Chapter: 11: The Wedding (I)AltheaMy only reference of weddings were the depictions given by the media. You know how it went–that stereotypical grand weddings with a bunch of people invited, a giant cake that cost more than the annual wage of an average worker, completed by fancy catering as if it was prepared by a 3 Stars Michelin Chef (and probably it was). The merrier it was, the more in love were the groom and the bride. I never really dreamed of a wedding. Survival was always my priority. It still was. Despite all the preparations I’ve done, the fact that I sat next to my new husband and known as “Mrs. Cox” still didn’t feel right. All those wishes seemed like nonsense. This wedding was nothing but an act, a part of my survival plan.I remembered every single word that we exchanged at the altar. How both of us looked at each other, tried to convince the world that love was in this marriage.“I, Matthias Cox, take you, Althea Lewis, to be my wife. To be my friend, faithful partner, and my life from this
Last Updated: 2025-01-09
Chapter: 10: Before The WeddingMatthiasCountdown: one day before the marriage.Some people sure didn’t know when to stop, because they kept trying to ruin my mood despite knowing damn well nothing would change. If years trying didn’t do shit, what made them think that a day would?I gotta admit, they really got me to my limit.After I took Althea to her penthouse, I chose to rest a bit in my car. But just before I wanted to close my eyes, my phone rang.“Mr. Cox, we’ve done all as you said.” My assistant, Ren, said. “Those paparazzi were sent by Davos. We’ve gotten rid of any footage they took and warned them for any suspicious news.”That old man really didn’t know when to stop, huh? “He should worry about his coffin rather than bothering a woman twice his age.”“He’s been eyeing Erbeauty for quite awhile now,” Ren replied. Leonardo thought he could control Althea by treating her with those fake acts at first. His new target unexpectedly getting married to someone else was definitely not on his list. Everybody k
Last Updated: 2025-01-08
Chapter: 9: First KissAltheaNewsflash: preparing a wedding was one hell of a work.Well, I might as well be going to hell for faking a marriage, but the process of it was already painful. It was simple to get your marriage legalized. I once heard you could also get a drive-through marriage. Just one drive away, and you would get your certificate. But the thing being rich is, simplicity wasn’t in your dictionary. The more complicated it was, the better. The more the merrier. It was overkill for sure. I didn’t know anything about building a family. I barely had one. But Granny told me, a wedding was not the end. It was a beginning, either for a better life or a gate to hell. The amount you’ve spent on the wedding day wouldn’t guarantee a better marriage life. We sent the invitation two weeks ago, while the wedding was two weeks ahead. Despite Matthias hiring an event organizer and wedding planner, it didn’t mean I can cross my legs and do nothing.I still needed to do a lot of things, including this: we
Last Updated: 2025-01-07
Chapter: 8: She Was PrettyMatthiasThe news about me and Althea were about to marry really spreaded fast. My phone rang nonstop, and I bet Althea was going through the same thing. It was exactly what I wished for. The faster the news expanded , the better. I had to make this as quick as possible.“So what are we going to say? It’s love at the first sight?” Althea looked at me full of judgement as she said it. “It doesn’t make sense. I hated you when we first met.”“And now you don’t?” I smirked.She rolled her eyes. “It doesn’t really matter.”I just wanted to tease her a little, but she was right. It didn't matter if she hated me or not. Our focus should be on what people thought of us. It was common to marry with no love at all. But people loved to see something they wanted to see. And our job was to put on a show, make sense or not.So here was the summary of the script: we fell in love at first sight and while going on a few dates, we decided to hit the marriage button right away.It shouldn’t be surprisi
Last Updated: 2025-01-07
Chapter: 7: Deal For TwoAltheaFor more than a week I lived here, I always thought this was too big for me. That was the reason why I preferred my bedroom, where the space fitted me more.Now, with Matthias here, my penthouse seemed to grow smaller. It wasn’t, of course. But his presence filled the whole room as he walked in and sat on the sofa, while I sat across him. Deborah made some tea and brought some slices of cheesecake and pastry, yet none of that was touched.None of us talked as minutes passed by. I sat down with my crossed legs, fully aware of the stares he gave me. Despite his closed lips, those blue eyes of his moved as if it was trying to tell me something. I couldn’t figure it out. He might have been judging me in his head, or cursing and planning other unthinkable things. Whatever he was thinking, it’s hard to ignore the way his eyes fixated on me.‘“Can you say something?”I finally muttered. Matthias raised his eyebrows but remained in his position, relaxed. “I thought you were regretting
Last Updated: 2025-01-06
Chapter: 6: Another ProposalMatthiasThere was nothing free in this world. That was the number one lesson the world had taught me.Not air, foods, especially freedom. You got to pay for those things, and the price sometimes couldn’t be paid by money.And that was the price of my freedom.I knew it would not be easy. Fuck, I expected that much, yet it still bothered the hell out of me. The scene from three days before night kept playing in my mind; how Althea froze in her seat, looking beautiful with those red lips that made me think the unthinkable for a second, but then surprised me with a reply.“You must be out of your mind.”I thought about it before. She wasn’t my type at all. She was way too naive and fragile. She wasn’t even ready to deal with this mess. But she was also my safest option. She was new to this, sure. And that was exactly the reason why. Because no one was behind her, controlling her. She’s probably the only one who wasn’t interested in my money. She barely had any interest in me, as much as
Last Updated: 2025-01-02