A part of me hates when she looks at me like that, but not enough to back down. I dangle her dream in front of her again. "$100,000, Georgia. Decide if your dreams are worth a month of your life or ten years, because you and I both know that's what it'll take for you to save what I'm offering." I leave the room and don't look back, going straight to my office. I shut the door and pace, taking deep breaths.

She better say yes.

Just the way she acted means she's perfect.

But all women pretend they don't care about money.

She has to say yes.

My nervousness continues to grow throughout the morning. I have to force myself to stay focused in my meetings. Between them, I stare at Georgia, getting increasingly obsessed with the idea of her as my fake wife.

Consummating our marriage is going to be a challenge. I doubt she won't make me work for it. But I'll win her over. By the time January 2nd rolls around, I'll have had my fun with my blushing bride. Any naive innocence she now has will be destroyed.

I sit back in my chair, staring out at the Dallas skyline, coming up with rebuttals about how I'll convince her to do this if she comes into my office at noon and turns my offer down.

She will be mine. There's no doubt about it. And I'm going to enjoy every minute of biting into Georgia Peach.

Five

GEORGIA

I return to my desk, but the shock doesn't seem to wear off.

He's serious. He wants me to marry him.

$100,000 to marry him for less than thirty days.

Is he crazy?

I glance toward Sebastian's office, but I can't see anything because of the tinted glass. I refocus on my computer screen, wondering what I should do.

I should say no, but he's right. It'll take me years to open only one bakery. By next spring, I could have my first one.

No, this is wrong.

The message system pops up.

Sebastian: Victoria, I have Georgia working on a project all day. She won't be in any of our meetings. Please make sure that you don't give her any other projects.

My stomach flips.

I look toward his office again and then curse myself. He's probably staring at me right now.

What am I going to do?

Victoria: No problem. I'll assign her project to somebody else this morning.

Sebastian: Thank you. Georgia, I expect a full report by noon. Please keep in mind the goals of both parties.

My stomach dives again. I need to say no to this. This is just bad, bad, bad.

It's $100,000.

That's not going to get me what I need.

There's more to my cupcake business than what I've revealed to Sebastian. I've spent hours creating spreadsheets and a solid business plan. I know everything right down to the penny of what it'll cost me.