Chapter 1
Reginald Faustus and I have known each other for 20 years, and married for five. Everyone said we were the perfect couple.
Until the day I accidentally ruined our marriage certificate and went to the County Clerk’s Office to replace it.
“Ms. Montgomery, this certificate is invalid.”
The clerk frowned, her tone laced with sympathy.
“The system shows that Mr. Faustus is married, but you’re single.”
My hands tightened around the hem of my shirt.
“That’s not possible. We registered our marriage five years ago…”
“Mr. Faustus’s spouse is Ingrid Maxwell.”
That name landed like a slap, leaving me dizzy.
Five years ago, Reginald disappeared right before our wedding.
When I found him again, he had lost his memory and was living with
another woman.
That woman was Ingrid.
I stood in the lobby, ears ringing.
Everything from five years ago replayed clearly in my mind.
The day he got his memory back, he hugged me tightly and said with a shaking voice, “Lisbeth, how could I not recognize you? You’re the one I
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love most.”
Right in front of me, he deleted all of Ingrid’s contact info and threw a check at her in disgust.
“Get out, you liar! Don’t ever show up again!”
Yet, the reality is that he is legally married to her now.
Then what am I?
I looked at the names on our marriage certificate. The words made my eyes sting.
For five years, he slept beside me every night and called me “honey” so gently.
We picked out furniture and even decorated our home together…
Yet, it turns out I was never really his wife.
I went home in a daze. Just as I reached the door, I heard voices from
inside.
“Reginald, it’s been five years. Don’t you think Lisbeth deserves a real status?”
It was our friend John Vanderbilt’s voice.
I held my breath, waiting to hear what Reginald would say.
However, he stayed silent, and John pushed again, “You lied to Lisbeth for five years for some shallow woman? Didn’t you always say she’s the one you truly love?”
Reginald lit a cigarette, took a deep breath, and said, “I just wanted to keep Ingrid stable. After I left, she missed me so much that she nearly died. She can’t live without me.”
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“I can be with Lisbeth in public, but I can’t always be there for Ingrid. So, giving her a title is the least I can do.”
My face went pale. Every word felt like a knife.
“And she’s Andy’s mother. For the child’s sake, she deserves that title.”
“How could you say that? When Lisbeth was pregnant, you made her take abortion pills, so she could raise that woman’s child. How could you do
that to her?”
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