Chapter 2 - The Certificate That Should Not Exist.
I smiled at my husband while my pulse hammered against my throat.
It was the hardest smile I had ever worn.
"Give me one minute," I said.
"I need the restroom before security."
Alexander looked annoyed.
"Make it quick."
Khloe's lips curved slightly.
I walked away without giving either of them the satisfaction of seeing me hurry.
The moment I turned the corner, I called Dana Park.
Dana had been my family's attorney for almost nine years.
She had handled my father's estate, my trust, and every contract Alexander had complained was too complicated for "normal people."
She answered on the second ring.
"Sophia, aren't you supposed to be on a plane?"
"Dana, I need you to verify a Nevada marriage license."
There was a pause.
"Whose?"
I swallowed.
"Alexander's."
Her voice changed immediately.
"Send me everything you have."
I forwarded the message.
Then I stood beneath the fluorescent lights in the airport hallway and waited while travelers rolled suitcases past me.
Three minutes later, Dana called back.
"The license number matches a Clark County record."
My knees weakened.
"So it's real?"
"It appears real."
"And the date?"
"Seven months ago."
I closed my eyes.
Alexander and I had been engaged for nearly a year.
Seven months earlier, he had flown to Las Vegas for what he called a software conference.
Khloe had supposedly gone because she was coordinating his meetings.
I remembered teasing him about bringing me back casino chips.
He had brought me a bracelet instead.
I was wearing it at that very moment.
I ripped it off my wrist.
"Dana, what does this mean for my marriage?"
"It means we do not make assumptions until I verify whether he obtained a divorce afterward."
"Can you check?"
"Already doing it."
I heard papers moving on her desk.
"Sophia, there is something else."
"What?"
"Yesterday morning, Alexander's assistant sent my office a request for copies of your trust certification and the marital authorization schedule."
I felt the air leave my lungs.
"Why?"
"The email said you wanted to update beneficiary control during your honeymoon."
"I never asked for that."
"I know."
Dana's tone hardened.
"That is why I did not send anything."
I looked toward the terminal entrance where Alexander was waiting somewhere beyond the wall.
"What exactly is a marital authorization schedule?"
"A document that could allow a lawful spouse to receive limited authority over certain assets if you voluntarily execute the companion forms."
"Could Alexander use it without me?"
"Not legally."
That word did not comfort me.
Not legally had never stopped a liar from trying.
My phone buzzed again.
Another message from the unknown number.
CHECK THE RESORT BUSINESS CENTER RESERVATION.
I sent a screenshot to Dana.
She called me back almost instantly.
"Sophia, do not sign anything on this trip."
"Why?"
"Because Alexander reserved a private conference room at your resort tomorrow morning."
"For what?"
"The reservation notes say: document execution and remote notarization."
My mouth went dry.
This was not a honeymoon with an inconvenient secretary.
This was a scheduled transaction.
And I was the only person who had not been told what I was expected to sign.
"Dana," I whispered.
"Find out whether he divorced Khloe."
"I will."
"And if he didn't?"
Her answer came quietly.
"Then the wedding you had two nights ago may never have made you his wife at all."
A knock sounded against the restroom door.
Then Alexander's voice came through the hallway.
"Sophia?"
I stared at my reflection.
My face looked pale.
My eyes did not.
"Coming," I called.
Then Dana sent one final text.
NO DIVORCE RECORD FOUND.
I deleted the notification before Alexander stepped around the corner.
And in that moment, heartbreak became something colder.
May you like
It became strategy.
MY HUSBAND BROUGHT HIS SECRETARY ON OUR HONEYMOON
