An Almost Honest Affair
She needed a husband. He needed a wife. Neither expected to find each other at end of the aisle.
Mia Cross is a rising CEO with everything under control except her traditional family, who demand she marry before the year is out. Out of desperation, she invents the perfect boyfriend. But when her family insists on meeting him, her lie threatens to explode.
Enter Liam Wolfe, her infuriating rival from a competing firm. He’s ruthless, arrogant, and entirely too handsome for his own good. But he needs a “wife” to secure the business deal of his life. Their solution? A marriage of convenience.
The rules are simple: no love, no real intimacy, and an expiration date set in stone. But when family drama, boardroom battles, and scandalous rumors put their fragile arrangement under fire, Mia and Liam discover that pretending to be in love might be the most dangerous game of all.
Because somewhere between fake kisses and staged smiles, the lines are blurring. And the hardest rule of all to keep might be the one that forbids falling in love.
Will their marriage remain a lie… or become the truest thing they’ve ever known?
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Chapter: Chapter 16 : RestlessMia barely slept.She tossed from side to side, the sheets tangling around her legs like ropes. Ethan’s smug voice kept replaying in her head. And then the fragments of memory that wouldn’t fit neatly into place: glimpses of Liam in school, blurry edges of a boy she never noticed but who now haunted her thoughts.By dawn her head was pounding, her body buzzing with exhaustion. She sat up with a groan, pressing her palms to her temples. No way was she dragging herself to the office today. She’d call it a personal day. Perks of being the boss, right?The penthouse was still, too quiet. Her bare feet hit the cold marble as she made her way into the kitchen. She filled the kettle and waited, staring at the wide glass windows that offered a perfect view of the skyline. Normally, she loved this place modern, sleek, full of light. Today it just felt… empty.She blew out a sigh. Of course Liam hadn’t come home last night. Again.The shrill ring of the landline jolted her. Hardly anyone called
Last Updated: 2026-03-14
Chapter: Chapter Fifteen: The Things He RemembersThe city slept, but Liam Wolfe didn’t.His office was silent except for the faint hum of the AC and the glow of his laptop. Documents stared back at him contracts, projections, numbers but his focus was lost. His tie hung loose around his neck, sleeves rolled up, coffee cold and untouched.Ethan’s words replayed in his head like a broken record.Charity case. Invisible. Easy to push around.Liam closed his eyes and pressed his palms to his temples. He hated how true those words had been once. He hated how they still had the power to crawl under his skin.And he hated most of all that Mia had heard them.He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling, and without meaning to, his mind wandered back in time to the years. To hallways that smelled of sweat . To the sound of sneakers squeaking on polished floors. To a boy who tried his best not to be seen.He had been skeptical when he entered Crestwood Academy, a scholarship student in a sea of privilege. His shoes weren’t branded, hi
Last Updated: 2026-03-14
Chapter: Chapter Thirteen: The Past isn't Hidden.The morning after the gala, Mia woke to her phone buzzing. Again.Daniel, of course.She answered with a groan. “Do you ever sleep?”“Not when my sister is making headlines,” he chirped. “By the way, your red dress? Ten out of ten. Wolfe’s scowl? Twelve out of ten. Loved it.”Mia rubbed her temples. “Why do I feel like you’re enjoying this circus more than I am?”“Because I am,” Daniel said without shame. Then his voice softened. “But seriously are you okay? Mom’s still sulking. Dad’s pretending to read the paper but hasn’t turned the page in twenty minutes. You’ve shaken the entire family tree.”Mia smiled faintly despite the weight pressing her chest. “I’ll survive.”“Good. Because if Wolfe screws this up, I get to punch him. Sibling privileges.”She hung up before he could elaborate, but his words lingered, a strange mix of comfort and warning.By noon, her office door opened again this time after a knock.Liam walked in, tie loosened, dark circles beneath his eyes. He didn’t sit.
Last Updated: 2026-03-14
Chapter: Chapter Twelve: Old Flames, Old WoundsThe interview hadn’t even cooled before the internet lit up like a bonfire.By morning, Mia’s phone buzzed nonstop: headlines, notifications, even memes. A hashtag #WolfeCross was trending, complete with photos of her and Liam smiling on stage like they were the poster couple for power and passion.Her mother, of course, had called before breakfast.“You paraded yourself in front of cameras, but couldn’t let your own parents plan a wedding?” the voice on the line scolded. “Do you have any idea how humiliating this is?”“Good morning to you too, Mom,” Mia muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose.Daniel’s voice chimed in from the background, muffled but cheerful. “Relax, Mom. At least she didn’t go on live TV and say she married him because of his dimples. Now that would’ve been humiliating.”Mia snorted despite herself, earning a fresh round of her mother’s disapproval.“You think this is funny, Daniel?”“Yes,” he said flatly, his grin audible even through the phone. “And for the rec
Last Updated: 2026-03-14
Chapter: Chapter 11: Lights, Camera, SparkThe hotel ballroom looked like it belonged in a magazine spread crystal chandeliers, velvet drapes, and a press line longer than a Monday morning coffee run. Photographers jostled for position, their flashes popping like fireworks.Mia smoothed her dress, forcing her shoulders back. She’d faced skeptical board members, furious clients, and her mother’s disappointment, but this,this was different. Cameras didn’t forgive cracks. One wrong glance, one stumble, and the world would rip her apart.Beside her, Liam looked carved from confidence. Perfect suit, perfect posture, that infuriating half-smile that said he knew everyone was watching.“Ready?” he asked under his breath, his hand brushing her elbow as if they were rehearsing affection.She shot him a side glance. “Ready as I’ll ever be. Try not to look smug.”He leaned closer, so close she caught a whiff of his cologne clean, sharp, expensive. “Smug is my brand.”She bit back a retort as a reporter waved them over.“Mr. Wolfe! ,Ms. C
Last Updated: 2026-03-09
Chapter: Chapter 10: Cracks in the FacadeThe car ride home was heavy with silence. Liam kept his eyes on the road, jaw set like stone, while Mia stared out the window, replaying his words over and over.“Yes, the marriage is done. Yes, it puts us in a stronger position. Carter and Cross together it changes everything.”Her stomach twisted. She’d promised herself this was a transaction, nothing more. A shield against her family, a solution for his investors. But hearing him frame it so coldly so strategically left a bruise she hadn’t expected.When they finally pulled into her driveway, Mia stepped out before the engine fully stopped. “Thanks for the ride,” she said briskly, already moving toward the door.“Mia” Liam’s voice caught behind her.She didn’t stop. “Goodnight, Liam.”The next morning, her office buzzed louder than usual. Not with productivity no, with speculation.“Have you seen the news?” her assistant whispered, sliding her phone across Mia’s desk.The headline screamed back at her:Tech Titans Tie the Knot ,Cro
Last Updated: 2026-03-09
Chapter: Chapter 55: The Mandap of ShadowsBy the time night fully settled over the Sharma haveli, the courtyard had transformed into something almost otherworldly.Hundreds of tiny lights had been strung along the balconies and pillars, glowing like captured stars. Oil lamps flickered along the stone pathways, their flames dancing softly in the warm evening air.At the center of the courtyard stood the mandap.Four carved wooden pillars held up a canopy draped in thousands of marigolds and white orchids. The flowers hung in thick garlands, their bright colors glowing beneath the golden lights.It looked beautiful.Sacred.And yet something about the atmosphere felt strangely tense, like the calm before a storm.At the heart of the mandap, the sacred fire burned.The flames rose steadily from the copper havan kund, fed by ghee and sandalwood offered by the priest. Smoke curled upward in pale ribbons, carrying the scent of incense through the courtyard.Guests filled every available space.Relatives sat cross-legged on white cu
Last Updated: 2026-03-13
Chapter: Chapter 54: The Groom's ArrivalThe sound reached the neighborhood long before the cars did.At first it was distant just the faint thump of drums echoing through the warm Delhi morning.Then the music grew louder.Dhol beats rolled through the narrow streets like thunder, bouncing off old brick walls and crowded balconies. Brass instruments joined in, blaring bright celebratory notes that seemed to vibrate through the entire neighborhood.Children ran into the street first.They knew the sound.“The baraat!” one of them shouted excitedly.Within minutes, the entire lane outside the Sharma haveli was alive.Neighbors leaned over their balconies to watch the spectacle unfold. Shopkeepers stepped out from their storefronts. Aunties who had sworn they would stay home somehow appeared at the gates within seconds, adjusting their saris as they hurried closer.Weddings were always public events in Delhi.But this wedding was something else entirely.This was the wedding of the mysterious foreign billionaire and the girl w
Last Updated: 2026-03-13
Chapter: Chapter 53: The Fire and the VowThe morning of the wedding arrived beneath a sky that felt too heavy.The air over Delhi carried an oppressive heat, thick and unmoving, as though the city itself was holding its breath. Even the early sunlight seemed dimmed behind a haze of dust and humidity.Inside the Sharma haveli, the quiet of the night had vanished.The house had become a whirlwind.Relatives rushed through corridors carrying trays of flowers and jewelry. Aunties shouted instructions from one end of the courtyard to the other. The sound of bangles clinking and footsteps echoing across marble floors created a constant rhythm of chaos.Priests had already arrived and were preparing the sacred fire in the courtyard. Marigold garlands were replaced and straightened. Musicians tested their instruments near the entrance gate.It was the kind of controlled madness that only a wedding could produce.But in the center of the storm, Elena sat in silence.Her room had been transformed overnight into something resembling a
Last Updated: 2026-03-13
Chapter: Chapter 52: The Midnight VisitorThe haveli was finally quiet.For the first time in days, the constant noise of wedding preparations had faded into silence. The courtyard that had been overflowing with relatives, music, and laughter now lay still beneath the moonlight.Most of the family had collapsed into exhausted sleep after the long Haldi ceremony.Even the fairy lights had been switched off, leaving only the soft glow of a few lanterns flickering along the corridors.Outside the walls, Delhi never truly slept. The distant hum of traffic drifted through the warm night air, mixing with the chirping of crickets and the occasional bark of a stray dog somewhere down the street.Inside her room, Elena sat on the edge of the bed.Her skin still carried the faint golden tint of turmeric from the Haldi ceremony. No matter how many times she had washed her hands, traces of the yellow paste remained along the edges of her fingers.Her wedding was only hours away.Six hours.By sunrise, she would be standing before a pries
Last Updated: 2026-03-10
Chapter: Chapter 51: The Haldi and the MarkMorning arrived with the scent of turmeric and rosewater.The haveli had barely slept.After the music and dancing of the Sangeet, the household had woken again before sunrise to begin preparations for the next ritual in the long chain of wedding ceremonies.The Haldi.It was meant to be a moment of purification.A moment of blessing.Turmeric paste bright yellow and fragrant would be applied to the bride and groom by family members. The paste was said to cleanse the body, ward off bad luck, and prepare the couple for the sacred vows ahead.At least, that was the tradition.Inside the haveli that morning, however, nothing felt entirely pure.The inner courtyard had been transformed overnight.White cloth draped the pillars, fluttering gently in the warm morning breeze. Brass bowls filled with turmeric paste, sandalwood oil, and rose petals sat on low tables. Marigold garlands hung from the balcony railings, their golden petals glowing in the early sunlight.Women of the family filled
Last Updated: 2026-03-10
Chapter: Chapter 50: The Sangeet of SecretsBy the time the night of the Sangeet arrived, the haveli had transformed completely.The old courtyard usually quiet except for the sound of family chatter and the rustle of mango leaves glowed like something out of a dream.Marigold garlands hung from the balconies in thick golden ropes, their petals bright against the old stone walls. Strings of fairy lights crisscrossed above the courtyard, casting a warm shimmer over the gathering crowd.Music pulsed through the air tabla drums, harmonium, and the steady rhythm of clapping hands.The scent of jasmine floated everywhere, mixing with the irresistible smell of pakoras frying in the kitchen.For any outsider looking in, it would appear to be a joyful celebration.But inside the haveli, beneath the music and laughter, tension coiled like a snake.The Sangeet was meant to be a night of celebration.Instead, it had become a psychological battlefield.Neighbors filled the courtyard.Relatives who hadn’t visited the haveli in years suddenl
Last Updated: 2026-03-09
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