I avoided that word for years, but now it burned in my mind like a red-hot poker searing into raw flesh. Rape: the four-letter word that triggered hell whenever I stumbled across it.

RAPE.

My face fell into my hands. The pressure built from holding back tears made my forehead feel like it was going to explode.

I WAS RAPED.

It blazed in my mind like a giant, neon billboard. I was humiliated and exposed. I was broken. Don’t think about it don’t think about it don’t think about it—

Blinded by tears, I stood. I wanted to kick the khaki and blue colored blob sitting on the couch. “You actually talked to them? What did they—what’s wrong with you?” The last words erupted from my throat. “Do you think it’s okay to pry into people’s lives like that?”

He appeared in front of me. “It was all in the contract, Jessica,” he said in a kindly voice. “You signed it. I do this for all my employees.”

The rage left me with overwhelming embarrassment. “I need to leave.”

I grabbed the door handle.

“No, wait!” He pushed the door shut and used his body to block my path. I turned away but he took my shoulders gently and forced me to face him. He actually looked pained.

“Hey, listen, I’m really sorry. Please don’t be upset.”

He sounded so desperate and human. For the first time, I relaxed around him.

“I know that what I did was way over the line. Please forgive me.”

It’s not his fault. He didn’t know. I sniffed and nodded, allowing him to steer me back to the couch. I discretely wiped my eyes as Luke sat down in front of me. His hands fidgeted in his lap, making him look as though I caught him stealing.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you. I didn’t know that was part of the contract. There are certain things I don’t like to talk about and my past is one of them.”

He nodded. “I understand.”

He leaned forward and snatched his glass, clearly glad that I calmed down. “I’m just going to cut to the chase. I really need your help.”

I kept my hands balled at my sides.

Luke gave me a sharp look. “Remember, all of this is confidential. You signed a NDA.”

“Just tell me what it is, already.” Some of the anger bit into my voice. I realized how rude I sounded, but Luke didn’t seem to mind.

He looked incredibly nervous. He kept clenching and unclenching his hands. “Yes, right. Well, here it is. My dying father is threatening to write me out of his will unless I shape up and settle down. I will lose my entire inheritance and my job unless I can convince him that it’s happening. The disease is quite advanced, so I’m a bit short on time. I need someone who will act as my girlfriend. We’ll travel together, get photographed going out, we’ll be in the same hotel rooms—though this relationship will be strictly professional. It’s all an act.”

Finally everything was out in the open. He wanted me to kiss him in public, hold his hand, and make eyes with him. Easy peasy. I would have done it for free. It all seemed so crazy, I couldn’t think of anything to say.

He stared at me. “Well, say something!”

All of it seemed so unlikely. “Would your father really do that?”

Luke huffed impatiently. “Yes. Absolutely. My uncle Dominic was co-founder of Pardini Worldwide and each of his five children, my cousins, have shares. It would be a simple thing to write me out of the will, especially with the rest of the family hissing suggestions in his ear. Almost five billion would be distributed amongst them if I were kicked out. They would love it.”

Five billion? My head spun as I imagined a gladiator arena with Luke’s family dressed in business suits all fighting each other to the death. It almost made my foster family life look civilized. They must be constantly at each other’s throats. Anyone would be driven mad by that amount of money.

The strain was livid on Luke’s face; it curled his shoulders forward. “My father is a cruel, narcissistic man. I’ve worked hard all my life for the company and I deserve this. I’ll be damned if I let that bastard take it all away from me.” He sighed and sunk back into the sofa. “Sorry, it’s just that I don’t get to vent about him often.”

I actually felt sorry for him. It must be horrible to have to live your life at the whim of someone with so much power over you. “I just don’t understand—why don’t you just get a real girlfriend?”

“It’s not that easy,” he said flatly.

The deflated look on his face alarmed me. Did he have self-esteem issues? “Oh, come on. You’re handsome and rich.”

“Notice how you added, ‘and rich’? It’s really, really hard to find someone who likes me for who I am and not for my money. I can’t trust anyone. Besides, I don’t have much time. I need to leave next week for London.”

Wow. I didn’t realize I could ever feel so sorry for a billionaire. “But you’re letting your father control your life.”

“No, I’m not. I picked you. I just want him to think he’s controlling me. That’s when he’s the happiest.”

“Why did you pick me?” I blurted.

“Because you’re educated and you’re pretty. And we seem to have good chemistry.”

My cheeks flushed and he smiled at me. It was sad that I felt so good about his compliment.

He leaned in closer, refusing to let me out of his gaze. “I have to warn you, though. If we don’t get along, we’ll have to go our separate ways. I mean—we’ll be together constantly. I know that this is a lot to ask for and that’s why I’m prepared to pay you ten thousand dollars a month.”

My mind went blank. “I’m sorry, what?”

I couldn’t have possibly heard that right.

He smirked, knowing then that he had me. “Ten thousand dollars a month.”

“Jesus,” I whispered. Get paid an absurd amount of money to travel with the world’s most handsome bachelor? Yes, YES!

“But what would we tell people? How did we meet? Where did I grow up?” We would have to fabricate a huge backstory. I doubted his relatives would think highly of an orphan coming from absolutely no money. I nervously wondered if I could pull this off.

“We’ll figure out all of that stuff later. Will you do it?”

And I would visit London. I always wanted to go there. “Yes, I’ll do it.”

He slapped the desk. “Great! Well, it’s almost the end of the month, so I’ll pay you half of what we agreed. You can use it to buy clothes for the trip or whatever you want. I’ll get your plane tickets, of course. We leave next week on Wednesday. I know it’s Thanksgiving, but the trip really can’t wait.”