Two

LENA'S POV

No one could answer me. Only the urge to go to him seems stronger. I took in a deep breath as I continued scolding myself. Why would I think of being with a stranger and betraying David?

Yet, I couldn't stop myself. Barely audible, I let out a question.“You belong to me?”

My heart wanted to know what the hell was happening. I tried to process the weird declaration from the stranger and even my weirder question.

I swallowed hard as I tried to make sense of it.

So, my sudden forgetfulness wasn't a result of stress? Has something really happened to me? Like something really serious?

Even though the earlier murmurs from the other customers watching us from the corners had started to go down, I could not say the same thing about their stares, which were now boring holes into my skin.

The embarrassment was killing me.

Then, in a sudden forceful movement, David lunged forward and grabbed my wrist, yanking me toward himself as if to protect me from the stranger.

As if to make a statement that he, not the stranger, truly owned me.

But before I could even react, the stranger took a single step forward yet again, and when he spoke, it was with a calm tone and an easy gesture.

“Careful, Langford, that’s my wife you’re touching.”

My face squeezed.

"Langford?" I stared at the stranger, at the certainty in his expression.

So he also knew David? Could that also mean he wasn’t just making empty claims?

Now overwhelmed, I ripped my hand from David's own and took a step back, away from both of them.

The smirk of the stranger deepened,

And then, with a pointed motion, he signalled at something on my left-hand side. David’s eyes followed the trace of his finger.

I swallowed knowingly. Because I somehow knew what he was pointing at even before checking.

Nevertheless, I still checked, and there it was, just like I feared.

“That damned ring.”

The same ring I had been questioning, not just since I woke up. But literally a few minutes ago.

“You’re even wearing it,” He murmured. With a shrug, he added.“Or are you saying you don’t also remember slipping it on?”

David’s eyes instantly met mine as if he, too, was genuinely interested in this answer. But I couldn't talk, because I didn’t know. I took another small step back, shaking my head faintly as I started to feel an ache in my head.

Then, a second flash appeared.

The same one that showed me, sliding this diamond ring onto my finger. Then, just like before, it disappeared again.

I gasped.

David’s eyes narrowed at this point. I could not exactly tell what he was thinking, but he was looking quite doubtful. The stranger sighed, almost as if he was tired of the charade, except that there was no charade here.

We were drowning in this mystery together.

Without another word, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. And when he lifted it, he turned its screen toward me.

It was showing a document.

I didn’t move at first, too frozen and too stupefied to reach for it. But then he stepped closer, closing the space between himself and I, and with a subtle nod, he urged me to take it.

I heard David suck breath in.

Then, reluctantly, I reached out and collected it. David, who was now close enough, leaned in as well to see. My heart was beating so fast. The first thing I saw on it, right on the beginning page, was my name.

“LENA CARTER”

Written in block letters. Attached to it was the surname he addressed me with earlier.

“HAYLE”

The same surname attached to the name, which I now believe was his first name.

“Nathan Hayle”

So his name was Nathan? But I still did not remember meeting anyone with this name. It was just a vaguely familiar name like the name of one of my many business associates.

But his name was the least bother now. This was I because I just realized on a closer look at the paper that what he had just shown me was a marriage certificate, our supposed marriage certificate.

My heart jumped as I began to stagger back. When did all this happen? Where have I been? The stranger's voice, full of a quiet finality, broke through my thoughts once more.

“We were married three days ago, sweetheart. Or do you not remember?”

“What?” David and I chorused at once, and this revived the murmurs around us a little.

But I was too stunned now to care about that. Three days? Three whole days?

I gasped, with my hands flying to my mouth.

Had I lost my senses or what? Did I die and resurrect? I opened my mouth, but no words came out. When we both turned towards the stranger, he was reaching for something else in his pocket.

And when he pulled it out this time, it was an envelope.

He moved quietly, walking to a nearby table and setting it down with deliberate care.

I followed his movement. David, too, stared at the envelope, but neither of us moved to pick it up. Instead, I turned back to the man, allowing my head to spin with a hundred different possibilities.

What if this was a setup? What if someone wanted to sabotage me to ruin my engagement and my career? This was not particularly unlikely with this thought. I turned back to the fellow with cold eyes and a tone that was even colder.

“I don’t know who you are, but I swear to God, I will have you arrested when I get to the bottom of this!”

He didn’t even flinch. If anything, my limp threat appeared to amuse him further. Then, without bothering to give a response to that, he straightened his suit and delivered one final blow.

“You have three days.”

And just like that, he turned and walked out. No hesitation. No looking back. Total silence fell once more in the room.

Then, with a sudden anxiety, I turned to David, desperate for something that made sense. But he looked even more shaken than I was. More anxious, more lost.

He ran a hand through his hair roughly, and then before I could say another word, his phone vibrated. He pulled it out, glanced at the screen, then froze. His expression transformed to a blank mask.

Then, without a word, he turned and stormed out.

I wanted to stop him. To follow, but my legs wouldn’t move, my voice wouldn’t come. I was left standing there, lost. The whispers around the room were growing louder.

“My world was falling apart.”

By the time I got back to my penthouse that night and shut the door, I was exhausted all around. The day had been a complete and utter nightmare.

I took a few confused steps into my living room, only to get startled when I spotted a figure standing inside. The sight only appeared weird for a second or two, but then, recognition set in soon enough.

It was Grace Montgomery, my best friend.

And judging from the wide grin on her face, it was obvious that she had no idea the absolute rollercoaster I had just been through.

“So... you’re getting married to David, huh?” she went further to ask ignorantly.

I let out a short, sharp, hysterical laugh.

“Oh, Grace. If only you knew” I muttered.

She frowned slightly, about to ask what I meant, but I didn’t let her. Instead, I pulled the envelope from my bag and threw it at her. She caught it with both palms, blinking in half confusion and half alarm.

“What’s this?”

I sank onto the nearest chair, reclining without support. “Read it, And tell me if I’m losing my mind.”

Grace hesitated with her inquisitive eyes on me for a second, and then finally, she carefully pulled out the papers. The moment her eyes landed on the words, they popped out.

I didn’t need to see it again to know what she was looking at.

LENA CARTER & NATHAN HAYLE.

Married three days ago, and below it, was my signature. My own goddamn signature, displayed as accurately as could be.

Grace looked up at me, her face pale, her voice a whisper.“Lena... what the hell did you do in Las Vegas?”

I gripped the edge of the table like someone on the verge of lunacy, my world spinning way too fast.

“I have no idea.”