Chapter 1
I waited for Daniel Smith at the city hall entrance for an hour.
But instead, Daniel just sent me a text.
Daniel: [Sarah is pregnant. I need to take care of her. Let's postpone getting our marriage license until after she gives birth.]
A second later, his childhood sweetheart, Sarah Hess, sent me a photo of a pregnancy report, captioned: [Thank you for your blessing, Audrey.]
I stared at the screen and laughed.
Blessing? Fine.
I called Daniel's biggest rival on the phone. "Oliver Webster, want to get married?" I asked.
*****
Standing at the city hall entrance, I glanced at my watch. Twenty minutes had already passed since the time we were supposed to meet for the marriage registration.
"Ms. Cole, Mr. Smith still hasn't arrived?" the staff member asked for the third time, her eyes full of sympathy.
I put on a polite smile. "Let's wait a little longer."
My phone buzzed. It was Daniel calling. I let out a sigh of relief and answered, "Where are you?"
"Hey, Audrey, Sarah's suddenly feeling unwell. I'm at the hospital with her for some tests," Daniel said, his voice trembling with anxiety.
"We might have to postpone the marriage registration," he added, sounding flustered.
My grip on the phone tightened until my nails dug into my palm. "Today was supposed to be our day."
"I know, but Sarah, she..." Daniel started. Suddenly, he was interrupted by a soft, delicate female voice from the other end of the line.
"Daniel, the doctor just told me I'm pregnant..." Sarah's voice was soft and trembling.
My blood ran cold.
"Audrey, did you hear that? Sarah's pregnant! I have to take care of her!" Daniel's voice suddenly lit up with excitement, like he'd completely forgotten I was even on the line.
"Congratulations," I said coldly, then hung up.
In less than three minutes, my phone blew up with notifications.
Sarah sent me a barrage of photos. Her pregnancy test sheet, her hugging Daniel in the hospital corridor, and a close-up of their fingers interlocked.
The last photo stopped me cold.
There was Sarah sprawled out on my own bed, Daniel bending over to kiss her forehead.
On the wall behind them, a photo of me and Daniel hung in plain sight. The irony was almost laughable.
Her caption said: [Thank you, Audrey, for making this happen. Happy endings for true lovers.]
I scoffed and pulled up social media. Sure enough, Sarah had already posted. It was a photo of her curled up in Daniel's arms, with the words: [After everything, it was always you.] Her feed was overflowing with congratulatory comments.
Right after, Daniel started spamming me with messages.
Daniel: [Audrey, Sarah's pregnant. I have to look after her.]
Daniel: [I was wasted at the wrap party that night, but the baby's innocent.]
Daniel: [She wanted to keep the pregnancy a secret and raise the baby on her own, but she's still so young. She's going to be the Best Actress. I can't ruin her life.]
I stared at his messages in silence, but that last one was the spark that finally set me off.
Daniel: [Don't worry, Audrey. Once the baby is born, we'll let you raise it. You won't have to go through childbirth, and the child will only ever recognize you as their mother.]
I actually laughed out loud from anger. What was this, charity? Did he really think I couldn't live without him?
When I didn't reply, Daniel sent another message: [Can we reschedule the marriage registration after Sarah has the baby?]
I stared at the screen, laughing so bitterly that tears pricked my eyes.
Dude, this was a business marriage alliance. I would not wait for him.
Without hesitation, I dialed the number at the very bottom of my contacts. The call connected almost instantly.
"Oliver Webster," I said, calling him by name. "Want to get married?"
There was a brief pause on the other end, then a low, amused voice replied, "City hall entrance. Ten minutes."
Ten minutes later, a sleek black Maybach pulled up at the city hall entrance.
The door swung open, and out stepped Oliver, his long legs making a striking entrance. He was dressed in a simple white shirt and black slacks, but he carried himself with the kind of presence that could command a runway.
He strolled over to me with a playful smirk. "Ms. Cole, what's got you so worked up that you suddenly remembered me?"
I looked him straight in the eye. "Daniel's dream girl is pregnant. He ditched me today to take care of her."
Oliver cocked an eyebrow, his tone playful. "So?"
"So." I pulled out my ID from my bag. "I'm getting married today. Anyone but Daniel will do."
Oliver chuckled under his breath and reached for my ID. "The pleasure's all mine."
The whole thing was over in a flash. As soon as the stamp hit the paper, Oliver and I went from bitter rivals to officially husband and wife.
As soon as we left the city hall, Oliver pulled me in by the waist and bent down to whisper in my ear, his tone low and teasing, "Since we're married now, shouldn't we do what married couples do?"
I was about to push him away when I spotted Daniel rushing over from afar.
"Audrey!" Daniel called out, panting and out of breath. "Sarah's condition is stable now. I thought it over and realized I should've come here to get our marriage license first..."
His gaze fell on my hand held tight in Oliver's, and his expression instantly turned ashen. "You guys...?"