"The Billion-Dollar Marriage Contract" by Alyssa Urbano is available internationally through: Amazon, Kindle, Smashwords, CreateSpace, Barnes and Noble, Nook, Itunes/Ibooks.

For the Philippines, printing is per batch. You can pre-order and the books will be shipped to you.

Full details and links are on my blog: http://aerithsage.tumblr.com/tbdmc

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CHAPTER 8- CHANGE (Part 3)

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Being poor was not new to Cassia. She came from that life and she just returned to it after pretending to be one of society’s finest and failing miserably. She did not need her grandfather’s money. She lived alone before and she could do it again. She worked two jobs just to be able to support herself through college.

Throughout the years, Nikos still maintained several credit cards for her along with a bank account where he deposited her yearly allowance. For her, the sum could feed an entire country. She could have taken advantage of his money and wasted it all to get back at him.

But she didn’t.

She wanted no part of it.

She touched it only once when she needed money for college but she paid double the amount she took when she started earning.

And after a gruelling four years in College, she finally had her degree in Fashion Design!

She survived it all because of her determination to prove herself. Another factor to her success was that Hector was by her side.She found him a few months after she returned to America when she read in the newspaper about him opening his very first restaurant.

She ate there a few days after the opening and she didn’t know which of them was more surprised when they saw each other there. He sat down with her that day and told her everything about how she helped him reach his dreams.

Then it was he who helped her reach hers.

He was her light in the darkness; her confidence boost during the times she stopped believing in herself. Now, he was a huge part of her life. She wouldn’t have been able to make it this far if it weren’t for him. Yes, Hector was not all that perfect. He had his bad moments: he was always so busy. She always felt as if she came second in his life. But she understood him for he also wanted to chase his dreams and make his spot in the world like her.

Because of Hector and her hard work, she was now Cassia Adrasteia, renowned designer.

Yes, she used a pseudonym when she was designing for she never wanted to be associated with her grandfather or with Nikos. She wanted to make a name for herself and that was what she did.

Now, she was the owner of one of the most successful fashion shops in the world, Cassiopeia.

She was very proud to call it hers for it came from her own sweat and blood. It was born from her hard work and her determination to prove to others that she was capable of making her own path.

“Two years ago, there was an event which was said to have changed Nikos’ life forever. He and his friend Antonio Velez disappeared for over a month with no trace whatsoever. And our sources say that the two of them were kidnapped!” Arthur explained.

“How horrible!” the co-host replied.

“Yes. However this was not proven for the PR team of Andrade-Demakis International have negated this issue over and over again and refused to give out any statements. But trusted sources say that the two truly have been kidnapped and held for ransom.”

“So that means they paid, right?”

“Hmm...sources say that they escaped with the help of someone from inside. And then they just miraculously returned one day, thin and worse for wear. But the statement that they gave the media was that they took off on an adventure and went mountain climbing. Yeah, right,” the host said sarcastically.

Cassia scoffed.

She heard those rumors all those years ago and she received a call from the PR team of their company. When she heard about it, she felt a hint of fear and worry but when she asked what happened to Nikos, she was told that they couldn’t tell her any information for it was classified and Nikos did not allow it.

Yet again, she realized just how much Nikos valued her and thought of her. She let the issue go and just agreed to do what the PR team demanded so that they could all shut up and leave her alone. They just asked her not to say anything and that her husband was fine. She gave all the necessary statements to placate the media as dictated by their PR department.

But she did not believe Nikos had been kidnapped. Maybe he just enjoyed too much time with one of his mistresses.

Or, if it was true that he was kidnapped, then karma took a really long time to catch up with him.

Cassia glanced at her watch once more and then turned her laptop off. She leaned against her couch and cradled the coffee mug in the palm of her hands.

“And how is Nikos now?” the female host asked.

“Well... I’d say he’s back in top shape. Business-wise, Andrade-Demakis International is booming! They are now the top shipping company in the world and that is with Nikos Demakis and his wife Cassia at the top of the company.”

“That is great! Yes, almost two years ago, Costas Andrade who is Cassia’s grandfather had a heart attack. Since then, he has been confined to his bed. And it seems as though whatever scandal happened ten years ago, after Cassia and Nikos’ marriage, was put to rest because Costas claimed Cassia as his heir once more. He even left her in charge of the Andrade side of the company which has its headquarters in New York.”

This time, Cassia sighed.

Yes, it was true. More than two years ago, Costas had a heart attack and a stroke. Doctors said that half of his body was now paralyzed. When Cassia first heard of the news, all she thought about was that karma also took a long time before it hit the cold-hearted Costas Andrade.

But the goodness of her heart won and she returned to Greece to visit her grandfather. He was her only living relative after all.

Nothing much was said between them when she visited. All Costas told her was that she would now be responsible for half of the company and that he expected her to run it together with Nikos.

Cassia refused but the old man took a different route this time. Instead of shouting at her about her responsibilities, Costas told her that this should have been her father’s legacy. He should have been the one handling the business and it was what he was groomed for all his life. He told her that he was happy during the brief time he ran the company but that was before he met Cassia’s mother. After he met her, he then dropped everything else and ran away with her.

That little story made Cassia feel guilty and nostalgic.

So, she agreed to run half of the company. It was not for Costas but for her father. She would make all her father’s dreams and visions for the company come true. But there was one condition: she’d be doing it in America and not in Greece.

Surprisingly, her grandfather agreed.

During the last two years, she had tried managing both half her company and her own business, Cassiopeia. Everyone told her she would fail. But she did not. Once more she proved everyone wrong by rising to the top.