I blew my cover in the eighth month of my one-year contract marriage to the CEO. While Ethan Gray was working out shirtless, glistening with sweat, I got distracted by his sculpted body. Absent-mindedly cleaning the floor, I casually tossed something in my way onto the couch. The next second, Ethan’s eyes widened in shock, time stood still, and I froze in horror. Holy crap! I had just tossed a 90-pound barbell! With one hand! My left hand! 0 Ethan Gray had been away on a business trip for over two weeks and finally returned home. Well, “home” might not be the right word – this luxurious mansion in Crescent Bay was just one of many properties he owned. The only difference was that I – his wife in name only – lived here. At that moment, he was working out in the gym, drenched in sweat. I had deliberately changed into a white dress and was slowly wiping the floor with a cloth. He glanced at me and frowned, “You don’t need to do this.” “It’s okay,” I smiled softly, lowering my head slightly. The angle of my lowered head and falling strands of hair were all carefully designed to appear delicate and lovable. “I’m too weak, so doing some housework is like exercise for me.” Since the sugar daddy rarely came home, I had to make sure he saw how hardworking and diligent I was, especially considering the $20,000 he paid me each month! Hearing my explanation, he didn’t try to dissuade me further. “Do as you wish, then.” He continued exercising while I diligently cleaned the floor. Perhaps it was too hot from the workout, so he took off his shirt. From an angle he couldn’t see, my eyes instantly bulged like saucers. That muscular upper body, with well-defined lines and muscles, sweat dripping from his neck down to his chest, abs, and those irresistible V-lines… Ahem… I shook off the inappropriate thoughts and casually tossed something on the floor onto the couch. Wait a minute! What did I just throw?! I snapped back to reality and saw what I had tossed onto the couch. My pupils dilated in shock. Holy crap! I had just tossed a 90-pound barbell! With one hand! My left hand! I was done for. My vision went black, and I don’t know how long it took before I mechanically turned my head to meet Ethan Gray’s dumbfounded face. He looked at me, then at the barbell, then back at the barbell, and finally back at me, his expression bewildered. I forced out a dry laugh, “When did the gym buy foam barbells? I’ll throw it away!” As I said this, I was about to move it. “Don’t move!” Ethan stopped me, walking over with a cold smile. “Do you think I’m blind?” He reached out with his long, strong hand and gripped the bar. Taking a deep breath, he flexed his arm muscles and lifted… But it didn’t budge… Ethan’s face darkened as he stared at me with those piercing eyes. “90 pounds, one-handed. Well done, Zoey!” I wanted to cry but had no tears. My mind raced, but my mouth moved faster than my brain. “Well, is there a possibility that… you’re just not strong enough?” What am I saying?! “No, that’s not what I meant. Let me explain…” He took a step closer, and I retreated a step, suddenly sitting on the couch. He placed his hand on the sofa, trapping me in his arms. His handsome face was cold, his thin lips barely moving, his tone seductive and ambiguous. “Whether I’m strong enough or not, you can find out for yourself.” Me: “…” Where did he learn such a cliché line? I was so embarrassed that my toes curled. He took another step closer, his hot breath on my neck. I could almost see my reflection in his pupils. Goosebumps broke out all over my body. I held back, and held back again, but finally couldn’t resist. I bent my knee, raised my leg, and used all my strength. I kicked him three meters away… “Mr. Gray!” I rushed over to help him, panicking. “Zoey!” Ethan roared in anger, clutching his stomach in pain. I swear I didn’t mean to! It was just a reflex, I swear!!! 0
Ten minutes later, Ethan was lying on the couch, and I was nervously applying ointment to him, my hands as gentle as if I were touching a cloud. Although I didn’t understand why I had to apply it to his stomach, a place he could easily reach himself. But! Looking at those well-defined abs and that smooth, tempting skin, oh my, I could rub it all night without sleep! “Put some strength into it! You need to massage out the bruise. Where’s that strength you used to kick me?” Ethan said with his eyes closed. I couldn’t help but increase the pressure. “This is my stomach, not a washboard. Why are you using so much force!” Ethan yelled again. Too light wasn’t okay, too heavy wasn’t okay either. I got angry too, “Do it yourself then!” Who does he think has no temper? He looked at me straight in the eye, expressionless, and uttered two words, “Dock pay.” “No, no, no!” I immediately put on a smile, “I’ll rub it properly. If it’s really not good enough, I’ll go take a class to learn.” Anything but docking my pay, that’s the bottom line! “Hmph.” He snorted lightly, “Come back to the family house for dinner tomorrow.” “Okay!” My eyes lit up. Originally, Ethan Gray wanted to find someone for a fake marriage to avoid his family’s pressure to get married. I signed a contract with him to pretend to be his wife for a year, with a monthly payment of $20,000. If I had to go back to the family house to deal with his family, there would be an additional bonus. $20,000 was not a small amount, but who wouldn’t want more money, right? To explain how this pie fell into my lap, we need to go back to eight months ago. It was a beautiful sunny day. I was crouching by the roadside, crying my heart out. At that moment, a shiny luxury car stopped in front of me. Ethan Gray, dressed impeccably, got out of the car and gracefully handed me a handkerchief. “Why are you crying?” I sobbed, tears rolling down like broken strings of pearls, “I’m out of money… wah wah wah…” Ethan frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and said, “I have a job here that pays you $20,000 a month. Want to do it?” “Yes!” I agreed almost without thinking. Ethan smiled, “You’re not going to ask what the job is? Aren’t you afraid I might be a bad person?” I glanced at his car and said softly, “Are there bad people who drive Rolls-Royces?” Then, not forgetting to flatter him, I added, “There probably aren’t bad people who look this good either, right?” In reality, I had sized him up and determined that his build posed no danger to me. No one dislikes hearing compliments. He smiled even more happily, “Very well, come with me.” I hopped into the luxury car, hit by this huge pie, and signed the contract. Later, I asked him why he chose me. Ethan recalled for a while and said, “That day, I had never seen a girl cry so heartbrokenly. You were crouching there, small and vulnerable, looking so fragile that it made people want to protect you.” Fragile meant easy to manipulate, and wanting to protect meant approachable, very suitable. I pondered for a long time and finally understood. CEO × Damsel in Distress, isn’t that a fixed pairing? So, I began to diligently play the role of a fragile flower. Of course, I didn’t dare tell Ethan that the reason I was crying so heartbrokenly that day was because I had beaten up a pervert who was harassing me. He had two broken ribs, and I was bankrupt from the compensation. Ethan kept his promise. Not only did he transfer the money on time every month, but he also let me live in his four-story villa. In just four months, when the contract ended, I would be able to run away happily with the money. Everything was going well, if only I hadn’t lifted that barbell today. 0 “August 20th.” I took a marker and drew an ‘X’ on today’s date. The circled date was the day I first met Ethan, and also… the day when the one-year contract would end.
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