chapter 5

CHAPTER 5: THE FIRST NIGHT AS MRS. COLE

That night, Mia could not sleep.

The bed was too soft. The room was too quiet. The house was too big. Everything felt strange, like she had entered another person's life by mistake.

She turned to the left, then she turned to the right. She stared at the ceiling. She stared at the window. Her mind refused to rest.

She was married. For real. It was not a dream. It was not a joke.

She picked up her phone and looked at the ring on her hand. It shone in the dark. It was beautiful, but it felt heavy. It felt like the weight of her new life, a life she did not plan, but a life she had chosen because she had no other choice.

Mia stood up and walked to the window. The city was quiet below her. The lights were still on. Somewhere down there, Daniel and Lily were probably sleeping peacefully, not caring about what they had done to her. Somewhere down there, her father was probably sitting in his office, thinking he had destroyed his own daughter.

She touched the cold glass with her fingers. "Mia," she whispered to herself. "What have you done?"

There was a soft knock on the door. It was so gentle that she almost thought she imagined it.

"Who is it?" Mia asked, her voice low.

It was Adrian. He stood at the door holding two cups. One tea, one coffee. He was no longer wearing his suit. He was wearing a simple white t-shirt and black trousers. He looked different. Less like a billionaire. More like a normal man.

"I could not sleep either," he said. "I thought you could not sleep too."

Mia sat up a little on the bed. "How did you know?"

"Because you have turned in bed about twenty times. The wall is thin. I could hear it."

Mia laughed softly. It was her first real laugh since yesterday. It surprised even her. She did not think she could still laugh.

Adrian came inside. He sat on the chair, not on the bed. He respected the rule. He handed her the tea. "Drink it. It will help you sleep."

Mia held the cup with both hands. It was warm. Her hands had been cold before. The warmth moved from the cup into her fingers, and for a moment, she felt safe.

"Adrian," she said, "are you not afraid? That this thing might fail? That people will find out it is fake?"

Adrian looked at her for a long time. "Every day I am afraid. But fear does not pay me money. Revenge does. And I have waited ten years for this revenge. I cannot stop now."

Mia nodded. She understood him. She had also waited, not for ten years, but for one long day that felt like ten years.

"Tomorrow," Adrian said, "we will go to a party. Your father will be there. Daniel and Lily will be there. Everyone will be there. It will be our first time to show ourselves as husband and wife. It will be our first test."

Mia's heart jumped. "Tomorrow already? I am not ready. I don't think I can face them so soon."

"You will be ready," Adrian said, his voice firm but kind. "You are Mia Hayes. No, sorry. You are Mia Cole now. A Cole is not afraid. A Cole does not run away."

He stood up to leave. At the door, he stopped and turned back.

"Mia?"

"Yes?"

"That dress you wore today... you looked beautiful in it. I mean... you looked strong. You did not look like a woman who was left in the rain. You looked like a woman who left the rain behind."

Then he left. He did not wait for her answer.

Mia sat on the bed, staring at the door long after he had gone. Her heart was beating like a drum.

Rule 1: No love. This is business.

But why was her heart beating like this for business? Why did his words make her feel warm inside?

She drank the tea. It was a little sweet. She closed her eyes and lay back down.

Tomorrow, the war would begin. And she would not be alone.