« Don’t romanticize things, » he replied calmly. « It’s a business deal. »
She felt anger burning her cheeks.
« I’ll play my part, » she said. « But when we’re alone, you have no right to treat me like I’m nothing. »
A slight tremor crossed his face—a trace of loneliness.
“My mother will be at the wedding,” he said. “She’s… difficult. You should know that.”
Emily laughed nervously.
« Dinner is at seven o’clock, » he added. « The kitchen is full. Do as you please. »
Then he left.
She went to the window: the city shone like a promise she didn’t yet understand.
On her pillow, he had left a ring—simple, platinum, set with a single diamond.
She put it on her finger: it fit like a question.
When her mother called later, her soft, weary voice made her smile despite everything.
« He’s very nice to me, Mom, » Emily lied.
« That’s good, » Patricia replied. « You deserve someone who sees how special you are. »
Tomorrow, Miss Emily Scott would become Mrs. Henry Montgomery.
The word had both the weight of lead and the lightness of a breath.
Eleven minutes.
That was all it took for the civil ceremony.
Catherine Montgomery, Henry’s mother, wore her pearls and her disdain with equal elegance.
Beth, his younger sister, on the other hand, radiated warmth. She hugged Emily like an old friend.
At lunch, Catherine questioned Emily with the precision of a scalpel.
— Where do you work, my dear?
— At the hospital cafe… and at Morrison’s grocery store. My mother was a cleaning lady.
« What an industrious young woman, » said Catherine, a sharp smile on her lips.
Henry took Emily’s hand, playing his part.
« I wanted to be sure before introducing her to the family, » he said.
« And you are? » asked Catherine.
« I am, » he replied, his eyes fixed on Emily. And, for a moment, she thought she saw something real in his gaze.
That night, alone in the penthouse, Emily thought: I saved my mother. I can pretend. It won’t be that hard.
She was wrong.
The days passed.
They lived side by side without really seeing each other.
She still worked at the café to maintain a semblance of independence.
He disappeared into the operating rooms, returning late, silent.
But there were small cracks in the ice:
a late-night conversation after 72 hours on duty, a meal shared in the dim light of the kitchen.
She discovered an exhausted man, tender despite himself.
He discovered a courageous woman, scarred by life but still capable of hope.
Little by little, the lie became blurred.
The cushions meant to separate them vanished.
The nights grew sweeter.
But he never promised anything.
And when he finally received his inheritance, Emily felt the fear return: what would he do with her now that he no longer needed to play the game?
The offer.
One day, Catherine found her at the hospital cafe.
She placed an envelope on the table.
« There are five hundred thousand dollars in it. Leave. Discreetly. No scandal. »
Emily remained silent.
She thought of her mother, of Henry, of everything she had given.
Then she calmly replied:
— No.
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