Chapter 2 The Offer

• Arya's POV
• My pen froze.
• For a moment I wondered if I had heard him wrong.
• VANCE Industries was one of the largest corporations in the country.
• They owned shipping lines, tech firms, luxury hotels, half the skyline practically had their logo somewhere on it.
• Companies like that didn’t call independent accountants working out of rented offices.
• They hired massive firms with hundreds of employees even thousands.
• “I think you have the wrong number,” I said carefully.
• “We most certainly do not.”
• A brief pause.
• Then the man added:
• “Our CEO personally requested we contact you.”
• My heart skipped.
• “Requested… me?”
• “Yes.”
• “Why?” I asked unsure.
• “That,” he said, “is something Mr. Vance would prefer to discuss with you himself.”
• I leaned back in my chair, suspicion prickling at the back of my neck.
• This made no sense. Is this another scam?
• “Who is this?” I asked.
• “I’m his personal assistant.”
• Another pause.
• “Mr. Logan Vance would like to meet you tomorrow at nine a.m.”
• Logan Vance.
• Even I knew that name.
• Billionaire.
• CEO.
• Media’s favorite “dangerous bachelor.”
• And according to several business articles, a man who destroyed his competitors without blinking.
• “What exactly does he want audited?” I asked.
• “I’m afraid that information is confidential until you sign an NDA.”
• Of course it was.
• I stared again at the debt total on my laptop.
• Three hundred and eighty-four thousand dollars.
• The words three days came ringing in my head.
• “Where is the meeting?” I asked slowly.
• “The VANCE headquarters.”
• My stomach flipped.
• The assistant gave the address and ended the call before I could ask anything else.
• Silence returned to the office.
• I sat there staring at the phone.
• This had to be a prank.
• A scam
• Or a mistake.
• Because there was absolutely no logical reason for a billionaire CEO to hand-pick me.
• Unless… there were no unless, it just wasn’t possible.
• I was only known among small companies, shops, small restaurants and struggling businesses.
• I exhaled slowly and shut the laptop.
• “Tomorrow morning.” I sighed.
• Worst case scenario, it was nothing.
• Best case scenario…
• I might have just found the lifeline I desperately needed.
• ****
• The next morning, I stood across the street from the towering glass building of VANCE Industries.
• My palms were sweating. My knees weak.
• The place looked less like an office and more like a monument to money.
• Polished marble.
• Private security.
• Luxury cars gliding into the underground parking like sharks into deep water.
• I adjusted my blazer and walked inside.
• The lobby alone was bigger than my entire office.
• A receptionist directed me to the executive floor.
• The elevator ride felt endless.
• When the doors finally opened, a sharply dressed man was already waiting.
• “You must be Miss Thorne,” he said with a faint smile. “Mr. Vance is expecting you.”
• The whole thing felt like a dream.
• He led me down a long corridor lined with glass walls and minimalist art.
• We stopped at a pair of tall black doors.
• The assistant knocked once before opening them.
• “Mr. Vance,” he said, “Miss Thorne has arrived.”
• I stepped inside.
• The office was massive.
• Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the entire city.
• And standing beside the window was a man.
• Tall.
• Broad-shouldered.
• Dressed in a perfectly tailored dark suit.
• He turned slowly.
• Sharp jaw.
• Cold grey eyes.
• This had to be Logan Vance. He looked way better than the photos of him I’ve seen on paper and on social medias.
• He looked at me intensely for a long moment.
• Then he gestured toward the chair across his desk.
• “Miss Thorne,” he said calmly.
• His voice was even more intimidating in person.
• “Please sit.”
• I did.
• Logan Vance remained standing.
• Watching me.
• Silent.
• I tried to look as bold as I could.
• Finally, he spoke.
• “I know about your mother’s debt.”
• The words disoriented me.
• I shamefully choked on my saliva.
• My blood ran cold.
• “How?”
• “And I know,” he continued smoothly, “that you have exactly three days before the men she borrowed from decide patience is no longer profitable.”
• My hands tightened on the armrest.
• “How do you know that?” I whispered.
• He didn’t answer.
• Instead, he walked around the desk and leaned against it, arms folded.
• Then he said the one sentence that made my heart stop.
• “I can make that entire debt disappear, Arya.”
• My throat went dry.
• “What’s the catch?”
• “There
• must be one.”
• A slow smile touched his lips.
• Dark.
• Emotionless.
• “Help me prove that my stepbrother has been stealing millions from my company…”
• He paused.
• “And pretend to be my fiancée while you do it.”