Victoria, his voice was cold, controlled. We need to talk. Ethan stood, positioned himself between Marcus and Victoria. I think my wife has made it clear she's done talking to you for tonight. This doesn't concern you.
Everything that concerns my wife concerns me. Marcus' face went through expressions he was clearly trying to control. You have no idea what you've walked into. This woman is manipulating you, using you, and when she's done, she'll discard you like everything else she doesn't need. Victoria stood, composure rebuilt enough to face him directly.
That's rich coming from the man who spent our engagement positioning himself to take over my company. Victoria, go home, Marcus. You've done enough damage for one night. This isn't over. Yes, it is.
It's been over since I called off our wedding 8 months ago. You just haven't accepted it yet. Marcus looked between them, calculating, recognizing that whatever strategy he'd planned had failed spectacularly. We'll see what the board thinks about your new husband. I'm sure they'll have questions about when this marriage happened and why nobody knew about it.
Let them ask. Unlike you, I don't owe the board explanations about my personal life. Marcus walked away without responding. Victoria turned to Ethan for the first time since kissing him in front of 200 people. She smiled with something approaching genuine warmth.
You just called me your wife to Marcus's face. You started it by kissing me. I figured I'd commit to the bit. You're very good at committing. Most people would have run away screaming by now.
Most people didn't spend 3 years learning that running away from hard situations doesn't make them less hard. Victoria studied him. You're not what I expected when I grabbed you tonight. "What did you expect?" "Someone who'd say yes to money."
Someone who'd treat this like a transaction. Someone who wouldn't understand why I'm fighting so hard. and instead you got a maintenance worker with a dead wife and a four-year-old daughter who said yes because people should help when they can. Yeah. Victoria's voice went soft. Instead, I got you.
Ethan left the Regency Crown at 12:47 a.m. The train ride home was empty, just him and a handful of other overnight workers. He stared at his reflection in the dark window and tried to process what he'd agreed to. Two weeks of pretending to be married to a billionaire CEO. Two weeks of lying to people who could make or break her career. Two weeks of hoping Marcus wouldn't dig too deep.
His phone buzzed. Text from Victoria. Thank you again for tonight. My lawyer will call you tomorrow morning to discuss details. Ethan typed back.