13 Chapter 13

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"Ready for a contract, Madeline Rose?" Lance asked as he picked up the call. He sounded so confident, as if it were a guarantee that Madeline would accept his offer. "Honestly, I didn't expect you to call me so early, but that's good news. I can't wait to make you mine."

Madeline felt her heartbeat accelerate when listening to his words. This man was dangerously flirty, something that didn't sit well with the hyper-vigilant Madeline. 

"I am partly interested in your offer, so I give you a call, Mr. Grant," Madeline didn't want to show extreme eagerness because that was a sign of desperation. 

She shouldn't look or sound desperate, or this man might take advantage of her and give her an unfair contract later.

"It is improper to discuss a contract on the phone. I want to have a meeting with you, and we can discuss all of your requirements. I want a fair contract with your company… and with you personally."

Lance chuckled. "Do you think I will give you an unfair contract? I want nothing but for you to become my lover. Is that hard to fulfill?"

"I have questions, and I can't settle until I get all my answers," Madeline insisted. 

"I didn't expect you to be very careful, but if that's what you want, I will send my driver to come and pick you up at nine tomorrow morning," Lance said.

"Thank you, Sir. I'll be waiting," Madeline said before the realization suddenly dawned on her. Her eyes widened, and she realized something was off, "W—Wait, how did you know—"

Beep.

—

Lance hung up the call before Madeline could finish her sentence. 

She was stunned because she wanted to ask how the hell this man knew about her house when she never revealed it.

'Could it be that he has been stalking me? ' 

That question lingered in Madeline's head, but she quickly denied it because it didn't make sense.

'Okay, get it over your head, Madeline. He is a big shot from a rich family. There's no point in him stalking over a woman like you,' Madeline thought. She laughed at herself, thinking that she was being ridiculous. 

She still didn't know how Lance knew about her address. She was scared for a moment but realized there was no point in worrying right now, not when she had already agreed to have a contract with him. 

"That's right, I should focus on the contract I will sign tomorrow," Madeline reminded herself.

She still didn't know what a contractual girlfriend needed to do, but based on his actions, it seemed that they had to get intimate in front of others.

Madeline shuddered, thinking she had to be intimate with a man she didn't like. But as long as Lance didn't do something too vulgar to her, then she could continue to play pretend.

'Take this as another acting gig, Madeline. You're good at pretending. Dealing with this man should be a piece of cake for you.'

**

Lance Grant put his legs on the coffee table, putting his hand behind his head. He leaned on the sofa and stared at his little brother, George Grant, who looked like a slightly younger version of him. 

"Did you hear the conversation I had with Madeline Rose just now? I will win this, George," Lance said. 

George looked worried. He bit his lower lip while tapping the armrest, "Are you sure this is okay, Lance? Do you know how scary our Big Bro can be, right?'

"Hah! I don't fucking care whether he will be angry or not," Lance scoffed. "I'm not going to bow down to some archaic rule, and I will fucking destroy our reputation if he dares to force me."

"This is crazy…" George began to feel the nervousness. He wasn't as reckless as his second brother, and he surely knew the risk of going against their eldest brother. "I feel like I'm going to get killed because of you."

"There are only two sides to this, George," Lance said. "My side, or the losing side. Take my side, and I guarantee that we will win."

…

George had nothing else to say, simply because he was too inexperienced and scared to mix himself into their family's politics. 

He was already twenty-four years old, but he still disliked how he had to pick sides between his two brothers. Nevertheless, their eldest brother's decision involved him, so George decided to take Lance's side instead. 

"One more thing, what will you do with that woman?" George asked. "Madeline Rose. She's currently famous as a headline everywhere. But everyone shits on her so much. I can't believe someone could get a national level of hate."

"She is the key point of my success. I will make her a superstar so I can use her against our brother," Lance said. 

"Then, after you're done with her? What will you do next?" George asked. "It's obvious that she's a very controversial woman. Will you just ditch her later?"

Lance had a mysterious smile as he replied, "I'm not an idiot, George. You know I will toss her out once I'm done with her."

"… I hope you can keep your word, Lance," George sighed. "We can't keep her. She's too controversial. She'll ruin our family's reputation in the long run."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You're younger than me. No need to babysit me like that," Lance shrugged carelessly. 

George could only stay silent, staring at his reckless second brother, 'I hope things work out as intended.'