Married to the man behind the camera

le phone call. Mine came in the form of a polite, velvet voice asking,

-

rookedly on the walls, like fading memories of better days. A single fan rattled above me, struggling against the sweltering summer heat. I h

?" I said, sure

ike to make you an offer. A confidential arrangement. A marriage is

myself. It was a brittle, brok

most hypnotic. "You were recommended. Mr. Blackwood's legal team will han

Black

ucer. Ruthless negotiator. The man behind some of Hollywood's biggest hits and its nastiest scandals. His

is office wa

computers hadn't been turned on in weeks. A single script lay on the table, my father's last d

hard. "Whe

house. Two hours. The

off before I co

-

e, staring at my silent phone,

sane. Absol

invisible walls rejected script pitches, overdue loans, bills stacking higher than the ceiling. Just l

onaire wants me

ix mo

g. A hundred alarms went off in my head. This

licker of hope sparked. What

ain. My father's dream, the one he'd sacr

I whispered to the empty ro

-

ackwood Tower Penthouse, my reflection trembling in the polished glass. The

with my only pencil skirt that didn't have a thread loose. My hair was down, my makeu

ound, and the first thing I

indows giving an endless view of Manhattan. The furniture was sleek and

en I s

Black

ent for a year. His black hair was perfectly styled, his jaw sharp enough to cut glass. Those famous steel-gra

ely without warmth. He didn't offer a hand. He just

, my kne

was a puzzle he wasn't sure he wanted to solv

ike he was discussing a bus

dry. "You... y

ange, you'll receive financial compensation significant enough to clear

ed. "You... you

waver. "I don't enter agree

and disbelief. "And what do you get out of

mirk. "I get stability. My investors want a man t

lating. And yet... I swore I saw a flicker of s

with me at public events. Smile for cameras. No scandals

ice dropping to a dangerous w

iver that ran down my spine. "Don't worry, Mr. Bl

d mine. "Then we und

ing hands. My entire life my father's lega

ed up

id. "But once you sign...

-

t thundered in my chest. I thought about the unpaid bills, the empty fridge, my father's

the pen to

the front do

inning towar

, heels clicking against the marble. Her beauty was sh

ked on me wi

ng honey and poison. "So this is the lit

ng over the contract,