Marriage Certificate

Zoe was astonished. No word could express the level of shock she felt.

Five years ago, he had given her a condition to be his mistress. Now he was proposing marriage. Of all things.

She sat down on a couch to calm herself down. She knew better than to yell or exchange words with him. That had happened many times before and they never worked in her favor.

"It is a reasonable proposal," he continued. "I want her and you. You want her. We both want her. And we can't keep fighting this way if we both want to keep her."

"We can co-parent. Marriage is out of the table."

"I want what our daughter wants," Henry continued. "A family. Do you know how sad she gets when she sees other kids in school with a family and she does not have one?"

"And you know that after spending a few hours with her?" Zoe deadpanned.

"Maria and I have bonded so well. This should be a sign that we all belong together." Henry said.

"Maria has a family. She has me and Leo."

"You know very well that is not enough