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Her eyebrows shot up. "And do you want to marry him?"
"Not really," I told her. "But if I did it would solve a lot of problems."
For a long moment she looked at me. I could practically hear what she was thinking, which was unsurprising because I had thought many of those things myself.
Finally she gestured for me to sit down, and I did, sinking gratefully into one of the rich leather chairs in front of her desk. She sat across from me and began to thumb through the contract. The pages ruffled loudly in the quiet of the room, though through the thick windows of her office I could hear the city going about its business. My father had worked in New York all his life, but commuted from out of state. My mother currently lived in San Francisco. The sounds of the city were usually comforting to me, but as the silence between us stretched out longer and longer I began to wish I'd brought some headphones. I wouldn't even have to plug them into anything. Just stick one end in my pocket and pretend I didn't care about how this ridiculous contract made me look. Pretend I didn't care about anything. I tried to ignore the few times she cleared her throat and looked at me, opting to study the law tomes lining her walls, which were just as dull as I thought they would be.
At last she set the contract down and folded her hands in front of her. She appeared to be searching for words. My stomach, still on the mend from the abuse I'd put it through last night, clenched, and I tried to shrink into my clothes.
"Miss Dare," she said at last, "I haven't ever quite seen a contract like this. I can only assume your reasons for considering it are good ones, but it is my professional opinion that this contract is not legally binding."
I sat up. "So... that's like a loophole, right? I can sign it and get married and then divorce him?"
Her lips twisted, and I knew her answer wasn't going to be quite that simple. "The problem, you see, is that it is a prenuptial agreement in the strictest sense. If you choose to divorce Mr. Waters for any reason, you will get nothing. That he wishes you to, ah, allow him certain liberties and wishes to codify them into a contract, then he may choose to terminate the marriage if you do not agree." A frown creased her face, traveling along well-worn lines. "Sexual provisions in prenuptial agreements cannot be enforced, as the refusal of one spouse would render said sexual interaction as rape rather than consensual sex, and the law cannot condone nor enforce rape. This clause would be found invalid in a court of law, should Mr. Waters choose to sue you."
I felt the last shred of hope slipping through my fingers. "But... wouldn't that invalidate the whole contract?" I asked plaintively.
Ms. Gray sighed. "I'm afraid not. There is a severablity clause included. Should one part of the contract be rendered invalid, it will be removed, bu
t the contract is still valid. Therefore, should you choose to sign this contract, Mr. Waters will be able to terminate your marriage for any reason he desires, and you will be left with only the assets with which you entered. If you terminate the marriage, the same thing will happen."
I bit my lip. I didn't like this one bit. "What does it say, exactly?"
She leaned back in her chair and steepled her fingers. "Well, it's fairly standard outside of the, ah, sexual provisions. Both parties are expected to be faithful. You will be given an allowance, both for yourself, your vocation, and for various projects you choose to pursue. In the event of Mr. Waters' death, you would receive very little, I'm afraid. He also appears to have included a clause wherein should his death be suspect, you will receive nothing." She sniffed. "He is a very... thorough man."
"You mean he's totally bugfuck," I said.
"I have not met him," she replied primly. "I'm sure you would know more about that."
"I only met him yesterday," I said.
Her lips thinned and she appeared to be debating something. She inhaled and leaned forward. "Miss Dare, may I speak frankly with you?"
Hooboy. Here it came. The motherly lecture. "Sure. Why not?"
She laid her hands on the contract. "As far as sexual perversions go, the ones in this contract are fairly light."
I raised my eyebrows. "Oh?"
"Yes. There's nothing in here about sex with animals or other people or even a sexual schedule, which I have seen before. Well, not the sex with animals part," she amended. "That is highly illegal. But the other things, yes. Are you doing this for the money?"
I felt like crying. "I don't know if I'm doing this at all yet."
"But there is a good reason?" She glanced down, then back at me and said, almost gently, "There is a clause in the contract that covers any medical expenses you might need. I noted that it does not mention you specifically as the recipient of medical attention. Is that it?"
I nodded miserably.
She sat back. "Then you should do it."
My mouth dropped open. I closed it, then opened it again.
"What, seriously?" I said.
She nodded. "I know who Anton Waters is. Most people do. From what I can tell, this marriage would be a little bit of putting the cart before the horse, yes? You are not currently romantically interested in him?"
Not romantically, no. I shook my head.
She patted the papers in front of her. "The man who drew up this contract wants a woman who cannot betray him. This indicates he has a lot of problems, but he is also treating you as an object rather than a person. The former does not excuse the latter. In my opinion there is nothing in the world that should keep you from taking all you can from him, while you can. If you play your cards right, you would be able to launch a career from this marriage, or become a highly lucrative name. The world would be your oyster should you marry this man. You would not want for money should you choose to divorce him." She shrugged. "If the sex is good and you get something out of the marriage, I don't see why you shouldn't do it." She gave me a kindly old librarian smile.
