“Understood, Mrs. Arvant. I’ll check the records and begin the paperwork. Please hold for a moment.”
I paced the room while waiting, each second stretching endlessly. Candlelight flickered, casting shadows along the walls like ghosts of everything I’d believed in.
Finally, the line clicked again.
“Mrs. Arvant,” the lawyer spoke cautiously, “there appears to be… a complication.”
My grip on the phone tightened. “What kind of complication?”
There was a brief pause before he continued. “I’ve reviewed the registry, and there’s no documentation of your marriage to Mr. Nikolai Arvant. From a legal standpoint… your marriage to Mr. Arvant was never officially registered.”
The sound of the door opening made me go still. My breath caught in my throat as footsteps echoed down the hallway—ones I knew by heart. I turned slightly, and my chest tightened.
Nikolai.
And beside him… Sabine.
My stomach churned. I had barely processed the lawyer’s words—that Nikolai and I had never been legally married, that the past five years had meant nothing. Yet here they were, walking in together, laughing as though my world hadn’t just collapsed.
“Are you sure I should come today?” Sabine asked, her tone gentle, though the hesitation sounded rehearsed. “It’s your anniversary, after all.”
Nikolai let out a low chuckle, amused. “Relax. You know we were never truly married. That’s why I’m planning to marry you soon. I only stayed with her for the company. Once everything’s transferred under my name, I’ll make it official. Honestly, I only kept her around because I pitied her after her parents died… but I should’ve left her long ago. For you.”
Sabine laughed softly. “Nikolai, she still thinks she’s your wife.”
He gave a faint, careless laugh. “She’s blind, Sabine. She won’t even know you’re here. It’ll stay between us.”
Sabine giggled. “That makes things easier.”
Nikolai lowered his voice, teasing. “Even if we slept together right in front of her, she wouldn’t notice.”
Something inside me cracked completely. I thought I had already reached the bottom—but they had found a deeper place to push me.
Still, I didn’t react. I swallowed the pain, wiped the tears from my face, and forced myself to move. Slowly, I stepped into the living room, keeping my voice soft.
“Nikolai? Is that you?”
I caught Sabine’s quiet intake of breath, but Nikolai’s tone shifted instantly, warm and gentle. “Yes, love. Happy anniversary.”