I stared at Alex’s message for a long time without answering.
That evening, Dylan texted me.
[Jade says if she’s going to test-drive marriage for you, she might as well do it properly. Married men are supposed to keep their distance from other women, so I won’t be contacting you much for the next few days.]
A second message followed.
[Don’t overthink it. I’ll be back soon.]
And for the next three days, he kept his word. I didn’t hear from him once.
On the third morning, Jade sent me a photograph.
She was sitting on the beach at Southpoint with a dessert in her hand. Dylan’s jacket was draped over her shoulders.
[Don’t worry, bestie. I’m giving your honeymoon a proper test run, too.]
[This place is great. You should get Dylan to bring you here someday.]
Before I could even close our chat, the work group chat started blowing up with notifications.
[Southpoint Project Contract signed.]
Then an announcement from HR appeared.
[Effective immediately, Jade Quinn has been appointed project team lead.]
The next second, Jade video-called me.
She waved a signed contract in front of the camera.
“The client moved the presentation up at the last minute. Dylan said I knew your proposal well enough, so he had me present it for you.”
“They loved it! They even asked me to keep handling the project.”
I stared at the name on the contract.
“If you were presenting it for me, why is your name on the contract?”
Before Jade could answer, a hand reached into the frame and took her glass of ice water.
“You know cold drinks upset your stomach.”
Dylan saw me on the screen and hesitated. Then he took the phone.
“Ellie, the announcement’s already gone out.”
“If I change it back now, everyone will laugh at Jade. You’re good at what you do. You don’t need this one project. Just let her see it through.”
My nails dug into my palm.
“I wrote that proposal. I was the one who worked with that client.”
“Why should I care whether she’s embarrassed?”
Dylan went quiet for a moment.
“Ellie, are you really going to put me in this position?”
“You’ve already chosen her. What is there left to struggle with?”
I ended the call and opened Alex’s messages.
He had sent another one:
[If you’re willing, we can get married tomorrow.]
I stared at the words for a long time.
Then I replied:
[Okay.]
My passport had been locked in the safe in Dylan’s study for years.
He’d once taken the folder from my hands with a teasing smile and covered the keypad.
“I’ll get these out myself on the day I marry you. No running away on me.”
I tried both our birthdays as the combination. Neither worked.
Finally, I entered the date we’d first met.
The lock clicked open.
My passport was tucked into the back of the safe. Beside it were the photos we’d taken for our planned courthouse wedding.
I stared at them for a few seconds, then took only my passport.
Early the next morning, noises from the kitchen woke me.
Dylan had come home ahead of schedule.
His luggage sat by the door. He stood at the stove with his sleeves rolled up, dark circles beneath his eyes.
A pot of oatmeal simmered on the stove.
The first time I’d brought him home, Mom had taught him how to make it.
Since she died, he was the only person who could make it taste exactly the way she had.
When he saw me, he carried a bowl to the table.
“I was wrong last night.”
“You wouldn’t answer my calls, and I was worried. I caught the earliest flight back.”
“Eat something first.”
I lowered my head and took a spoonful.
The words I’d been planning to tell him rose to my lips, then stopped there.
Dylan waited until I’d eaten half the bowl before taking my hand, which had finally begun to warm.
“There’s something else.”
“Jade’s mom saw the post about our marriage on social media. She’s already on her way.”
“She’s been waiting years for Jade to get married. We can’t tell her it was all just a rehearsal the moment she gets here.”
He hesitated.
“So could you stay in the staff apartment for a few days? ”
I looked down at the steaming porridge.
“Okay.”
Dylan blinked, surprised. Then he noticed the suitcase already packed by the wall.
“You already packed?”
I looked up at him.
“Actually, I have something to tell you, too.”
“I’m getting mar—”
The door burst open.
Jade hurried inside.
“Dylan, my mom’s here. Come on!”
He didn’t move right away. His gaze lingered on my suitcase.
But when Jade urged him again, he released my hand.
“We’ll talk when I get back.”
I said nothing.
By the time the untouched half of my porridge had gone cold, my phone finally lit up.
[I’m downstairs.]
It was Alex.