She Hired Him as Her Fake Husband… He Never Expected to Fall in Love
Chapter 13
Ten years after the original contract was signed, Charlotte was forty-one.
Ethan was forty-three.
Their daughter, Lily, was seven.
She had her mother’s determination and her father’s calmness.
One afternoon, Lily found an old folder.
“What is this?”
Charlotte froze.
Ethan smiled.
“The beginning of our story.”
Lily opened it.
She read the title.
FAKE MARRIAGE AGREEMENT.
Her eyes widened.
“You married Daddy for a contract?”
Charlotte laughed.
“Not exactly.”
Ethan added,
“She hired me.”
Lily looked horrified.
“That’s weird.”
Charlotte smiled.
“It was.”
“Did you love him?”
“Not at first.”
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
“Thank you.”
“But I learned.”
Lily looked at him.
“How?”
Ethan smiled.
“She stopped seeing my job.”
“And?”
“She started seeing me.”
Lily closed the folder.
“I like the real story better.”
“So do we.”
Later that evening, Charlotte stood in the garden watching her daughter play.
Ethan joined her.
“She’ll ask more questions.”
“I know.”
“Are you ready?”
Charlotte nodded.
“Our story shouldn’t be a secret.”
He smiled.
“It isn’t.”
She took his hand.
They watched Lily run across the lawn.
The fake husband who had once moved into the guest room was now building a future with her.
And Charlotte finally understood that love hadn’t appeared in one dramatic moment.
It had grown quietly.
Breakfast by breakfast.
Argument by argument.
Truth by truth.
