The 
Deal

"If you sign this contract you'll agree to being my fake husband for an indefinite amount of time," Chanyeol said.
Baekhyun thought his ears had malfunctioned, did his boss just say fake husband?! 
"I-I'm sorry, I think I misunderstood. You want me to be your pretend husband?" Baekhyun repeated the question, hoping he was wrong.
His boss simply nodded, not seeing the problem. "That's correct."
"Sir, with all due respect, but would you care to explain what you in the world you mean with this?!" Baekhyun suddenly outbursted out of panic.
"Very well. I'll explain." 

"Jihae is my daughter. Of course, you figured that much, but she.." Chanyeol paused for a moment, trying to find the right words to put it but knew that the right
words didn't exist when it came to explaining this situation. 
He sighed and opened his drawer, taking out a magazine. 
Baekhyun looked at the magazine and immediately recognized the lady on the cover. 
He was a bit of a fashion otaku but even someone who had zero interest in fashion knew who she was. 
"Choi Sera?" Baekhyun asked, trying to align the points together to make sense of this story.

"Yes. Years ago I had a secret relationship with Choi Sera. It was before I became CEO and I didn't have any care in my actions," he explained and pulled out
another picture. 
It was a picture of Choi Sera and Chanyeol, both looking a lot younger and carefree. 
"Long story short, I got her pregnant a few years later and we both agreed on keeping the baby," he continued and bit his lower lip while glaring at the woman in the photo. 
"She didn't stick to the agreement, and when motherhood wasn't what she thought it'd be, she left me alone with Jihae and took a quarter of my money with her,"
he said coldly. Baekhyun could sense the hatred and dislike Chanyeol had for Sera with every word that came out his mouth. 
"I wasn't even mad over the money. My father was livid but I was angrier that she'd treat her own daughter like that,"
he followed and turned the picture over, not wanting to look at it for even another second. 
"I want you to take a look at this," Chanyeol said and turned his laptop around for Baekhyun to see. 
'BREAKING! PCY Enterprises CEO Park Chanyeol has a daughter? 
Insiders say he does!'

"Every day I fear people will find out she's an illegitimate child and shun her for it. My former personal assistant whom I trusted with this information has leaked this, as you have already seen, and if they see you pick her up they'll know for sure that she's not your daughter, but mine," Chanyeol said with a heavy sigh, closing the laptop.
"I asked all those questions at the interview because I knew I'd have to make this decision eventually. I wasn't sure if I was actually going to ask you to do this,
but after seeing how gentle and caring you are for my Jihae, I knew I could entrust her to you," Baekhyun felt pressured but a lot calmer at the same time. 
He understood his boss' situation and felt bad for him. 

Even rich people have it hard.. Money really is nothing but a number.

"I'm not saying you have to sign this contract. Of course, you have a choice. I will not force you into this as it is a sudden and unexpected situation that no one can adjust to easily. I'll give you as much time as you need to decide since I know this was not something you saw coming and I apologize for this, but I'm simply trying to do what's best for my family," Chanyeol said, his voice dripping with desperation, as if he was beginning to feel hopeless. 
"May I ask a few questions, sir?" Baekhyun asked carefully and cleared his throat when Chanyeol assured him it was okay. 

"What are the conditions if I sign?" 
"Well, first of all, you'll be my plus one to all sorts of events. Meetings, conferences, business parties, anything. The media needs to see you so often with me that they'll have no other choice but to believe it," Chanyeol stated while looking through the contract in front of him.
"You're not allowed to tell anyone that it's a fake marriage but I assume that's clear right off the bat," Chanyeol chuckled while reading. 
"I'd prefer it if you weren't in any romantic relationships while the contract is active, but if you'd like to I'll find a way to make it possible," he continued and turned the page over. 
"Hmm.. That's about it.." Chanyeol mumbled while scanning the letters. 

"Ah, right. You'll start living here, of course, once you sign," Chanyeol said at last, finally making eye contact with Baekhyun.
"L-Live.. Here?" Baekhyun choked and felt like he could cry. He already felt like a rat amongst the horses, he could already feel that he'd feel like one of the servants if he'd live here. 
"Yes. Married couples live together."
Baekhyun nodded, trying to process the idea of walking up those stairs with fear of cracking the steps every single day. 
"It's getting late, I'll drive you back to your home," Chanyeol suggested and got up from his chair. 

"S-Sir, that's really not necessary-" 
"I want to."
Baekhyun felt the heat rise to his cheeks and his heart accelerate at the words of his boss. 
"If you'd like, I could take you out for dinner instead so we could get to know each other. Plus, it'll get the media going," Chanyeol said while walking down the marble stairs. 
"I- S-Sir-" Baekhyun stuttered, hurrying after the tall man down the stairs. 

Careful! One step is worth your yearly salary!

The mental reminder caused Baekhyun to slip and stumble forward.
He shut his eyes, bracing for impact as he made his way painfully slowly towards the tiled floor. 
But instead of a hard thump against his head, he felt a pair of strong hands catch him right in time. 
He carefully opened his eyes, staring into the dark brown eyes of his boss who - Jesus Christ! - looked very handsome. 
Embarrassed, he