Chapter 6 The Contract

• “Six months?” I asked, swallowing.
• The contract in front of me was hard to parse, but that part was spelled out clearly. Six months and six months only.
• “What would happen after the six months?” I asked, looking up at him with suspicion.
• Lionel was quiet for a long moment. “This life is not easy.” He finally spoke up again.
• “Fame and fortune are not for the weak of heart. There are always people looking for weaknesses to exploit. If you stayed-“
• “I would be a weakness to exploit?” I asked, trying to school my expression. I was trying not to show how angry I was.
• “I’ve spent the last five years raising her and protecting her. And you’re saying I’m a weakness to her?” I asked.
• “Yes.” Lionel responded coldly. “You will be their nanny for six months to help Patti acclimate to her new life.”
• “After that you will have to leave and promise never to speak to her again.” He steepled his hands on the desk in front of him, looking at me over his fingers.
• I shook my head. “You’re heartless.” I spat at him in disgust.
• Only a few days earlier, this man had been my hero, my knight in shining armor. Now he was a villain, the fairy tale witch bargaining for her first born.
• “Ms Lupa, please-“
• “No. I can’t. I won’t give up custody of her.” I argued, shaking my head.
• “She’s my daughter.” I felt a tear rushing down my cheek. “I’ve put the last five years of my life into raising her.”
• “She’s my everything.”
• Lionel pushed a box of tissues towards me. I glared at the gesture, stubbornly rubbing at my eyes with the back of my palms.
• “Think of what’s best for Patti.” Lionel said quietly.
• “You said yourself you were having a hard time providing for her. If you give me custody, she’ll want for nothing. She will have access to all the best doctors and the best tutors.”
• “She’ll grow up with her sister. They already seem close. It wouldn’t be right to separate them.” He shook his head.
• "She's my daughter. Is it right to separate us?" I asked.
• "She's my daughter. She came to you by accident, a mistake. We need to fix that mistake, not wallow in it." He sighed.
• “Here, Patti will grow up happy, healthy, and loved.” Lionel looked up at me, his eyes deep and intense. I felt like he was pulling me in, as if his eyes were black holes, pulling me in just to crush me.
• “Can you say the same if you keep her?” He asked harshly.
• I shook my head, tears running down my cheeks. My heart was breaking. He was right.
• I hated to think it, but he was right. Patti deserved better than I could ever provide. She deserved this life.
• She belonged in these beautiful halls. She would be well taken care of by expensive doctors and treatments I couldn't easily afford. I couldn't give her these things, but he could.
• I signed the contract, a tear staining the paper by my name.
• "Thank you for seeing reason." He responded coolly. "I am sorry this is the way it has to be."
• I almost laughed. I didn't believe he was sorry at all.
• Lionel walked with me through the spacious halls, back towards Vera's room. We heard their laughter coming from one of the small rooms off to the side.
• "Hi sweetie." I said sadly, moving to kneel by Patti. "I have something that I need to tell you."
• "Alright!" Patti said, grinning up at me innocently. I bit the inside of my cheek, trying to keep the tears at bay.
• "You were right, sweetie. Lionel over there is your dad and Vera is your twin sister." I said slowly, giving her time to ask questions if she had any.
• "Really?" She asked excitedly. "That's so cool! Vera, we're twins!"
• Vera smiled back at her from where she and Lionel were standing together. "I always wanted a sister. Although I was hoping for a little sister, this is pretty good too."
• Patti grinned widely. I didn't have the heart to tell her the bad news. "I'm going to work here as you and Vera's nanny for a bit to help you get settled, alright?"
• Patti nodded, almost vibrating with her excitement. "This is gonna be great!" She exclaimed.
• I nodded back to her, holding my tongue.
• "Vera, we need to speak as well." Lionel said, looking down at his daughter. "You need to be more careful."
• Vera sighed, looking down at her feet as her father scolded her.
• "There are many dangerous places in this house. You are smart enough to know what places aren't good to play in. You need to start acting like it."
• Vera frowned, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. I tried to school my facial expression. I didn't like how he was speaking to her.
• "You need to listen to me. You will have to help Patti find her way around. You cannot just do whatever stupid thing you think will be fun."
• "I didn't realize-"
• "You should have realized." Lionel scolded, voice harsh. "You need to be more careful and mindful of what you are doing."
• "Fine." Vera snapped. She sprinted past Lionel out of the room.
• I could hear the sound of her feet against the wood flooring as she ran down the hall towards her room. Lionel sighed in frustration, as if he wasn't the reason she ran away.
• "Patti," Lionel turned to the other girl. "Dinner is in fifteen minutes. Will you join me downstairs?"
• Patti looked to me nervously. I nodded my head.
• "Alright." She said, leaving my side to take his hand. They walked out of the room together.
• I tried to calm myself with a deep breath. Then I started towards the kitchen. I should get something special together for Vera.
• Although the house was big, and the girl could have anything she asked for, it seemed like she may have been missing some gentleness.
• There wasn't much I could do, but I went to the kitchen and started cooking a pancake breakfast.
• After I got everything together, I brought it up to Vera's room. I knocked on the door. There was no answer.
• I slowly opened the door, carrying the tray into the room. There was a lump under the covers on her bed. I smiled slightly, walking towards the bed.
• "You know, when I was little, and I was upset, my mom used to always make me pancakes for dinner." I smiled at her, putting the tray on the end of the bed.
• "Pancakes are a breakfast food." Vera grumbled, peaking her head out from under the comforter.
• "That's one of the things that made it special." I responded with a secretive smile. "It's like doing something you're not supposed to, but it's safe and easy."
• Vera sat up, eyeing the tray with breakfast foods on it. "You made bacon too." She commented.
• "Are you hungry?" I asked, setting up the tray across her lap. Vera nodded, starting to eat.
• "I know your dad was a little harsh on you, but it was just because he's worried about you. He shouldn't have said things the way he did, but he loves you so much and just wants to keep you safe."
• "I didn't mean to be unsafe." Vera said softly.
• "I know. You just scared him." I responded, running a hand through her hair.
• "Are you okay?" I asked. Vera nodded.
• "Good. If you need anything, let me know." I leaned down, pressing a quick kiss to the top of her head.
• I walked out of the room bringing the tray with me, and came face to face with the alpha himself. I didn't want to look at him. He grabbed my wrist.
• "How is she?" He asked, brow furrowed and dark eyes showing concern.
• I tried to get out of his grasp, but I couldn't. He had my wrist in a tight grip. "Let go of me!" I snapped.
• I froze, realizing that I had just done something monumentally stupid. I had shouted at an alpha.
• He stepped closer to me, calm and cool despite it all. I squeezed my eyes shut as he cornered me against the wall. I could feel his breath against my cheek, my heart racing in my chest.
• What does he want to do?!