Chapter 1

A year had passed since we finished renovating our new home after our wedding. But my husband, Eden Cole, still wouldn't let me move in.

He handed me the inspection report. His face was deadly serious. "The formaldehyde levels are ten times over the limit. If we move in now, we could easily end up with leukemia. We need to air the place out for at least another year."

To "protect" me, he insisted I stay in our current old apartment, where I'd be safe and comfortable. Meanwhile, he kept going to the new place every couple of days to "open the windows and let it breathe."

One day, I happened to be running errands nearby and decided to stop by the new place to see how things were.

But when I glanced up at the balcony, it was covered in pink lingerie.

My head started buzzing. I ran upstairs, pulled out my spare key, and tried to open the door. But the lock had been changed.

I knocked, my hands trembling.

A few seconds later, a young woman in pink pajamas opened the door and stood blocking the doorway.

I pointed at the apartment and asked her, "Who are you? What are you doing in my apartment?"

She frowned at me, crossed her arms, and let out a sneer.

"Seriously, lady? What year do you think this is? Still trying to pull that scam?" she said. "This is obviously the apartment my husband, Eden, just bought for me, outright. What do you mean, 'your apartment'?"

She mumbled "Nutcase" under her breath, looked at me like I was bad luck, and slammed the door in my face.

I stood alone in the empty hallway and burst out laughing.

Eden couldn't even buy a pack of cigarettes without begging me for money. How could he afford to pay for an apartment in full?

He must have forgotten that the apartment was in my name alone. I even paid for the renovations myself.

They changed the locks on me, so I'd change who lived there.

I kept my cool, pulled out my phone, and dialed 911.

I said, "Hello, 911? I want to report a break-in. Someone is in my apartment without permission. Bring whatever you need. They're still inside."

*****

Less than ten minutes after I made the call, the sirens started wailing downstairs.

Riley Henn, that woman in the pink pajamas, opened the door again and leaned against the frame.

She held up her phone and cooed into it, "Honey, some crazy woman is causing trouble at our new place. Come back quick. I'm so scared."

She hung up, shot me a look full of disdain, and said, "Lady, having the cops show up won't do you any good.

"My husband, Eden, paid for this place in full. I even have a photo of the deed. You, on the other hand, are trespassing on someone's property. Enjoy jail."

Eden, you're something else.

The cops came upstairs. Two officers arrived with serious faces.

"Who called the police?" one of them asked.

"I did," I replied. "I own this place. I want to report this person for trespassing."

I held up my ID and the digital deed I had ready on my phone.

Riley let out a cold laugh and flashed her phone screen too.

She said, "Officers, don't listen to her nonsense. This was a surprise from my husband. See? A photo of the deed."

The officers took both and compared them.

The "deed" on Riley's phone was Photoshopped so badly that even the color of the official stamp was wrong.

What I pulled up was the live deed record from the county clerk's office.

The look in the cops' eyes changed instantly. They looked at Riley.

One of them said, "Miss, please show us your ID. And explain why you're in someone else's place."

Riley panicked. "No way. Eden told me he paid for it in full. How can it be in her name?"

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway.

Eden came running up the stairs, out of breath. His suit buttons were all in the wrong holes. He had clearly come running hard the whole way.

He blurted out, "Misunderstanding. All a misunderstanding! Officers, this is a family matter. I'm her husband. And this... this is..."

He stammered, his eyes darting between Riley's shocked face and my gaze.

Finally, he gritted his teeth, pointed at Riley, and said, "She's a distant cousin of mine. She's a little off in the head.

"She had nowhere to go, so she came to me. I let her stay for a couple of days. I just didn't have time to clear it with my wife."

Riley's eyes went wide. She screamed, "Eden, what kind of bullshit is that? I'm your cousin? I'm your wife.

"Last night you were calling me 'baby' in bed and telling me this place was your birthday gift to me."

The cops looked at me, then at Eden.

I didn't say anything. I just stood there and watched Eden in silence.

Suddenly, Eden spun around. He slapped Riley hard across the face.

Riley stumbled back. A little blood showed at the corner of her mouth.

Eden barked, "Shut up! You crazy woman! Are you having an episode or what?

"Officers, I'm really sorry. She has a delusional disorder. She keeps imagining I'm her husband. I'll take her away right now."

One of the officers frowned. He said, "You can't just hit someone. Look, this is a family dispute. Sort it out yourselves. If you can't work it out, then call us back."

As soon as the cops left, Eden put on a different face.

He didn't go to Riley. Instead, he collapsed in front of me. He hugged my thighs and started wailing with no tears.

He cried, "Honey, I was wrong. I really was. I wasn't thinking straight. I thought, since you paid for all the renovation, I couldn't stand feeling so useless.

"I just wanted to rent the apartment out on the sly and make some money to chip in for the household. But this woman is crazy. She keeps saying I bought the apartment for her."

I glanced at Riley. She had her hand on her cheek, weeping quietly with tears on her cheeks, completely in disbelief.

I scoffed "A tenant? Since when does a tenant wear my pajamas, sleep in my bed, and hang a whole balcony full of sexy lingerie?"

Eden's eyes darted around. He stammered, "She... she's a pervert. She keeps sneaking around and wearing your clothes."

I said, "Fine. If she's a tenant, kick her out right now. Throw all her stuff out. And change the lock cylinder back."

Eden froze. He glanced back at Riley. She was staring at him with pure hatred.

He pleaded, "Honey... can we wait a couple of days? She was... referred by a distant relative of mine. What if she kills herself if I throw her out now?

"We just finished the renovation. We don't want this place to be seen as unlucky."