2026-10-31 05:09:55
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
The Things She Doesn’t Say
The first thing I learned about being married to Chiara Hill was that she could turn an ordinary morning into a battlefield without even raising her voice. The second was that I was beginning to enjoy losing those battles. “You’re eating my breakfast.” I looked down at the plate in front of me, then at the woman standing across the kitchen island with her arms folded. “Good morning to you too, sweetheart.” I said drooling over the amazing image of my (not so real) wife as she stood in a corner wearing a gown that could not stop me from remembering what awesomeness lied underneath it “Don’t sweetheart me, Victor.” She said “Would you prefer darling?” “I’d prefer you to stop eating my food.” I lifted the fork to my mouth and took another bite. “Then you should have been faster.” She stared at me. I smiled. For three beautiful seconds, I thought she might throw the entire plate at my head. Instead, she reached for my coffee. “Fine. I’ll drink this.” “That
The Rules We Keep Breaking
The problem with sharing a bed with a woman you were supposed to be pretending to love was that eventually, your body forgets the difference between pretending and wanting. And mine, apparently, had a terrible memory. I woke up to the feeling of something warm pressed against my chest. For a few seconds, I remained still, enjoying the unfamiliar comfort before my brain caught up with reality. Chiara. My wife. Well, technically, my wife in every way except the one that mattered most. The agreement…. I lowered my eyes. Somewhere during the night, she’d abandoned her side of the bed and migrated to mine. One arm was draped across my waist, her cheek rested against my chest, and one of her legs had somehow found its way between mine. I stared at the ceiling. Lord, give me strength. I wasn’t a saint. I’d never pretended to be one. But I was a man trying to rebuild his life, and getting distracted by my beautiful wife every morning wasn’t exactly part of the business
Unexpected Guests
The night we got back was more intense. The drive home was so silent that even a pin dropping inside such a cushioned car could probably have been heard. We reached the house, and I finally spoke. “Well, that was intense,” I said, looking at her. She only replied with a quiet, “Yeah.” “How did I do?” “Not bad,” she responded. “Not bad, huh?” I smiled. “Then I have to give a second one to up my ratings.” I expected her to move backward a little. She didn’t. So I went in and kissed her. She kissed me back. And that was it, whatever distance we’d been carefully maintaining disappeared. We stopped thinking about the arrangement, the agreement, the one-year deadline, and everything that was supposed to make this simple.For that moment, there was only us.We could have stopped but neither of us did.Before I could fully process what was happening, we had found ourselves in our room, caught somewhere between restraint and desire.I knew we were crossing a line.I a
The First Kiss
Maya stayed.Not for ten minutes.Not for an hour.She stayed long enough for the awkwardness in the room to disappear and for Chiara to regret opening the door in the first place.“So,” Maya said, dropping onto the sofa. “You two are actually getting married?”Chiara folded her arms.“Yes.”“Actually?”“Yes, Maya.”“You’re serious?”“Yes.”Maya looked at Victor.He nodded.“Very serious.”Maya’s eyes widened.“Oh, this is good.”Chiara groaned.“Don’t start.”“I’m not starting anything.”“You’re already starting something.”Maya laughed.Then she looked at Victor again.“Okay. I have questions.”“Go ahead.”Chiara immediately looked at him.“Victor.”“What?”“You don’t have to answer everything.”“I don’t mind.”Maya grinned.“First question. How did this happen?”Victor glanced at Chiara.“She proposed.”Maya’s mouth dropped open.“She did what?”Chiara’s eyes widened.“Victor!”“What? It’s true.”Maya burst out laughing.“You proposed to him?”Chiara sighed.“It wasn’t exactly roma
Learning The Arrangement
The first thing Chiara did after I agreed to move into her room was point toward the hallway.“Come on.”“Where are we going?”“You need to know where everything is.”“I thought you were giving me a tour.”“I am.”She walked ahead of me.I followed.The house was even larger than I’d realized the night before. Everything had its place. The furniture was modern, the walls decorated with carefully selected pieces of art, and there was barely a surface without something deliberately arranged on it.“You really like things organized.”“I like knowing where things are.”“Same thing.”“No. You’d understand if you saw your own room.”“I don’t have a room here.”She looked over her shoulder.“You do now.”We reached a set of double doors.Chiara opened them.I stopped.“This is your wardrobe?”She gave me a look.“Yes.”The room was enormous.It wasn’t a wardrobe.It was a clothing store.Shelves lined both walls, displaying shoes, bags, watches, folded clothes, accessories and enough outfits
The Condition
“But there’s one condition, though…”Chiara’s smile disappeared.She leaned forward slightly. “What condition?”I held her gaze.For some reason, the question felt heavier than it should have.“You said this marriage lasts one year.”“Yes.”“And after that year, either of us can walk away.”She nodded slowly. “That’s the agreement.”“I’ll agree to that.”Her eyebrows lifted.“But?”“But while we’re married, we’re actually married.”She stared at me.I continued before she could interrupt.“I don’t want us pretending whenever someone is watching and acting like strangers when we’re alone. If we’re going to do this, we do it properly.”“What exactly does ‘properly’ mean?”“It means we share a home. We share a bedroom. We eat together. We go out together. We attend events together. We take care of each other.”I paused.“And whatever else married couples do is fair game.”Her eyes widened slightly.“You’re serious.”“Very.”“Victor…”“You’re asking me to become your husband.”“I know.”“
You may also like
I Made $900 Trillion In 24 Hours
Jericho Chase195.0K viewsThe Almighty Dominance
Sunshine2.5M viewsThe Ruthless Son-in-law
Bella Starr142.2K viewsThe Rise Of The Unknown Zillionaire Heir
Gem Lynne165.5K viewsBORN TO RULE; THE FORGOTTEN HEIR'S REVENGE
Suga267 viewsExpelled, Betrayed, and $100M Richer
Author Rodiyah178 viewsmy return will be your downfall
Mamipril 297 viewsThe Masseur Knows Too Much
Lighting247 views