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015. The Man Who Came Back
publish date:
2026-04-30 05:42:06
Latest chapter
Married For The Show 015. The Man Who Came Back
RAINAA few days later, everything felt normal again.Or at least, as normal as my life ever was.The school week had settled into its usual routine. Lesson plans, lunch break, small arguments over crayons, spilled juice, and ruined learning materials. By the time Friday afternoon arrived, I was tired in the familiar way that had everything to do with the weeks work.I couldn't wait to get off work and start my weekend.I went straight to my mother’s restaurant after school.The bell above the door rang as I stepped inside, and the noise wrapped around me instantly. Voices layered over each other. Plates clinked in uneven rhythm. The kitchen staff called out orders faster than anyone could keep up with.It smelled like home. Fried onions, warm bread, spices that clung to the air and settled into your clothes whether you wanted them to or not.“Mija,” my mother called from behind the counter. “You came.”“I said I would,” I replied, slipping my bag onto a chair and tying an apron arou
Married For The Show 014. The Perfect Stranger
RAINAThe very first time I saw him.He didn’t belong here.That was my first thought. Not because he was doing anything wrong. He was just… different.The room was loud, crowded, chaotic. Parents talking over each other, children screaming, yelling, running in circles, teachers trying to keep things from falling apart. It was messy and familiar.He stood in the middle of it like none of it touched him.Well dressed. Dark suit. Clean lines. Not overdressed, but enough to stand out without trying. He wasn’t speaking to anyone. Just watching.Watching the room.Watching the children.For a moment, I thought he might be a sponsor or one of the local officials who sometimes showed up for these things. But he didn’t have that forced smile most of them wore. He looked… calm, confident. Like he had nowhere else to be.Across the room, our eyes met.I looked away first.“Miss Gonzalez,look!” one of my students called, holding up a paper crown he had made.“That’s nice, Daniel,” I said, adjust
Married For The Show 013. Before the Cage
RAINAI stood in the hallway for a long time after he walked away.Then I walked back to my room.I lay down on my bed, pulling the blanket over myself, and closed my eyes.Sleep didn’t come.It never came easily anymore, but tonight was worse.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him again.Not the smirk.Not the sharp tone.His eyes.Red.Like he had been crying.Not openly. Not in front of anyone.The kind of crying you hide. The kind you finish before stepping back into the world which was your reality.What happened?Had Castor beaten him? Had they gotten into an argument and he lashed out?If he did, I wouldn't be surprised. I was discovering more about my husband each day for the past few days than I did in the three months I'd known him.I turned onto my side and pulled the blanket up to my chin, curling slightly into myself.The house was still.Too still.Even the quiet here felt controlled, like it was part of something secret. Nothing creaked. Nothing shifted. It was the kin
Married For The Show 012. Walking on Eggshells II
RAINAI sat on my bed thinking about my life. Wondering how I was going to survive many more weeks of this nightmare.I felt intimidated, humiliated and neglected.Castor's condescending attitude towards me only grew daily.How much longer could I continue like this?The loneliness was enormous. Bigger than I had words for. The kind that sat in every corner of a room and followed you from one end of the house to the other. I missed my mother's kitchen. I missed the noise of small children and finger paintings and the particular chaos of a kindergarten classroom on a rainy day.I missed being someone whose life made sense.The tears came quietly. They usually did now. I had stopped making noise when I cried because noise invited questions and questions invited anger.I cried silently into my hands for a few minutes.I wanted to leave. To walk out of the this marriage and never look back.But I knew I couldn't. Castor wouldn't let me.Sylvester told me to fight back.I didn't know if I
Married For The Show 011. Walking on Eggshells
RAINAThe bruises were fading.I checked them every morning before I did anything else. It had become a ritual. Wake up. Sit up slowly. Shuffle to the small bathroom attached to the guest room. Stand in front of the mirror and look.The purple under my eye had softened to a dull yellowish green. The split in my lip had closed into a thin pink line. The finger shaped marks along my ribs had faded from dark purple to a patchy brown.My body was healing.The rest of me was not.I splashed cold water on my face, gripped the edge of the sink and stared at my own reflection for a long moment. I barely recognized the woman looking back at me. She had the same straight black hair, amber eyes and round face I had always had. But something behind those eyes was different now.Older. Scared. More careful.I got dressed slowly. This was also a ritual now. Choosing clothes that covered my arms. Picking colors that were soft and non threatening. Nothing that would draw attention or invite comment.
Married For The Show 010. A means to an End
SYLVESTERI heard the knock at my door twelve minutes later.I knew it was Patrick before he even opened it. He had a particular knock. Three sharp raps, a pause, then one more. Like punctuation. Like everything else about him, it was precise, deliberate and slightly annoying."Come in," I said.Patrick Beckham walked in wearing a navy suit and the expression he reserved specifically for when he thought I had done something wrong. Eyebrows slightly raised. Lips pressed together. Eyes moving around the room like he was gathering evidence.He was thirty one years old and sometimes acted like he was my father."There was a woman leaving your private elevator," he said, closing the door behind him."Good afternoon to you too, Patrick.""That woman." He walked to the chair across from my desk and sat down without being invited. "Raina Rowland. As in, the wife of Castor Rowland? As in, the man we are currently running against for the assembly seat?""I know who she is.""Do you?" He leaned
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