Chapter 2

I let her messages sit unanswered for a day. I needed the silence to think. The next morning, I drove to my mother' s house.

Mrs. Miller opened the door, her warm smile fading as she saw my face.

"Ethan, what's wrong? You look terrible."

I told her everything. The demand, the ex-boyfriend, the deceased mother's wish. I told her about the request for $50,000.

She listened without interruption, her expression hardening from concern to a quiet fury. When I was done, she didn't offer platitudes. She was pragmatic.

"She's playing you for a fool, son," she said, her voice firm. "This isn't about filial piety. This is about greed and disrespect. You cannot let her do this to you or to the Miller name."

"I know," I said. "I told her the wedding is still on, but she won't be the bride."

My mother nodded slowly. "Good. Then we need to find you a new one. A partner, not a parasite. Someone who understands what a partnership means." She paused, her eyes thoughtful. "What about Chloe Davis?"

Chloe Davis. The name jolted me. She was my biggest business rival. The CEO of Davis Corp, a company that had been a thorn in my side for years. She was sharp, ruthless, and brilliant. We respected each other's abilities, but our relationship was purely adversarial.

"Chloe Davis? Mom, she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you, Ethan. She competes with you. There's a difference," my mother corrected. "Her father has been trying to marry her off for a business alliance for years. A merger between Miller Innovations and Davis Corp would be unstoppable. It solves your problem and it solves hers. Call her."

The idea was insane. But the more I thought about it, the more it made a cold, logical sense. This was no longer about love. It was about survival. Business survival, and the survival of my own dignity.

Just then, my phone rang. It was Olivia. I put it on speaker.

"Ethan, why are you not answering me? Did you send Daniel the money?" Her voice was laced with impatience.

"No, Olivia. I'm not sending your ex-boyfriend a dime." My tone was flat and final.

There was a moment of shocked silence. Then, her voice turned venomous.

"What did you say? After everything I've done for you, you can't do this one small thing? This is about honoring a dead woman! Do you have any decency?"

"My decency doesn't extend to funding my fiancée's wedding to another man," I replied calmly.

"Fiancée? You think you still have a fiancée?" she shrieked. "If you don't send that money, you can forget about me ever coming back to you! I'll stay married to Daniel, and you'll be the laughingstock of the city! The tech genius who got dumped a week before his wedding!"

The line went dead. My mother and I just looked at each other.

"Well," she said. "That settles that. Call Chloe."

I left my mother's house and drove to a neutral location, a high-end coffee shop in the financial district. I sent a single text to Chloe Davis.

Need to discuss a merger. Urgent.

Her reply was instant.

My office. 10 minutes.

When I walked into the sleek, minimalist lobby of Davis Corp, I felt like I was crossing into enemy territory. Chloe was waiting for me in her glass-walled office, looking out at the city. She didn't turn when I entered.

"Miller," she said, her voice as cool as the chrome and glass surrounding us. "This better be good. I cancelled a meeting with investors from Tokyo for this."

"It's a merger of a different kind," I began, getting straight to the point. "I need a wife. In six days. I'm proposing a marriage of convenience. We merge our personal lives to merge our companies. You get autonomy from your father, and I avoid a public catastrophe. The terms are negotiable, but the pre-nup will be ironclad, protecting both our assets."

Chloe finally turned around, one eyebrow raised. A slow, cynical smile spread across her face. "Let me get this straight. The great Ethan Miller, the man who is about to launch 'True Love AI,' is proposing a loveless, contract marriage to his biggest rival?"

"My fiancée, Olivia Hayes, has decided to marry her ex-boyfriend to fulfill his dead mother's wish," I said, my voice devoid of emotion.

Chloe's smile vanished. She stared at me, her sharp eyes searching my face. "You're serious."

"Completely."

Before she could respond, my phone buzzed violently on the table between us. It was a video call from Olivia. I ignored it. It buzzed again.

"You should probably take that," Chloe said, a flicker of amusement in her eyes. "Sounds desperate."

Against my better judgment, I answered, but kept the phone face down on the table, putting it on speaker.

"Ethan! Where are you?" Olivia's voice screeched.

"I'm in a meeting, Olivia."

"A meeting? Who are you meeting with? Are you with another woman?" Her voice was shrill with an accusation that was baffling in its hypocrisy.

"Even if I were, what right would you have to be jealous?" I asked.

Chloe leaned forward slightly, her interest clearly piqued.

"What right? I am your fiancée! I am doing this for Daniel, for his mother! And you're out having secret meetings?"

"Olivia," I said, my patience gone. "We are done. Do not call me again."

I was about to hang up when another voice joined the call. A man's voice. Whiny and weak.

"Liv, is he giving you trouble? That jerk. After all you're sacrificing for me." It was Daniel Reed.

My blood ran cold. I picked up the phone and flipped it over. The screen showed Olivia, sitting in a restaurant. And right next to her, with his arm draped possessively around her shoulders, was Daniel. He leaned in and kissed her cheek, a smug look on his face.

They weren't just fulfilling a dying wish. This was a full-blown affair. The visual proof was a gut punch.

"You see, Ethan?" Daniel said into the phone, his voice dripping with condescending pity. "She chose me. A real man who values family and honor, not some cold tech nerd who only cares about his software."

Olivia was smiling, preening under his touch. "That's enough, Danny," she said, but there was no force behind it.

"He needs to understand his place," Daniel continued, his voice rising. "You're with me now, Olivia. Tell him. Tell him he's nothing."

That's when I saw it. The restaurant in the background. It was the "Orchid Room," an exclusive place just two blocks from the Davis Corp building.

Without a word, I stood up, ending the call.

"Follow me," I said to Chloe. Her eyes were wide, but she nodded and followed me out of the office.

We walked the two blocks in silence. My mind was a blank, a calm, cold space. When we reached the Orchid Room, I saw them through the large front window. They were laughing now, holding hands across the table.

I walked in. Chloe followed a few steps behind me.

They didn't see me at first. I stood by their table until Olivia looked up. The color drained from her face.

"Ethan... what are you doing here?" she stammered.

Daniel's smug expression turned into a scowl. "What do you want? Can't you see we're busy?"

I ignored him and looked at Olivia. "You asked for $50,000 for wedding arrangements. It looks like you've already started spending it."

Her eyes darted around the expensive restaurant. "This is... a planning meeting."

"Planning how to lie better?" I shot back.

Daniel stood up, trying to look intimidating. "Hey, you have no right to talk to her like that. Apologize."

"Apologize?" I laughed, a harsh, humorless sound. "You and she are trying to commit fraud, using a dead woman as an excuse, and you want an apology?"

Olivia jumped to her feet. "Fraud? It's filial piety! You are heartless!"

Her voice was so loud that people at other tables started to stare. She looked from my cold face to Chloe, who was standing behind me, watching the scene with a detached, analytical expression. Olivia's eyes narrowed with venom.

"And who is this?" she spat, pointing a trembling finger at Chloe. "Is this why you won't give me the money? You found a replacement already? You slut!"

Before I could react, Olivia lunged forward and slapped me hard across the face.

The sound echoed in the suddenly silent restaurant. My cheek stung, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the white-hot rage that flashed through me.

I didn't move. I just stared at her.

"Get out," I said, my voice dangerously low. "Both of you."

Daniel, emboldened by Olivia's actions, puffed out his chest. "We're not going anywhere. You're the one who's crashing our date. I'm calling security."

"Go ahead," Chloe said, speaking for the first time. Her voice was calm and cutting. "I'm sure the manager, who is a personal friend of my father's, would be very interested to hear how you're harassing one of his best customers."

Daniel's face paled as he recognized Chloe Davis.

Just then, my phone rang. It was a number I didn't recognize. I answered it.

"Is this Mr. Ethan Miller?" a formal voice asked.

"Yes."

"This is Officer Bryant from the 17th Precinct. We've received a complaint filed against you by a Mr. Daniel Reed for harassment and emotional distress. We'll need you to come down to the station to give a statement."

I looked from my phone to Daniel, who was now smirking. He had already called the cops and filed a false report. The audacity was breathtaking.

"I'll be there," I said, and hung up.

I looked at Olivia, whose face was a mask of triumphant righteousness. She truly believed she was the victim here.

That was the moment I knew this wasn't just about getting a new bride. This was about tearing their lies down, piece by piece, until nothing was left.