His Substitute Bride(Six months contract marriage!)

**Chapter One**

**A Favour**

Joanna had just finished filming her scenes for that day and was on her way home. Since she was the lead actress, she had come to the set whenever she wanted and had instantly demanded that her scenes be filmed so she could leave. The crew was upset, but there was nothing they could do. She was the diva, after all. If they upset her and she decided to leave the drama, they would all be in serious trouble.

"Miss Anderson, your uncle has requested that you come back to the family home immediately after filming," her assistant Lena said softly. She knew Joanna's temper well. Once Joanna lost it with her, it would mean the end of Lena's job. She needed to hold on to this job. Even though Joanna was horrible, at least the pay was good.

The smile that was on Joanna's face immediately froze. What could those people want from her now? They only bothered her when they wanted something. They were the most terrible people. Just because they spent a few thousand dollars to raise her, they felt they owned her, that they could control her life. Well, she was a grown woman now, and if they thought they could push her around like they did when she was young, they were wrong. She would show them!

Joanna looked at her assistant who was driving the car and said with a cold, detached voice, "Do I have to go there? What do those people want from me anyway?" Her uncle and cousin were literally the worst. They even contacted Lena, only because they wanted to use her. They only remembered she was a family member when they wanted something.

Lena gulped. She had expected Joanna to react this way. But she knew she had to convince her or she would be in serious trouble. She had to get Joanna to go to them. "Miss Anderson, you have to go! Your uncle said it was really important. It's about you getting married!" Lena said. She wasn't supposed to reveal this, but she hoped it would make Joanna go to them.

Joanna froze for a second. Her marriage? Her uncle had already said he would help her marry a rich man. It seemed like he was helping his niece, but no-he was doing it for himself. He had a daughter, but he wouldn't use her. His company was on the verge of bankruptcy, and the only way to save it was through a business marriage. Since he didn't want to use his daughter, Joanna was the next choice. He only wanted to use her as a bargaining tool.

However, Joanna had her own plan. Since they wanted to arrange a marriage, she would go along with it-but she wasn't going to help them! She would make sure they paid for what they had done to her! She would play along and get married, but they would definitely regret their decision. "Alright, let's go to the Anderson family house," Joanna told Lena.

Taking out her phone, Joanna typed in a name on her search engine. The name was Raymond Walker. Immediately, his picture came up. Joanna was satisfied. He was handsome, and he was the CEO of Helian Group-one of the top ten companies in the country. This was exactly the type of man she needed. She was going to make this man fall in love with her! Even though there were rumors that he was a cold-hearted jerk with no feelings, Joanna wasn't bothered. She was sure she could get him. She had her face after all, the face that had gotten her everything she had today.

Allen was standing outside the hospital room. She really wanted to go in to see her grandmother, but the doctors were inside treating her. They said she couldn't go in until they were done. Allen was shaking with fear. Her grandmother was the only family she had. If she died, she would be all alone in the world. Even if they didn't have anything, they were still together. She wanted it to remain that way.

Allen was lost in her thoughts when she felt someone grip her shoulders from behind. She turned sharply and saw her best friend Rita looking at her. She fell on Rita and started crying immediately. "Rita, what am I going to do? My grandmother, I don't know what is going to happen to her. They won't let me go inside to see her. I don't know what I'm going to do if my grandmother dies, Rita. I don't know."

Rita hugged her friend tightly. She really felt sorry for her. Why did her friend have to have such a hard life? Rita and her grandmother had struggled so much to get Allen through high school. Just as she was about to get into acting college, her grandmother fell ill for the first time. Allen used her tuition to get her grandmother through that stage of her sickness. After that, she had to give up her dream to become an actress and work as a waitress to make ends meet. Now her grandmother was ill again. It was pitiful.

"Don't worry, Allen. Everything is going to be okay. Your grandmother is going to be okay. She won't die. She still has to see you achieve your dreams and become an actress. She still has to see you live a happy life. So she is definitely not going to die. You just need to calm down. Let's wait for the doctor and see what they have to say. Don't worry too much, okay? I'm here for you," Rita said. Even though she was comforting Allen, Rita felt doubtful. She was already old, and now she was sick. Would she survive?

Allen looked at her friend. How she wished Rita's words were true. Would her grandmother see her achieve her dreams? She didn't know anymore. She had already given up the one opportunity she had, so she decided to just go along with the flow. But deep down, she still wanted to be an actress. Even if her grandmother lived, would she be able to do that?

"Rita, do you really think my grandmother will be okay? I don't want her to die. I won't be able to live on if something happens to her. So please tell me, Rita. She is not going to die, right? What you said, it's going to happen, right?" Allen asked. Even though she wanted to believe those words, she knew they might not come true. She just needed comfort and strength to hold on.

Rita was going to say something when the door opened and a doctor came out of Allen's grandmother's ward. The both of them ran to the doctor immediately. Allen was the first to speak. "Doctor, what is going to happen to my grandmother? Is she going to be okay?" Allen asked, unable to calm down. Her grandmother had raised her alone after all. Without a father and mother, she did her best to raise Allen. She couldn't die now.

The doctor's expression was serious, and Allen felt a wave of dread wash over her. "I'm sorry, but your grandmother's condition is quite serious," he said gently but firmly. "She has a tumor in her brain, and she needs surgery as soon as possible. Unfortunately, it's not going to be cheap. The cost will be around fifty thousand dollars."

Allen felt the ground slip out from under her. Fifty thousand dollars? How was she ever going to come up with that kind of money? She was already drowning in debt from her grandmother's previous treatments. This was impossible.

The doctor continued, his expression sympathetic. "I know this is a lot to take in, but it's the only way to save her. You'll need to raise the money as quickly as possible."

Allen could barely hear him over the rushing sound in her ears. Fifty thousand dollars. It might as well have been a million. There was no way she could come up with that kind of money in time. Her grandmother was going to die because she was too poor to save her.

Rita caught her as she swayed, her legs threatening to give out. "Allen, stay with me. We'll figure something out, okay? We'll find a way," Rita said, though her own voice wavered with uncertainty.

Allen couldn't stop the tears streaming down her face. What was she going to do? How was she supposed to save her grandmother when the world seemed so determined to take everything from her?

Back at the Anderson house, Joanna sat across from her uncle, Peter, and his son, Fred. The tension in the room was palpable, but Joanna's expression was one of calm indifference. She smiled, a sweet, false smile that didn't reach her eyes. They all knew the smile was fake-none of them had any love for each other.

"Joanna, I have some great news," Peter began, his tone overly enthusiastic. "Raymond Walker is back in the country. I'm meeting with his grandfather tomorrow to finalize the arrangements for your marriage. Once you're married, you'll be in a position to help us, just as we discussed."

Fred, who had been silent until now, chimed in, "Yes, Joanna, remember what we agreed. As soon as you're married, you'll help save JK Enterprises. It's your responsibility as part of this family."

Joanna barely held back a sneer. So, this was how they were going to play it. Pretending to care about her, pretending this was for her benefit when in reality, it was all about them and their precious company. They needed her now, so they were being nice, but she knew the truth. They were using her, just like they always had.

But she wasn't the same naive girl anymore. She had learned how to play their game, and this time, she was going to win.

"Help JK Enterprises?" Joanna echoed. "The last I heard, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. And even if I do marry Raymond Walker, why would he help the family of a woman he's being forced to marry? This isn't a fairy tale, Uncle. Arranged marriages don't come with guaranteed happy endings.

How can she marry someone she barely knows?