All Chapters of How I Catfished my Husband and his Girlfriend: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

The jet never left.Sophia noticed it first — the delay in the sound. The engine hum that should have faded into the desert night… didn’t.Her father’s SUV never pulled back toward the gate.Instead, he remained standing near the driveway, hands loosely clasped behind his back, eyes fixed on Dominic.“I’ll stay,” he said finally.Not warm.Not surrendered.Measured.Sophia felt the shift immediately. This wasn’t exile. This was evaluation.They moved inside the house. The Vegas property had always been neutral territory — not the main estate, not fully public. A place for quiet negotiations.Tonight, it felt exactly like that.Her father declined a drink. Dominic accepted water. Sophia remained standing for a moment before sitting deliberately on the sofa — not between them, not behind either one.Her father began without theatrics.“You understand my daughter’s upbringing was… structured.”Dominic nodded. “Yes, sir.”“You understand that structure exists for a reason.”“Yes, sir.”“An

Dominic made the entire elopement feel intentional — not rushed, not reactive — intentional.Sophia wore a tiny white dress that skimmed her frame perfectly. Simple. Elegant. No veil. No cathedral train. Just clean lines and confidence. Dominic wore a perfectly tailored Armani suit, charcoal with a crisp white shirt — understated but sharp enough to make it clear this wasn’t impulsive.When they stood in that small chapel, there were no hundreds of guests. No orchestral swell. No curated seating chart.Just vows.Real ones.Dominic didn’t rush through his. He held her hands firmly, eyes steady, voice low and grounded. When Sophia said “I do,” it wasn’t breathless or dramatic — it was certain.And when the officiant pronounced them husband and wife, Dominic didn’t hesitate.He kissed her like he meant it.Not polite.Not staged.Not for photographs.It was deep, claiming, and unmistakably real.By the time they stepped outside, the Vegas lights flickered against the night sky, and the

Cleveland felt colder than she remembered.Not just the air — the air was sharp enough — but the atmosphere. The weight of it.When Sophia stepped off the escalator into baggage claim, she immediately spotted them.Patrick stood tall, scanning the room like always. When he saw her, his face softened into a genuine smile.John stood beside him, rigid. Arms crossed. Jaw tight.No smile.No nod.Nothing.Sophia forced a small smile anyway and walked toward them. Patrick wrapped her in a warm, protective hug.“Welcome home, Soph,” he said quietly.Home.The word didn’t sit right anymore.John stepped forward, grabbed her suitcase without a word, and turned toward the exit.She blinked.“Hi to you too,” she muttered, but he didn’t respond.She stood there for a second, stunned.Patrick leaned closer. “He’s upset.”“Upset?” she repeated.“He didn’t think you’d actually go through with it. None of us did.”Sophia felt something tighten in her chest. “Go through with what? Getting married?”P

Dominic could hear it in her breathing.The bravado she carried in front of her father…The strength she showed Patrick and John…It wasn’t gone.But it was tired.“Talk to me,” he said softly.She lay back on the bed, staring up at the chandelier she’d looked at since childhood.“They think I’m reckless,” she admitted. “Like I just ran off and married a fantasy.”He was quiet for a moment.“Did you?”She smiled faintly.“No.”“Then let them think what they want for now,” he said. “We don’t have to convince anyone. We just have to build something real.”That steadiness again.It grounded her.“My dad said we have a month,” she told him. “He wants everything done properly. Legal stuff. Financial separation. Security adjustments.”“Good,” Dominic replied.She blinked. “Good?”“Yeah. That means he’s taking it seriously. He’s not dismissing me.”She hadn’t thought of it that way.“He’s testing you,” she said.“I’d expect him to,” Dominic answered. “If I had a daughter like you, I’d test m

The ride home felt longer than usual.No music.No small talk.Just the quiet hum of the engine and the weight of what almost happened.Patrick stayed beside her in the backseat, not hovering — just there. Solid. Steady.Angelo drove.No one mentioned John’s name.When they pulled through the gates, the estate lights were still on.Sophia’s stomach dropped.“He’s awake,” Angelo muttered.Of course he was.Her father didn’t sleep early. Not when something felt off.The SUV rolled to a stop under the portico. Before Sophia could reach for the handle, the front doors opened.Her father stepped out.One look at her face and everything changed.He didn’t ask about the bar.Didn’t comment on the hour.Didn’t notice the faint smell of alcohol.He saw her.“What happened?” he asked, voice dangerously calm.Patrick didn’t hesitate. “John crossed a boundary.”Silence.The air itself felt like it tightened.Her father’s eyes moved to Sophia. “Did he touch you?”She swallowed. “Yes.”That was eno