Chapter 1

As we walked out of the courthouse, James set a reminder on his phone calendar. [One hundred days later, at two in the afternoon, get married again.]

He even synced the reminder to our shared calendar.

"I'll pick you up then." James put his phone away, his tone calm, like he was only making dinner plans. "Anna, it's only a hundred days.

"The Lane family just needs a public show. Once Grandpa's surgery is over and the old agreement between our families is wrapped up, we'll get married again."

He reached out and gently tucked my wind-tousled hair behind my ear. His touch was still so familiar, so gentle, as if we hadn't just walked out with a divorce certificate in hand.

I glanced down at my phone. On our shared calendar, a new line of red text had appeared. [Get married again to James.]

He had planned out my whole life for me.

"If nothing's going to change, then why do we have to get divorced?" I asked.

James frowned slightly. "I've already been over this.

"Grandpa can't handle any stress right now, and the Lanes won't let go of the old engagement. Sophie just needs to be seen as my fiancée for a hundred days. It won't change anything between us. It's only formality."

It was only formality.

Four years of marriage, and to James, it was nothing more than a membership card. Something he could void and replace whenever he felt like it.

I went into the settings and removed myself from the shared calendar.

*****

At that exact moment, James' phone chimed. He glanced down at the notification, his face faltering for a moment. [Anna Nash has left the shared calendar.]

He looked up at me. "Are you mad?"

"No." I slipped my phone into my bag. "Now that we're divorced, there's no reason to share our schedules anymore."

James looked at me for a moment, and his lips quirked. "Suit yourself. I'll add you back the day when we get married again."

He sounded so sure of himself, without a shadow of a doubt. As if on Day 100, I would naturally be waiting right here for him.

I didn't answer.

*****

Three days later, James came by to pick me up for the Foster estate.

Before heading out, he carefully chose a pearl necklace for me. "Tonight is only family dinner. The Lane family will be there, but don't overthink it."

I looked at my reflection in the mirror. "So, what am I supposed to be tonight?"

James paused for a moment as he fastened the necklace. "Anna, don't start now."

"I'm not making trouble," I replied. "We are divorced."

He lowered his gaze to meet mine in the mirror, his tone softening. "You've been with the Foster family for so many years. Grandpa wants to see you before his surgery.

"There's going to be a big crowd tonight, so it's not a good time for me to explain everything."

I met his eyes. "So what exactly is my role tonight?"

James dodged the question. He squeezed my shoulders gently. "Trust me."

Whenever he used to say those two words, I always believed him.

When the Foster family opposed our marriage, he told me to trust him.

When my foot injury was at its worst and it looked like I might never step on stage again, he told me to trust him.

And in the end, we did get married. So I assumed those two words held a lifetime warranty between us.

Looking back now, maybe I had just misread the room all along.

*****

The Foster estate was lit up bright as day.

When I asked about Henry, the butler simply said the old man was kept at the hospital last-minute for pre-op checks and wouldn't make it back tonight.

For a supposedly small family dinner, nearly forty people had shown up.

Relatives from the Foster family, elders from the Lane family, and plenty of long-time friends close to the Fosters.

When I walked into the banquet hall, the room fell dead silent for a brief second.

Every single pair of eyes landed on me—some shocked, some sizing me up, and others filled with pity they couldn't hide in time.

That was the moment I realized everyone in that room knew what was about to go down tonight. Everyone except me.

James wasn't waiting for me by the entrance. He was standing right in the center of the hall.

Sophie Lane was holding onto his arm. She wore a silver gown, with the Foster family's sapphire brooch pinned to her chest.

That brooch had always been kept in our bedroom. In our second year of marriage, Henry handed it to me himself, telling me it was meant for the lady of the Foster household to keep.

Three days ago, it was still sitting in our master bedroom safe.

Now, Sophie was wearing it.

When she spotted me, she walked over with a bright smile. "Anna, you made it. James said you'd be totally understanding about all this."

James looked over at me. A flash of unease crossed his eyes, but he quickly smoothed it over.

One of the Foster family elders looked puzzled and asked, "James, who is this?"

The hall grew even quieter.

I looked at James. He looked right back at me.

Four years of marriage. We've known each other for a full nine years, from college until now. And yet, he hesitated on that question.

Then, he held Sophie's hand. "Anna is an old friend of mine."

I lowered my eyes and let out a faint laugh. So once a marriage certificate was voided, a nine-year relationship automatically got downgraded.

The elder nodded, then turned his attention to Sophie. "And this young lady is..."

James tightened his grip on Sophie's hand. "Sophie is my fiancée. Over the next hundred days, both our families will be revisiting the original engagement."

Applause erupted across the room.

Sophie leaned into him shyly.

James accepted everyone's congratulations, never once looking back at me.

Standing on the outer edge of the crowd, those words he said outside the courthouse three days ago suddenly echoed in my mind. "It's only formality."

It turned out that beyond the formality, he was ready to give away everything else. The public title of his wife, the position of the lady of the Foster household, and even the brooch I had kept for two years.

An aunt from the Foster family took hold of my arm. "Ms. Nash, since you and James go way back, could you try to help Sophie out as much as you can these days?

"She's new to the Foster family's affairs and isn't familiar with all our customs yet."

Sophie gently touched the sapphire brooch pinned to her chest. "James said the exact same thing. He told me Anna knows the Fosters inside out and that she's thoughtful enough to help me settle in."

I looked over at James.

He finally walked up to me and lowered his voice. "It's a temporary setup for the hundred days. Don't make a scene and embarrass everyone."

"Embarrass who?" I asked.

James frowned. "Anna."

I nodded. "I get it."

James' expression eased a little. He probably thought I was once again choosing to be understanding.