The Billionaire's Hired Wife

Orion took a few steps towards her and touched her chin. "Are you truly remorseful for what you did to me?" He asked, staring into her eyes lovingly.

"Of course, I am. I'll never do something as stupid as that to anyone again," Calista said, expecting a positive response from Orion.

"Good. If you're being honest with me then I forgive you, but our contract still stands." He said and looked away.

"But why? You can get a new wife even today if you so please, maybe someone in your league, like your mother has always wanted for you. Why keep me here against my will?" Calista said disappointed.

"You owe me, Calista. I'm grateful for your little show of concern and your advice too, but you owe me a lot of money. Who's going to pay all that for you?" He said, his tone firmer than before.

Calista almost forgot that apart from the initial 2 million dollars he charged her for damages, she had pleaded with him to make some payments for Lyra's chemotherapy, promising to pay back even when she wasn't sure where to get the money from.

That was the reason why Orion extended their contract to a year and six months in the first place.

When she remembered, her tone shifted, though she still believed that, somehow, he could choose to forgive her debt if he wanted to.

"You and I know that the money is not your problem. You can comfortably give x3 of that to charity in a year, so what exactly are you keeping me for?"

"I need to go see my father now," Orion said and walked out of his room, leaving Calista behind.

She was clueless about what to say or do. She sadly went back to her room and continued unpacking her bags.

"Of all the annoying traits he has I didn't know he was also cunning," she huffed.

"He claims to be a good person but still wants to keep me here, making me abide by all his crazy rules. If that isn't wickedness, what is it?" Calista lamented and hissed severally, wondering if there was anything she could do to change his mind.

"Maybe when next he asks me for a favour or a piece of advice, I'll charge him for it, or better still give him my conditions first. Two can play that game, right?"

Orion returned home late that night, and Calista decided not to leave her room to greet him or see him for any reason until she remembered she needed to remind him about her hospital visit the next day.

She had accepted money from her client and could disappoint. She planned to visit Lyra at the hospital in the morning and head to meet her client at noon. She had already arranged the extra dress she would go with for the birthday party.

"You're welcome, Sir. I thought to remind you I'll be going to see my sister at the hospital tomorrow," she said wearing a straight face.

"Calista, I thought you were going to ask me how my visit went. Well, you can go see your sister tomorrow," Orion said and walked towards his room.

"Uhm… how did your visit go?" She reluctantly asked. She didn't want to act like she didn't care, knowing that Orion had the liberty to adjust the contract to suit him further if he was displeased with her attitude.

"He is ill and our family doctor has been going to the house to check on him. He didn't want the people at the office to know about his condition so he didn't tell anyone. The good news is he wasn't ignoring my calls. He wasn't even with his phone when I got there." Orion said. His mood was brighter than it was when he got back from work earlier that day.

"So, why didn't he return your calls when he saw them?" Calista asked.

"That's a story for another day. My mother is to blame for that, she's still upset with me, but that doesn't bother me so much because we're rarely on good terms. She'll get over it with time and come around." Orion responded.

"Well, if you say so. You know your family better. I wish your dad a speedy recovery. If you don't mind or if I won't be embarrassed again, I can go with you to visit him when next you're going there, and maybe get him a little gift, that might put a little smile on his face.'' Calista said.

"How come you know things like this, Calista? You're smarter than I thought. You can go with me when next I'm going to see him, and don't worry about being embarrassed. My mom or sister can't come close to you as long as I'm there. I won't let them disrespect you."

"Fine. I'll be in my room, good night," Calista said and went into her room.

"Such a selfish man, he only cares about himself and his happiness," Calista muttered as she took a comfortable position on her bed.

"Maybe if I'm able to make his father love me, Orion will treat me better, who knows? He seems to care only about himself and his father. If I succeed, I can use him to get what I want from Orion?" Calista said quietly, as she thought of possible ways to leave Orion's grip.

Calista tried to reach Lyra, but the call rang out twice and she wondered if she was still upset with her or if she had slept.

They had not spoken for some days, since Lyra asked her to leave her ward, but she called the care nurse every day to ensure Lyra was fine.

She didn't know when she slept off. It was her alarm that woke her in the next morning.

She made sure to have breakfast before stepping out of the house.

She stopped over at the hospital with some fruits for Lyra, and they talked things over and made peace, before rushing off to meet with her client at their agreed location.

"The good thing is Orion and I had a secret wedding, so not many people know me as his wife for now. But even at that, I'll have to be careful and avoid the cameras, so I won't have to explain myself to him later," she muttered as she got out of the cab and adjusted her dress.