Second Choice: Wife by contract
Solene Wilkins agreed to a marriage she never thought she’d feel, bound not by love but by obligation. Ethan Cole, heir to a vast family empire, married her to satisfy familial alliances, but his heart still belongs to the woman who once walked away—Celeste.
From the start, Solene knew she was stepping into a life shadowed by someone else’s love. Yet, despite knowing the truth, she falls for his quiet moments, his unguarded gestures, the man he shows her in fleeting glimpses. A husband who doesn’t yet realize that she is more than a placeholder.
When Celeste unexpectedly returns, Solene is forced to confront a reality she’s been silently surviving: Ethan is torn between the past and the present, and she might never be more than the wife he agreed to marry. But as cracks in their marriage deepen, and secrets and desires intertwine, Solene must decide whether she will fight for a love that might never fully be hers or protect her heart from being shattered all over again.
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Chapter: EpilogueSix months later:“Ethan, don’t touch that.”“I’m not touching it.”“You’re about to.”“I’m standing.”I turn from the counter and look at him.He’s standing exactly where he shouldn’t be. Too close to the stove. Too interested in something that does not concern him.“Move,” I say.“I live here.”“That doesn’t mean you supervise.”He smiles, but he moves anyway.Good.The kitchen is warm. Not from anything special. Just… used. Lived in. The scent of garlic and herbs lingers in the air, mixing with the faint salt breeze drifting in from the open patio doors. There’s something on the stove, something in the oven, and something I’m probably forgetting.Sunny runs past us, nails clicking against the floor, then slides slightly and keeps going like nothing happened.Ethan watches him.“That dog has no balance.”“He has confidence,” I say.“That’s worse.”I check the pot, stir once, then step back.“Set the table,” I tell him.He doesn’t argue.That’s how I know we’ve grown.A few minutes l
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
Chapter: Chapter 140I wake up before anyone calls my name.Not because I’m anxious. Not because something is pulling me out of sleep.Just… awake.The room is quiet in that early kind of way where the day hasn’t fully started yet. No movement outside the door. No voices. No rushing. Just stillness.I lie there for a moment, staring at the ceiling.Today.The word feels simple. It should feel heavier. Bigger. Like something I need to prepare for.It doesn’t.It just settles.I sit up slowly, letting my feet touch the floor. The air feels cool against my skin. Grounding. Real.For a second, I don’t move.I just sit there and let myself feel it.Not excitement. Not nerves.Something steadier.The dress is exactly where it was left last night.I walk over to it, fingers brushing lightly over the fabric. It feels softer than I expected. Less intimidating.This is not my first wedding.That thought comes, and for a brief moment, I pause.Not in discomfort. Not in regret.Just acknowledgment.The first time was
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
Chapter: Chapter 139The first thing my mother does when she sees my hand is grab it.Not gently. Not carefully. She just takes it like she has every right to, like she has been waiting for this moment and is done pretending she hasn’t.“Let me see.”I laugh, but it comes out softer than I expect.She turns my hand toward the light, angling it slightly, her thumb brushing over my fingers as she studies the ring like she is trying to understand something beyond what it looks like.“It’s beautiful,” she says.“It is.”I’m not even looking at the ring anymore. I’m looking at her.Her face. The way her expression shifts slowly. Pride first. Then something quieter. Something that looks a lot like relief.“You look different,” she says.I tilt my head slightly. “Different how?”“Happier,” she replies.She says it like she is still testing it. Like she wants to believe it fully but is giving herself a second to be sure.I don’t rush to answer.I just nod.Because I am.Not in a loud, overwhelming way. Not in a w
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
Chapter: Chapter 138Mara’s voice is still in my head the next day.Not loud. Just… there.Are we getting an actual wedding this time?She said it like a joke. Like something to laugh about over drinks and forget on the drive home. But it stayed. Followed me into sleep. Sat with me while I opened the café in the morning. Slipped into quiet moments when I wasn’t doing anything important.An actual wedding.I don’t know why that feels different now.Maybe because this time, it wouldn’t be about fixing anything. Not proving a point. Not surviving something.Just choosing.My phone lights up while I’m wiping down the counter.Ethan.I don’t open it immediately.I finish what I’m doing. Rinse my hands. Dry them. Then I pick up the phone.Ethan: Are you free?I stare at it for a second longer than necessary.Me: Depends.The reply comes quickly.Ethan: On what?I lean against the counter.Me: Where you’re taking me.There’s a pause. Not long. Just enough for me to picture him reading it.Ethan: You’ll like it.
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
Chapter: Chapter 137The house won’t leave my head.Not in a dramatic way. It’s not consuming me or anything like that. It just keeps showing up in small flashes. The kitchen mostly. The light in that space. The way it didn’t feel like a display, like something waiting to be admired and left alone. It felt… usable.Which is a strange thing to fixate on.But I do.“Okay, I’m about to drag it out of you.”Mara drops into the chair across from me like she’s been rehearsing this moment all day.I blink, coming back properly.“Drag what out of me?”She leans forward, elbows on the table, eyes sharp.“What happened.”“Nothing happened.”She stares at me.Long enough that I feel like I should add something.“We saw the house,” I say.“And?”“It’s nice.”She freezes.Actually freezes.Then slowly leans back like she needs space from me.“Nice.”I nod.“Yes.”⸻lMara presses her lips together like she’s trying not to say something offensive.“You disappeared for hours. Came back looking like you’ve just… I don’t e
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
Chapter: Chapter 136It starts with my phone refusing to be quiet.Not one notification. Not two. It keeps going like something is trying to get my attention and won’t take no for an answer.I’m at the counter, pretending to focus on something small and unnecessary, wiping a spot that doesn’t exist anymore. My hands are busy, which usually helps. Keeps my thoughts from wandering too far.The phone buzzes again.Then again.I ignore it.Mara doesn’t.“You’re not going to check that?”“I will.”“You’ve said that three times.”“I mean it this time.”She doesn’t respond, which usually means she’s watching me instead.The phone buzzes again.I exhale, drop the cloth, and reach for it.The screen lights up with stacked notifications. Too many for something normal. Too many for something small.I open one.A headline.I don’t react immediately. I just read it.Then I read it again, slower this time.“Ethan Cole Expands to Miami, Establishing Independent Venture Beyond Family Holdings.”I blink.Scroll.Another h
Last Updated: 2026-03-29
What We Pretended To Be
Maria Walker has spent her entire life under the weight of expectations in a world where reputation trumps happiness. As the daughter of the respected Walker family, every choice—including her relationship with kind, loyal Noah Bennett—is judged by high society, who see him as far beneath her standing.
Daniel Rothfield faces a different pressure. The powerful, emotionally guarded CEO of Rothfield Holdings has avoided relationships since a devastating breakup left him unwilling to risk love again. Yet his parents and business partners insist a man of his status needs to project stability—and a serious relationship is the perfect image.
When Maria and Daniel unexpectedly arrive together at a prestigious charity auction, a fleeting moment ignites rampant speculation. Within hours, social media explodes with rumors that the billionaire CEO and the Walker heiress are secretly dating.
Rather than deny it, Daniel proposes a solution: pretend the rumors are true.
A fake relationship solves both dilemmas. Maria’s parents would stop pressuring her about Noah, while Daniel’s family and associates would see him finally settling down. It’s meant to be simple, temporary, and strictly controlled.
Rules are set:
No real feelings.
No crossing boundaries.
No forgetting it’s just an act.
But pretending to be in love proves far more complicated than planned.
As they appear together at events, family gatherings, and public functions, undeniable chemistry emerges—shifting from performance to something dangerously authentic.
Meanwhile, Noah grapples with quiet jealousy fueled by headlines and photos, Daniel’s past resurfaces to threaten the facade, and their carefully built lie begins to crumble.
In a society that measures love by status and appearances, Maria and Daniel face an undeniable truth: the relationship they pretended to have may be the most real thing either of them has ever felt.
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Chapter: Chapter 131Maria:The first thing that surprised me was how unimpressive the land looked.After months of sketches, meetings, spreadsheets, permits, contractor discussions, fundraising plans, and enough paperwork to make me question every life choice that had led me there, I had expected something more dramatic. There was a visible sign that all those late nights and endless revisions had transformed an idea into reality.Instead, reality looked suspiciously ordinary.Several acres of dirt stretched beneath a clear morning sky. A temporary site office sat near the entrance. Survey stakes dotted the ground. Construction equipment waited in neat rows. Three men were already arguing over measurements with the intensity of people negotiating a peace treaty rather than discussing concrete details.I stood beside Daniel at the edge of the property and took it all in.“Well.”Daniel glanced at me. “Well?”“I think I expected it to look more impressive.”“It will.”I laughed because that answer was pure
Last Updated: 2026-06-01
Chapter: Chapter 130: Lily And MarcusLily:The worst thing about hope is how sneaky it is. You can spend months shoving it into a corner, convincing yourself you’ve made peace with reality, and then it strolls back in like it owns the place.I’d spent three months preparing for every possible version of Marcus’s answer.If he wanted friendship, I could do friendship.If he needed distance, I’d survive that too.If he decided there was nothing left between us, I’d figure out how to keep moving.None of those plans survived the moment he smiled at me across Maria’s picnic table.Three months of emotional self-improvement collapsed in an instant. It was honestly embarrassing.Around us, the picnic carried on at full volume. People laughed. Someone dropped a plate. Maria’s mother and Victoria had somehow launched into a serious discussion about baby names despite the fact that Maria had barely announced her pregnancy.Charles had appointed himself honorary grandfather before anyone could stop him.Daniel looked increasingly
Last Updated: 2026-05-31
Chapter: Chapter 129Maria: The housewarming picnic was Lily’s idea. Of course it was. Three days after Daniel and I moved into the farmhouse, she showed up at my clinic carrying a notebook, two iced coffees, and the determined look she got whenever she decided other people’s lives needed improving. I should have known I was doomed the second she opened the notebook. By the end of lunch, she’d planned an entire event. By the time the day arrived, the farm looked like it belonged in one of those expensive lifestyle magazines people left on coffee tables and never actually read. Long wooden tables sat beneath strings of lights, cream blankets were spread across the grass, fresh flowers appeared on every available surface, and someone had tied ribbons to the stable doors. Lily. There wasn’t even a mystery there. Nobody else would look at a horse stable and think, You know what this needs? Decorative ribbon. The afternoon sun washed everything in gold as guests started arriving down the driveway. I stayed
Last Updated: 2026-05-31
Chapter: Chapter 128Maria: The first thing I noticed was how exhausted I was. Not the usual kind of tired that came with moving into a new house, running a clinic, and planning a shelter. This felt different. It sat deep in me, stubborn and heavy, as my body had quietly decided it was done cooperating. At first, I ignored it. Then I blamed the move to the farm, then the unpacking, then Daniel. That last one wasn’t remotely fair, but I was running out of suspects. Three days after we moved into the farmhouse, I found myself standing in front of the refrigerator staring at a carton of eggs. The sight of them made my stomach twist, which was ridiculous because the day before, I’d wanted eggs badly enough to consider making them twice. I closed the refrigerator, opened it again, looked at the eggs, and closed it. “You’re losing an argument with breakfast.” I glanced over my shoulder. Daniel stood in the doorway with a mug of coffee in one hand, hair still damp from his shower, sleeves rolled neatly to hi
Last Updated: 2026-05-30
Chapter: Chapter 127Maria:By the time our honeymoon finally arrived, I was starting to think Daniel genuinely enjoyed watching me pretend I wasn’t excited. For two weeks, I’d acted like this trip was no big deal. Just France. Just a honeymoon. Just two weeks away from everything. Meanwhile, I’d checked the weather forecast so many times I could probably have delivered a local news report. Daniel knew, obviously. The man noticed everything. Which was exactly why he spent those two weeks refusing to acknowledge my excitement. Not once.The flight was long but surprisingly peaceful. Somewhere over the Mediterranean, I fell asleep with my head against his shoulder. When I woke up, the blanket had been tucked more securely around me, and there was a cup of water waiting beside me. I blinked up at him. Daniel was reading something on his tablet as if he hadn’t moved in hours. “You could’ve woken me.” “You were sleeping.” “I gathered that.” “You looked comfortable.” Then he went right back to reading. Tha
Last Updated: 2026-05-30
Chapter: Chapter 126Maria: “Yes,” I said. Daniel still had a dish towel in his hand when I answered him. He’d been drying the same wine glass for so long that the entire thing had started to feel suspiciously performative. He looked over at me from the kitchen sink, calm as ever, but something was waiting underneath it, quietly waiting—very Daniel. “Yeah?” he asked. I nodded once. “Yeah. I think it’s time.” The smallest shift crossed his face. Barely there. Most people would have missed it. I wouldn’t have. Not anymore. He turned back toward the counter, setting the glass down carefully. “I didn’t want to ask too early.” “You mean you didn’t want me thinking you were trying to relocate me like one of your business acquisitions.” “That happened one time.” I laughed and walked farther into the kitchen. “You built an entire house because I said the farm felt peaceful.” “You liked the reading nook.” “I did like the reading nook.” “And the horse.” That made me smile immediately. His mo
Last Updated: 2026-05-28
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