His Substitute BrideSix months contract marriage

**Chapter One**

**A Favour**

Joanna had just finished filming her scenes for that day and was on her way home. Since she was the lead actress, she had come to the set whenever she wanted and had instantly demanded that her scenes be filmed so she could leave. The crew was upset, but there was nothing they could do. She was the diva, after all. If they upset her and she decided to leave the drama, they would all be in serious trouble.

"Miss Anderson, your uncle has requested that you come back to the family home immediately after filming," her assistant Lena said softly. She knew Joanna’s temper well. Once Joanna lost it with her, it would mean the end of Lena’s job. She needed to hold on to this job. Even though Joanna was horrible, at least the pay was good.

The smile that was on Joanna's face immediately froze. What could those people want from her now? They only bothered her when they wanted something. They were the most terrible people. Just because they spent a few thousand dollars to raise her, they felt they owned her, that they could control her life. Well, she was a grown woman now, and if they thought they could push her around like they did when she was young, they were wrong. She would show them!

Joanna looked at her assistant who was driving the car and said with a cold, detached voice, "Do I have to go there? What do those people want from me anyway?" Her uncle and cousin were literally the worst. They even contacted Lena, only because they wanted to use her. They only remembered she was a family member when they wanted something.

Lena gulped. She had expected Joanna to react this way. But she knew she had to convince her or she would be in serious trouble. She had to get Joanna to go to them. "Miss Anderson, you have to go! Your uncle said it was really important. It’s about you getting married!" Lena said. She wasn’t supposed to reveal this, but she hoped it would make Joanna go to them.

Joanna froze for a second. Her marriage? Her uncle had already said he would help her marry a rich man. It seemed like he was helping his niece, but no—he was doing it for himself. He had a daughter, but he wouldn’t use her. His company was on the verge of bankruptcy, and the only way to save it was through a business marriage. Since he didn’t want to use his daughter, Joanna was the next choice. He only wanted to use her as a bargaining tool.

However, Joanna had her own plan. Since they wanted to arrange a marriage, she would go along with it—but she wasn’t going to help them! She would make sure they paid for what they had done to her! She would play along and get married, but they would definitely regret their decision. "Alright, let’s go to the Anderson family house," Joanna told Lena.

Taking out her phone, Joanna typed in a name on her search engine. The name was Raymond Walker. Immediately, his picture came up. Joanna was satisfied. He was handsome, and he was the CEO of Helian Group—one of the top ten companies in the country. This was exactly the type of man she needed. She was going to make this man fall in love with her! Even though there were rumors that he was a cold-hearted jerk with no feelings, Joanna wasn’t bothered. She was sure she could get him. She had her face after all, the face that had gotten her everything she had today.

Allen was standing outside the hospital room. She really wanted to go in to see her grandmother, but the doctors were inside treating her. They said she couldn’t go in until they were done. Allen was shaking with fear. Her grandmother was the only family she had. If she died, she would be all alone in the world. Even if they didn’t have anything, they were still together. She wanted it to remain that way.

Allen was lost in her thoughts when she felt someone grip her shoulders from behind. She turned sharply and saw her best friend Rita looking at her. She fell on Rita and started crying immediately. "Rita, what am I going to do? My grandmother, I don’t know what is going to happen to her. They won’t let me go inside to see her. I don’t know what I’m going to do if my grandmother dies, Rita. I don’t know."

Rita hugged her friend tightly. She really felt sorry for her. Why did her friend have to have such a hard life? Rita and her grandmother had struggled so much to get Allen through high school. Just as she was about to get into acting college, her grandmother fell ill for the first time. Allen used her tuition to get her grandmother through that stage of her sickness. After that, she had to give up her dream to become an actress and work as a waitress to make ends meet. Now her grandmother was ill again. It was pitiful.

"Don’t worry, Allen. Everything is going to be okay. Your grandmother is going to be okay. She won’t die. She still has to see you achieve your dreams and become an actress. She still has to see you live a happy life. So she is definitely not going to die. You just need to calm down. Let’s wait for the doctor and see what they have to say. Don’t worry too much, okay? I’m here for you," Rita said. Even though she was comforting Allen, Rita felt doubtful. She was already old, and now she was sick. Would she survive?