AVERY POV:
The next morning, Collier drove me to my stepfather's house in Chestnut Hill. I never called it home. It was a gilded cage.
He didn't ask any questions. Before I got out of the car, he simply handed me a black, heavy-stock business card. It had a name and a phone number on it. Nothing else.
"Any trouble, you call me," Collier said, "I'll be waiting for you outside. "
I took the card, murmured a "thank you," and walked toward the oppressive stone facade without looking back.
Maria, the housekeeper, opened the door. Her eyes widened with a mixture of surprise and pity when she saw me.
I walked straight into the living room. My mother, Elvina, and my stepsister, Haleigh, were sitting on a plush white sofa, sipping tea. The scene was so domestically blissful it felt like a slap in the face.
Elvina's perfectly sculpted eyebrows drew together in a frown. "You're back," she said, her voice dripping with disdain. "How was the dinner? Did you meet Mr. Preston Sterling?"
Haleigh set her teacup down, her face a mask of innocent concern. "Avery, you look terrible. The days you disappeared，Fuller was so worried about you ."
The hypocrisy made me want to gag.
I ignored Haleigh. I placed my handbag on the glass coffee table with a deliberate thud, loud enough to shatter their little performance.
I looked directly at my mother. "I'm here for what's mine. The documents for the 15% share in the Velasquez hotel, and the keys to my father's house."
Elvina's face tightened. She hadn't expected this directness. "Avery," she said, adopting her haughty, society-matron tone, "we had an agreement. You were supposed to complete your 'task' first."
I let out a short, humorless laugh. "Oh, I completed it. Just not with the person you arranged."
I reached into my bag, pulled out the marriage certificate, and slapped it down on the table between them. "I'm married."
The air froze. Elvina and Haleigh stared at the document as if it were a venomous snake.
Haleigh was the first to break, her voice a shrill shriek. "Impossible! Who did you marry?"
As she was about to grab it, I quickly snatched it back. All they needed to know was that I was already married; the details of who I was married to were irrelevant.
Elvina was shaking with fury, her manicured finger pointing at me. "You're insane, Avery! Do you know that Mr. Preston Sterling has agreed to invest in our company, provided you marry him? You've ruined everything! All our plans!"
Their reaction was much more severe than I anticipated. It seems the disastrous union, caused by my last-minute change of mind, has had serious consequences. But, frankly, it doesn't concern me.
I watched their meltdown with a cold, detached calm. "That was just your plan, not mine.Now, can I have my things?"
This is not a question, but an established fact. My father made a will before he died. After I get married, I will have the right to inherit 15% of the shares of Velasquez Hotel and my father's villa.
I've been waiting for Fuller to marry me before I get these back. But it's not needed now.
Elvina looked like she wanted to tear me apart, but my unwavering gaze held her back. She couldn't afford a scene in the Gibbs household. Her precarious position here was her weakness.
With a hiss of fury, she went to the safe, retrieved a folder and a set of keys, and threw them on the table in front of me.
I picked them up. I turned to leave.
COLLIER POV:
I hadn't driven far. I was parked at a street corner with a clear view of the Gibbs mansion's front gate.
I lit a cigarette but didn't smoke it, just watched the smoke curl from my fingertips. I kept seeing her eyes from last night. The way she'd looked when she said, "I need a husband." Brittle and broken, but with a core of steel underneath.
My phone rang. My grandfather, Arthur Rivers IV.
I answered. His booming voice filled the car. "Kid, I heard you took a girl to Top of the Hub just now."
I let out a low chuckle. "Your intel is as good as ever, Grandpa."
I didn't bother denying it. "And I married her."
The line went silent for a full ten seconds. Then, a roar of laughter erupted, so loud I had to pull the phone from my ear. "That's my boy! Finally did something useful! Who's the girl? When do I get to meet her?"
I glanced at the mansion's gate. "Her name is Velasquez," I said softly. "Avery Velasquez."
My grandfather's laughter paused. His tone became thoughtful, intrigued. "Velasquez? The boutique hotel family? Interesting. Her father was a talented man."
I flicked the ash from my cigarette. "She's a wonderful girl, Grandpa."
He grunted in satisfaction. "Good. Bring her to see me soon. And make sure she's not getting pushed around. No one messes with a Rivers."
I hung up,I took out the marriage certificate, running my fingers over the cover, and scanning the names and dates with my eyes, almost as if I were trying to memorize it.
After all, I had been waiting for this moment for far too long.
Just at that moment, Avery walked out of the gate. Her back was ramrod straight, like a small soldier returning from a victorious battle.
I crushed the cigarette out and started the engine.
I pulled the car up smoothly beside her, lowering the passenger window. I raised an eyebrow. "Did we win the battle? Mrs. Rivers?"
A small, tired smile touched her lips. She opened the door, slid in, and tossed the folder and keys onto the dashboard. She let out a long, deep breath, as if she'd been holding it for years.
