palace. A bowl of hot plain porridge will be good for my empty belly,” Keira said, stroking her flat stomach. Ben snorted, but he didn’t say anything.

“You’re serious about the offer, right?” asked Keira warily. “I don’t have time to joke around,” replied Ben, his gaze focused on the busy road before them. “Um, I think I have to know the reason behind your offer. Why do you want to make the marriage contract? I mean, are you gay? Well, it’s 2023. You could just be who you are!” raved Keira, out of control.

Ben turned to her and gave her a very sharp gaze. “I’ll keep the reason to myself. All you need to do is to be my wife, and that’s it! Don’t worry. We don’t have to do any sexual intercourse if that’s what you’re concerned about,” he said flatly.

‘Yes! He’s gay; I knew it!’ she exclaimed.

“That’s great! But, um, are you going to announce the marriage or what?”

“Are you drunk, or are you dumb? Even though I don’t intend to announce the marriage, the public will find out sooner or later, so can you ask something more important and stop wasting my energy?” answered Ben curtly.

Keira started to get mad. “Can you just answer my question and stop being a jerk?!” she exclaimed, unable to hold her anger.

“Then you better have a good question!” snapped Ben without looking at her.

Keira sneered. If it were not because she needed the money desperately, she would never spend even a minute with Benjamin Mackey. Well, he was handsome and rich, but his attitude and how he talked to a woman were a big no-no for her. Suddenly her cell phone rang loudly, again from the debt collector, whom she named ‘Evil Loan Shark’ on her contact list.

“You’re not going to take that?” asked Ben, glancing at her cell phone screen.

Keira didn’t answer. She was just about to touch the red button to reject the call when suddenly Ben snatched the phone away from her.

“You’ll get your money before midnight. Just stop calling her, or you’ll end up in jail!” he barked, then ended the call. Keira was too speechless to say anything. She gulped nervously while taking back her cell phone from his hand.