Chapter Two — A Marriage of Convenience

 

The next morning, Stine woke up believing the previous day had been a nightmare.

Then she saw the marriage certificate on her bedside table.

She was married.

To Charles Foster.

The man she had met less than twenty-four hours ago.

“There's still time to annul it,” she whispered.

“You can.” 

She nearly jumped.

Charles stood at the doorway.

He was already dressed for work.

“Do you always enter people's rooms without knocking?”

“It's my house.”

Stine folded her arms.

“Unfortunately, it's my house now too.”

For the first time, Charles looked amused. 

They sat across from each other at breakfast.

Charles placed a document in front of her.

“Our marriage will last one year.”

Stine read the agreement.

Separate bedrooms.

No interference in each other's careers.

No questions about private matters.

No expectations of love.

“One year,” she repeated.

“Yes.”

“And after that?”

“We divorce.”

Stine nodded.

“Perfect.”

She signed.

Charles watched her carefully.

He had expected hesitation.

Instead, she had signed without even blinking.

“You're not afraid of me?”

“No.”

“Why?”

Stine looked directly into his eyes.

“Because the man I trusted for seven years hurt me more than a stranger ever could.”

Charles didn't know what to say.

That sentence stayed with him all day.

Their marriage began as an arrangement.

But living together quickly became complicated.

Stine discovered that Charles hated sweet coffee.

Charles discovered that Stine sang while cooking.

Stine learned that he secretly fed stray cats outside the office.

Charles learned that she cried whenever she watched emotional movies but pretended she had allergies afterward.

They argued constantly.

They laughed occasionally.

And without realizing it, they began waiting for each other.

One evening, Stine fell asleep on the sofa while waiting for him to return from work.

Charles found her there at midnight.

A blanket was beside her.

She hadn't covered herself.

He sighed and gently placed it over her.

Stine stirred.

“Charles?”

“Go to bed.”

“You came home.”

“Yes.”

“You're safe.”

He paused.

“Of course I'm safe.”

Stine smiled sleepily.

“Good.”

She fell asleep again.

Charles stood there for a long moment.

For the first time in years, coming home didn't feel like coming back to an empty house.

Chapter One — The Day Everything Fell Apart

 

Chapter One — The Day Everything Fell Apart

Stine had imagined her wedding day a thousand times.

She had imagined the flowers, the music, the nervous smile of the man waiting for her at the registration office.

She had imagined everything except seeing him leave with another woman.

“I'm sorry, Stine.”

Those three words destroyed seven years of love.

John stood in front of her with the same face she had loved since college, but there was no love in his eyes anymore.

“There’s nothing left between us,” he said quietly. “I love someone else.”

Stine stared at the woman beside him.

She knew her.

Rhea.

Her colleague. Her friend. The woman who had helped her choose her wedding dress.

Stine's fingers tightened around the marriage documents.

“So you were cheating on me?”

John looked away.

That silence was answer enough.

Rhea stepped forward. “Stine, please don't make a scene.”

Stine laughed.

A broken, humorless laugh.

“A scene? You stole seven years of my life and you're worried about a scene?”

She turned before either of them could see the tears filling her eyes.

Outside, rain had begun to fall.

Stine walked blindly through it.

She didn't know where she was going.

She only knew she couldn't go home.

Her parents would ask questions. Her relatives would whisper. Everyone would want to know why the wedding had been cancelled.

She couldn't bear it.

She reached the steps of a nearby hotel and stopped.

Then a car suddenly screeched to a halt beside her.

A man stepped out.

Tall. Impeccably dressed. Cold eyes. An expression that suggested the entire world had been personally irritating him.

“Stine?”

She froze.

She knew him.

Everyone did.

Charles Foster.

Thirty-two. Billionaire. CEO of Foster Group.

And, according to every business magazine, the most ruthless businessman in the city.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

Stine wiped her tears.

“Trying not to die of embarrassment.”

His eyes narrowed.

Then he noticed the wedding documents in her hand.

“What happened?”

“My fiancé left me.”

Charles said nothing.

Stine looked at him through tear-filled eyes.

“Actually…”

She smiled bitterly.

“He left me for my friend.”

For the first time, something changed in Charles's expression.

Anger.

Not for himself.

For her.

“Do you still have the registration appointment?”

Stine frowned.

“Yes.”

“Then marry me.”

She stared at him.

“What?”

Charles extended his hand.

“Marry me.”

“You barely know me.”

“I know enough.”

“And why would you want to marry a stranger?”

His eyes remained unreadable.

“Because I need a wife.”

Stine almost laughed.

“And I need a reason to make my ex regret breathing.”

Charles's lips curved into the faintest smile.

“Then perhaps we can help each other.”

Neither of them knew it yet.

But that ridiculous agreement would change both their lives.