Page 22 of Marrying My Orc Boss

I take a deep breath, feeling a sense of determination wash over me. "Yes," I say, my voice steady and strong. "Are you?"

Drakar nods, his eyes filled with gratitude. "Don’t worry, I’m more than ready to meet your family. They won’t notice a thing."

We make our way to his car, and he opens the door for me, his hand lingering on mine for a moment longer than necessary.

Why do I get the feeling that this isn’t going to turn out like we expect it to?

CHAPTER 12

Drakar

Flipping through the folder densely scripted pages, I skim the fine print and nod in satisfaction.

“Everything appears to be in order,” I say with a sigh of relief.

The contract has been manufactured to fit the unique needs of my and Sally’s arrangement to a tee. All that’s left is to sign.

Taking my pen out of its holder, I scribble my practiced signature on the dotted line.

A few gentle knocks on the door tell me all I need to know–Sally has arrived. I get up and let her in, composing a friendly smile on my face.

“Right on time,” I tell her.

“Good morning,” she greets.

My gaze drops to her hand where she still wears my ring. I know that it’s all part of maintaining our image, but the sight of it resting around her delicate ring finger does something strange to my chest.

“Good morning.”

She seems apprehensive as she steps inside, glancing around the space with curious but shy eyes. Her gaze eventually lands on the still-open contract as it lays out on my desk awaiting her stamp of approval.

“Feel free to read through it,” I insist, walking around to the other side of the desk.

She shakes her head. “No, that’s okay. Do I sign here?”

Plucking my pen out of its holder, she daintily scribbles her full name parallel to mine.

As Sally hands back the pen, our fingers brush momentarily, and I can't help but feel a spark of electricity pass between us. I quickly shake off the feeling, reminding myself that this is all just part of the arrangement.

We take a moment to review the contract once more, ensuring everything is in order before sealing it away in a folder. With the formalities out of the way, we turn our attention to the task at hand. Rehearsing our love story.

Sally takes a seat on the couch, and I join her, feeling the weight of the situation pressing down on my shoulders. I clear my throat and begin to speak.

"So, we met at work, right?" I say, trying to sound as casual as possible.

Sally nods, her eyes focused on her hands as they fidget in her lap. "Yes, we were introduced by Rebecca. We hit it off right away and spent the whole day talking."

"And what did we talk about?" I ask, trying to recall the details we had discussed earlier.

"We talked about our shared love of travel, our favorite books, and our goals for the future," Sally replies, her voice growing more confident as she speaks. “Then you were persistent with your courtship and I couldn’t resist.”

We continue to run through the story, practicing our lines and trying to make it sound as natural as possible. It's strange, trying to construct a history together that never really happened. But as we go on, I start to feel a strange sense of connection to Sally, as if we really have known each other for longer than just a few weeks.

Eventually, we feel ready to hit the road and make our way to the hospital. As we drive, I can sense the tension building between us, nerves maybe, at the ploy we’re about to pull.

As soon as we arrive at the hospital, I can tell that Sally is on edge. Her father's condition is serious, and she's worried about the quality of care he'll receive. I take her hand and give it a reassuring squeeze, trying to convey my support without saying a word.

We make our way to the reception desk, where I pull out my phone and make a quick call. Within minutes, a hospital administrator approaches us, looking flustered and apologetic.

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