All Chapters of Groom on Paper, Third Wheel in Reality: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

The courthouse staff looked at me with sympathy as they handed back the marriage certificate.I gripped it so tightly my fingertips turned white. When I stood up, I nearly lost my balance. The name Tristan Prescott felt like a needle piercing straight into my heart, drawing fresh blood.I stared at the photo on the marriage certificate where I was smiling with pure happiness, and my eyes stung with tears.Five years ago, my wedding with Delaney Sterling had been a grand affair.To make it up to me, Delaney had paid for every LED screen in the city to play our shared memories, and fireworks worth millions lit up the night sky. She had even designed and handcrafted my wedding ring herself. It was truly one of a kind.In our five years of marriage, we had been inseparable. Everyone around us envied our relationship and saw us as a match made in heaven. But it turned out that it had all been a lie. I returned home in a daze. Just as I was about to push open the door, voices drifte

Chapter 2

But when Delaney reached out to help me, I instinctively pulled away. Her eyes flickered with panic as she carefully asked, "Max, what's wrong?"I stared at her, wondering just how much sincerity lay behind those anxious eyes. "It's nothing. I was out in the sun earlier, so I feel a little dizzy."She helped me over to the couch and looked at the bruises on my knees with a gaze full of concern. For a moment, I almost wondered if there really had been some error in the courthouse records.Delaney stiffened for a moment. Then, she dropped her gaze, unable to look at me. "Don't you have Colin's sports day at kindergarten this afternoon? You should've just let the lawyer handle the reissuance of the marriage certificate. It's a small matter, after all."I forced a smile that looked worse than crying. "Okay."After they left the house, I made a phone call. "I accept the organization's assignment. I will proceed to Veyrn Rift.""Are you sure about this, Maxwell? You should think it thr

Chapter 3

In the midst of the chaos, Colin jumped up excitedly and ran to give Tristan a high five. "Mr. Prescott, did you see how accurate my throw was?"I stared at them in a daze, my heart hurting far more than the wound on my head.Delaney's expression changed drastically when she picked up the bean bag. "This isn't our bean bag! I want the surveillance footage in the equipment room checked!"I watched Tristan and caught the flash of panic in his eyes."This is probably just a mix-up. Let's get Max to the nurse's office first," Tristan said, grabbing Delaney's wrist with a strange look on his face.His unusual behavior made Delaney freeze. She opened her mouth, then nodded stiffly. "Right. Let's tend to the wound first. Everyone, please carry on.""Carry on? This was intentional harm. It needs to be investigated!" I demanded, raising my voice.Delaney grabbed my arm, her nails digging into my skin as she lowered her voice to a hiss. "Must you make a scene, Maxwell? It's just a little

Chapter 4

"How is that possible?" I cried out.Tristan walked over with a smug look on his face and whispered in my ear, "How does it feel? Your wife, your kid, your family—they're all mine now."I grabbed him by the collar and punched him square in the face. Then, just as I pulled back to hit him again, four burly bodyguards dragged me away and pinned me to the floor."That's enough!" Dad barked. "Maxwell, you have no respect for me at all! How can the Carrington family possibly tolerate you any longer?"Then, he signaled to the bodyguards. And with a sharp crack, my arm was dislocated. My face went pale instantly as searing pain shot through me.Delaney, who had rushed over, tried to stop them, but Tristan was faster. He pleaded on my behalf, "Dad, please don't blame Max. It's all my fault.""See how sensible Tris is?" Howard said. "Hurry up and apologize to him right now!"Staring at the man who now felt like a complete stranger, I fought back my tears and croaked out a single word of

Chapter 5

Delaney froze for a moment before a snort escaped her. "Are you kidding me? How could Maxwell possibly be dead? You must have made a mistake."But when she saw the sympathy in the nurse's eyes, Delaney felt as if her heart were being squeezed, making it hard to breathe. "I want to see him. Right now!"The nurse, frightened by Delaney's bloodshot eyes, handed her a form and said, "If you don't believe me, you can go to the crematorium and see for yourself.""How much did he pay you to go along with a lie like this?" Delaney snapped. "That's enough! You tell him—if he doesn't come back now, then don't bother coming back at all!"Tristan had appeared at some point and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "What's wrong, Laney?""They're telling me that Maxwell is dead and has been sent for cremation. Isn't that ridiculous?"There was a hint of unease beneath Delaney's mocking tone, and Tristan's eyes flashed with resentment, but his tone remained gentle. "Max is probably just ang

Chapter 6

Delaney took out her phone and called her secretary, Julia Briar. "Buy all the new gemstone cufflinks and have them delivered to the house. Make sure they do a good job with the packaging.""Should I have them delivered to Mr. Prescott's place?"Delaney paused for a few seconds. It struck her that after getting married, she had rarely bought me anything. Meanwhile, Tristan had been receiving a steady stream of gifts. "No," she said. "Send them to Maxwell."After hanging up, Delaney felt a sudden pang of guilt when she remembered Julia's question.In five years of marriage, the two of us had become less intimate than when we were dating. Although everyone said we were deeply in love, she knew very well that she had given most of her energy and affection to Tristan."I need to make it up to him properly tonight."So, Delaney arranged for Julia to take Colin to his grandfather's house. Then, she sent me a message. "Don't be mad. I've prepared a surprise for you tonight. Come home

Chapter 7

Several more punches followed. Tristan was a mess of tears and snot, groveling on the floor and begging for mercy."Let you off?" Mom sneered. "Sure. Hit that old bastard the same way you hit Max. Keep going until I'm satisfied, and then I'll let you go."Howard, who was lying on the floor, cursed furiously when he heard Mom's words. "You vicious woman! You're actually ordering a son to beat up his own father? You'll get what's coming to you, Pam—"The rest of his words died in his throat as he watched Tristan's face twist into a snarl and raise his fist high.The brutal spectacle made Delaney tremble uncontrollably.Mom lifted an eyebrow, her gaze cutting toward Delaney like a knife. "As for you…" she began coldly. "I watched you grow up. I thought you and Max would be a perfect match. I never imagined you'd take a liking to this sort of trash."Delaney's face flushed with humiliation at Mom's words."You colluded with Howard to forge a fake paternity test for Max, and you even

Chapter 8

Everything from the funeral played out on my computer screen."She's crying so miserably. Is she regretting it now?" my former rival, 034, scoffed from beside me. Then, shooting me an amused look, he asked, "Hey, 027, is this the woman you left the organization for back then? The one you wanted to marry?"I closed the surveillance feed without answering, then turned and walked toward the helipad. The wind and snow of Veyrn Rift were calling out to me. There would be no lies or deception there—only eternal ice and snow, and a new beginning."Let's go. None of that has anything to do with me anymore," I said calmly, my voice devoid of emotion as I headed straight for the helicopter.Just as the cabin door was about to close, a slender hand reached out and grabbed it. "How could you leave without me?"I stared in surprise at the familiar woman before me. "Gillian? What are you doing here?"She chuckled softly, stepped into the helicopter, and sat down beside me. "Call me 009. I'll

Chapter 9

But Delaney had underestimated Tristan's ruthlessness. By the next morning, he'd already vanished.As Delaney was sending people to search for him, a phone call suddenly came in. "Transfer 100 million to this account, or…"The camera shifted slightly before Colin was revealed to be tied up and gagged."He's your son too!" Delaney exclaimed, trembling with rage. She never imagined Tristan to be so cruel as to harm his own son. "Save the nonsense!" Tristan snapped. "You have five minutes. If I don't see the money, you can expect to collect his corpse!""How could I possibly get such a huge sum in five minutes—"But he'd cut the call before she could even finish. Delaney rushed to prepare the money while trying to trace his location. But barely five minutes later, a photo of a bloody, severed finger was sent to her phone.Using the location they had tracked, the police surrounded the warehouse where Tristan was hiding. When they broke in, he was still counting the zeros in his

Chapter 10

"The mission is almost over. We just need to escort the target out safely, and then we can return."Gillian came up beside me at some point and took my hand. "After we go back, would you like to spend the rest of your life with me and study the subject of marriage?"I paused for a second, then interlaced our fingers and kissed her lips passionately. That was my answer.…When I brought Gillian home, Mom's mug slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor. Her lips trembled, and her frail, aged fingers hovered in the air, as if afraid that touching me would make me disappear. "Max? Is it really you?"I crouched lower toward her and took her hand. "Mom, I'm back!"The next second, her palm landed hard on my face. "You rascal! Do you have any idea what these ten years have been like for me?"Gillian silently handed her a handkerchief. Mom glanced at her, understanding at once, and pulled us both into her embrace.…A week later, Mom hosted a wedding for Gillian and me at the

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