He Needed a Wife to Claim His Inheritance—So He Paid a Poor Widow to Pretend
Chapter 14
On their fifteenth wedding anniversary, Ethan surprised Clara with a trip.
Not to Paris.
Not to a luxury resort.
Back to the little diner where they first met.
The owner recognized them.
“You two still together?”
Clara laughed.
“Apparently.”
Ethan smiled.
They sat at the same table.
“Do you remember what you said?”
Clara asked.
“What?”
“You said, ‘I’m desperate.’”
She laughed.
“So romantic.”
“I was honest.”
“You were.”
She took his hand.
“And I was desperate too.”
“For money?”
“Yes.”
“And now?”
She looked at him.
“Now I’m rich in other ways.”
He smiled.
She leaned closer.
“You know what I learned?”
“What?”
“Being poor made me think money was security.”
“And now?”
“People are.”
Ethan squeezed her hand.
“And love?”
She smiled.
“Love is the home you choose.”
They left the diner.
Outside, the sun was setting.
Ethan opened the car door for her.
She stopped.
“Wait.”
“What?”
She kissed him.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For paying me to pretend.”
He laughed.
“That might be the best investment I ever made.”
She shook her head.
“No.”
“What?”
“You didn’t buy me.”
She touched his chest.
“You gave me an opportunity.”
He smiled.
“And you gave me a life.”
