Maverick and Victoria's wedding party "Alright, ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome the newlyweds who are the stars of tonight's reception!" Victoria took Maverick's arm as the host's voice announced their arrival. She breathed her last long breath before stepping inside with Maverick, who had officially become her husband since this morning. They walked amid the spacious ballroom that had become a luxurious and elegant venue for the evening reception. The sound of thunderous applause greeted the two as they walked. The daytime reception, held right after the vows were exchanged at the altar, was exclusively attended by colleagues and business associates of both families. Meanwhile, this evening's reception and closing party were only attended by relatives and family members of both families. Even so, the scale of the event was still quite large. "Your hands are icy," said Maverick, touching the back of her hand. After smiling at the guests since her arrival, Victoria tur
"Don't you feel bad for your grandmother for lying to her just for your ambition to destroy Alden's company?" asked Victoria after the trio left to enjoy their meal. "Then, do you want to return when we're just about to start our next plan?" Maverick asked the question loudly and without hesitation while looking Victoria straight in the eye. Victoria was silent, looking back at Maverick. He should have known she had no other answer. Her signature was already on the contract as a guarantee. So inevitably, she must ultimately complete their plan, no matter what. At first, Victoria was confident that she would not change or violate the terms they had agreed upon, even though her conscience told her that before's plan was enough to avenge Alden's betrayal. However, Victoria's heart began to doubt when she saw Lisa, who was so kind and genuinely happy with this marriage. She even expected this marriage. "Do I have any other options?" asked Victoria after a long daydreaming. T
"So exhausting ..." Victoria sighed after sitting on the edge of the hotel bed. The very long event ended at midnight. At least for the two who were left to rest while her parents and Maverick's grandmother cared for the guests until the end. It was not easy wearing three dresses and a face full of makeup for almost 24 hours, only for a wedding that would end after a year. The hotel room door opened, and a man walked in. Victoria turned to the door, frowned as she saw him enter, and asked, "Why are you here?" "This is my room," he replied casually as he approached Victoria. Once before her, he added, "What do you think your parents and my grandmother would say if we, married coupled, used different rooms?" For a moment, Victoria was silent. Then, after a while, she realized something. "I forgot that they don't know we're just contract marriages," she muttered, leaned back, and closed her eyes. Victoria ignored Maverick, who was in the same room as her, because she was t
Victoria woke up to a lot of noise. She blinked before looking around the room for the source of the noise. She felt a sense of Deja Vu, waking up in an unfamiliar room with sounds and atmosphere. As she recalled, she was in the car after a flight of more than 10 hours with two transits with her husband. Then, she unconsciously fell asleep from exhaustion. Now Victoria woke up in a luxurious room with the sound of crashing waves waking her up. "Verick?" called Victoria to confirm his whereabouts. Victoria got up from her bed to look for her husband. She was quite wary of being in an unknown place by herself. She looked around every room in the villa but still couldn't find Maverick, which made her even more anxious. "Verick?!" Victoria called out once again. Only when she looked outside, to the backyard, she found him. He had just turned around, about to go her, when he heard his name being called. Victoria stepped out with a look of relief. "You had a nightmare and so
"Why would you think that?" Victoria frowned in confusion. Maverick opened his eyes this time and looked deeply into her eyes. However, he didn't immediately answer, leading her to repeat the question, "Alden wouldn't have cheated on Emberly if he didn't love her, right?" "He doesn't realize his feelings," he murmured, which Victoria could still hear, but it only confused her more. 'What does that mean? In the end, Victoria chooses not to continue the conversation. She fell back into silence, enjoying the warm water that soaked into her body, making her relax even more. For a while, she didn't want to think about Alden, Emberly, Agriche, or anything else. Even so, curiosity still haunted her, raising another question. "Everyone must have felt in love, including you, right?" Victoria tried to dig into Maverick's relationship with a woman named Lexie, even though she knew it was none of her business. She just wanted to confirm the answer and see how she reacted afterwards. V
The alarm on the phone woke Victoria from a deep sleep. She reached for her phone and turned off the persistent alarm. After the sound stopped, she sighed and blinked her eyes, which still felt very heavy as her body felt crushed by something. "What is this?" she muttered hoarsely as she pulled back the blanket covering her body. A burly hand seemed to be hugging her belly, which made Victoria try to focus her gaze and check whether she was still dreaming or not. It was only then that she noticed a breath near her neck. Coupled with a soft snore that sounded right beside her. Victoria, feeling anxious, immediately checked their clothes, which were still as complete as the last time they were used last night. She tried to remember what happened last night before they fell asleep and ended up like this. "We should sleep in the same room to reduce any suspicious reports to your Grandma," Victoria suggested that night after they returned from dinner. "I just thought of it a
"Tori...!" "Tori!" "What?!" Victoria, who had just surfaced after throwing herself into the sea, heard her name being called over and over again, making her a little irritated. She swam back to her husband, standing on the yacht, already preparing to go to the sea. "I thought you couldn't swim and accidentally splashed in earlier," he said with a chuckle. Victoria splashed water on his feet. "My dislike of swimming doesn't mean I can't swim, Mr. Hurlington." "I'm sincerely worried about you, Mrs. Hurlington." After that, Maverick plunged into the sea after Victoria. Victoria swam followed her husband, who seemed to be very excited. They floated on the waves as they stayed in the middle of the sea, having gone some distance from the yacht. "This island doesn't seem to have been touched by humans. The sea water is still apparent," says Victoria. "I just heard that a new species of marine fauna was discovered around this sea." Victoria couldn't help but be surpr
Agriche's Mansion "Good morning, Father, Mother." Petter and Rosalee, who saw Victoria and Maverick's presence, were surprised. Both of them assumed that the new couple was still on their honeymoon. Or at least they were at home resting before returning to their respective activities the next day. They must have wondered about the purpose of their daughter and son-in-law's visit. "Are you guys home yet?" asked Rosalee after greeting them with a hug. "We arrived yesterday morning. I'm here to pick up my things and see Father," Victoria replied. "Mr. Hurlington, can't you prevent your wife from resting first after such a long journey?" Petter's judgmental gaze turned to Maverick. "You probably know better how stubborn your daughter is, don't you, Father-in-Law?" said Maverick with a shrug as he glanced at his wife. Victoria quickly intervened, saying, "Father, 15 hours of rest is enough to make me not tired anymore." "But should you rush to meet me to take over th
"Victoria, who is he?" asked James, who was just watching while holding Maverick."Mr. Benedict." Maverick stared intently at the man in front of him as if he were ready to beat him up at any moment.Before Victoria could speak up to answer, Nadine spoke first. "Wait, wait, isn't he that very famous person? A shameless cheater? He's your ex-fiancé, right, Victoria?"Victoria nodded once in response, which made Nadine turn her attention to Alden. The woman also put her body in front of Victoria, just like Maverick, who was ready to hit him at any time."What business do you have with Victoria? As Verick said, you guys are no longer related to each other!""Babe..." James pulled his fiancée, making her shut up to let Victoria speak and end this situation."I have something to tell you, Victoria." Alden's words suddenly made Maverick look even more furious. He looked like he couldn't control himself and could have hit Alden anytime without Victoria holding him back. "There's no need to t
"For someone coming to a place like this for the first time, I think they will like it. Just like me. The aquarium is wonderful and interesting, James," Victoria commented while talking about her opinion.Victoria didn't mean to curry favor or anything. She just liked the aesthetics and the efficient and sophisticated system. After all, neither James nor Nadine would think so since they knew how much richer the Agriche and Hurlington families were compared to them."Thank you, Victoria. I heard that the name of the hotel you lead is also experiencing a lot of progress and development." Victoria smiled a little at the news already reaching their fellow businessmen."I added some buildings without changing the concept. It was my mother's hotel, and my father didn't want any changes.""That's a great achievement in such a short time that an A-lister like Angel would hold a party at your hotel. I heard a while ago that the hotel was going bankrupt." Nadine chimed in, only to be responded
"Come on, Tori," said Maverick, who had unknowingly opened the car door for Victoria, who was still silent.Her eyes took in the surroundings of the place where they were now. Victoria followed where Maverick took her and waited obediently like a puppy when her husband left her to buy two entrance tickets."Well, now, let's go in." Maverick showed the tickets and again took her by the hand to enter the building.From the outside, the building was bright blue. When the two entered the building, the blue color became natural due to the reflection of the large glass filled with seawater. Maverick was right. Victoria loved this place. She stared in amazement at this place she was visiting for the first time. It was a large aquarium and a museum displaying various sea creatures."Do you like it?" asked Maverick, quietly watching his wife.Victoria turned to him and nodded with a smile. "Thank you for bringing me here.""Thankfully, my intention to entertain you did not fail," he said.His
"Hey, by the way, isn't this where I proposed to you?" Maverick released their embrace and stared at the surroundings.Victoria blinked her eyes a few times while looking at Maverick with furrowed brows in confusion. She tried to dig into her memory to recall what her husband had said. However, no matter how much Victoria tried, she never felt that she was proposed to by the man other than having a conversation before they got married. Right after the plan to expose Alden and Emberly's affair succeeded."If you're talking about the day our first plan succeeded, I don't think it was a proposal," Victoria said with a chuckle.She stepped into the gazebo first, followed by her husband. He matched her slow pace until they sat on the same chair where they had chatted before they got married a few months ago. Time had unknowingly passed quite a while since the day they got married."You never proposed to me, but we'll talk about the same thing again in this place. So, is there a plan to expo
"How are you feeling, Victoria?" Victoria felt a cold sweat starting to break out on her back. Without answering, she only stared straight at the couple as they entered the car and drove away. She thought the question indicated Maverick's desire to know her true feelings for him. 'Does he already know?' She continued to question in her head in desperate fear. 'Then what will happen afterwards?' "Tori..." His soft voice broke the silence in the car. Maverick turned off the car engine that had been running. He pulled Victoria's face suddenly, making her put on a surprised expression so she couldn't resist. "Verick, I..." Her words only reached her throat. She could not express her feelings right now, which could break their contract. "Look at me and answer the question," he said in a commanding tone as if reluctant to be contradicted. "I don't know, Verick." Slowly, she said it without looking at the pair of eyes before her. A long silence followed again, and out of curiosity, V
After Victoria's departure, Gustav had not yet risen from his seat. He watched his best friend's husband sharply and cautiously as if he were very wary of him. Likewise, Maverick did not let Gustav go for a second, as if they were in a staring contest. No one wanted to give in first. "I warned you not to overreact, Hurlington! You're nothing more than a contract husband written on paper." Gustav attacked him first with his sharp words. "I know what I'm doing, Alessandro. We did it for both of our businesses. Instead of warning me, you should have supported her if you were her friend." Maverick replied indifferently to the warning. "I know your business, and that's more than enough!" he exclaimed. "Are you jealous of me and Victoria?" Maverick asked back while furrowing his eyebrows. "Ha!" Gustav snorted harshly and looked away. He looked back at Maverick with both hands, intent on grabbing his shirt collar. However, he decided against it. "I already think of her as my own
"So, may I dance with you, My lady?" Victoria smiled amusedly but couldn't resist accepting her husband's hand. Maverick pulled her hand until they joined the other couples on the dance floor. He swung around her waist and danced in time with the soft music. "You're gorgeous tonight," Maverick complimented, which inevitably caused a reaction on Victoria's cheeks. Luckily, her cheeks were covered with enough blush color to look natural. "Thank you for telling me, husband," she replied confidently. Victoria was again trying to control her heart rate, which had been going crazy since the dance started, with their bodies pressed together. She also had to keep reminding herself that his every gesture, compliment, and treatment of her was just an act. The feelings that shouldn't be there grew with each passing day due to this charade. No wonder Maverick's treatment seemed so natural, even when it was just the two. Until now, when they were attending Agriche's company birthday
Meanwhile, Lisa and Maverick's conversation also moved to the living room after Victoria left with Karina. Scout came in with a dessert menu for the two of them. "Bring some to Karina's room for both of them," Lisa ordered Scout. "Yes, Ma'am." Once again, it was just Maverick and Lisa sitting with their respective glasses of champagne. Lisa didn't look as excited as when Victoria was with her. Nor did she bother to show her enthusiasm in front of her grandson, who was busy with his phone and presumably at work. "I see your moves this time are quite aggressive, Verick. Especially in your competition against one of the competitors, Benedict. Is it because of your personal feelings regarding Victoria?" Lisa started the conversation, filling the silence between them without distraction. "One of them, yes," Maverick answered quickly and without hesitation, also without looking at Lisa. But that time, his answer distracted Lisa. She looked at her grandson with a twinkle tha
7 pm Victorya Hotel "Hello?" Victoria, who had just finished packing up and was about to leave, received a call from Maverick. "Did you finish your work?" he asked from the other end. "Why ask? Victoria replied with another question. "I'm on my way to pick you up. Grandma called me this morning and invited us to dinner at her house." Victoria gasped in surprise when she heard that. "What? Then why didn't you tell me from the beginning?!" Maverick chuckled, hearing Victoria's annoyed tone. "I apologize. I was too busy to finish work today quickly. So, I forgot to tell you." Victoria sighed as she shook her head. "Alright, I'll call the driver to bring my car home. I've finished packing my stuff and am just about to head home. I'm at the hotel." After saying that, the call was disconnected. Victoria went out to the elevator to go down to the lobby. She did not forget to call her secretary to coordinate the work that had been completed. When she was about to get out of the