Chapter 17 Zofia
zofia
october
As soon as we stepped off the plane, my phone pinged—it was a message from the group chat I was in with Angelina, Gabbi, Charlotte and Noelle.
Angelina
ZOFIA AVANTHIKA NARAYAN.
We need to have words, babe.
What’s this I see about you and Nic GETTING MARRIED?
SPILL. I WANT ALL THE DETAILS. Leave nothing out!
Gabbi
Wait wait wait. Hold on. Zofia and Nic got married??? WHEN?
Angelina
This weekend, apparently.
Charlotte
Did we know they were together? I didn’t think we knew they were together.
Gabbi
No, Char. We did not.
Angelina
I suspected, though.
Nicolas has always had puppy eyes for her.
Noelle
Definitely not what I thought I’d be opening up this group chat to find.
But congrats, Zofia!
Zofia
Sorry, I’m just getting off the plane.
I was going to tell you all, I promise.
It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. We didn’t exactly plan it.
Angelina
Still, without us??? I’m hurt.
Zofia
I know. But it’s not like I was going to call you and demand you fly to come to our wedding in Vegas.
Angelina
I would have.
Zofia
How did you even find out?
Angelina
Your lovely husband posted about it. On Instagram.
I looked over at Nic who was grabbing our luggage before we headed towards the waiting towncar. “You posted that we got married?”
He shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Yeah. Was I… not supposed to?”
“We didn’t even tell everyone yet.” I showed him the texts from the girls, which were still continuing. I ignored them for now, not wanting to give more of an explanation yet. “They’re freaking out.”
Nic’s phone buzzed next. “It’s the guys,” he chuckled. “Guess I’m about to get the same thing.”
My phone started ringing. “Oh, fuck me.” I pressed the answer button. “Hi, Amma.” I looked at my new husband, and he winced.
“You got married this weekend?” She asked, her tone full of hurt.
“I’m sorry. I was going to tell you once I got home and had a chance to come over. We decided to elope instead of worrying about the whole civil ceremony at the courthouse.” Nic locked eyes with me as I said, “We’ll still plan a big ceremony and you and Appa can give me away, I promise.”
She sighed. “Okay. As long as you’re happy, Kutti.”
“I am.” Nic squeezed my hand next to me, and I shared a few more placating words with my mother, promising we’d come by for dinner one night this week, before we slipped into the car.
“I guess the cat’s really out of the bag now,” I said, blowing out a breath.
“No going back,” Nic said. “We’re in this together, remember?”
Leaning over, I pressed a kiss to his cheek before he put the car in reverse. “We are. I’m on your team—always.”
He gave me a warm smile. “And I’m sorry for not telling you about the post. I just wanted everyone to know.” He picked up my hand, kissing it, before resting his on my thigh.
I looked at the photo he’d posted—one of the two of us from the chapel, and the caption was a simple my wife with a red heart emoji and the date we’d tied the knot.
“You’re forgiven,” I said, knowing I wasn’t really mad. “I was a little blindsided, but it’s like ripping a bandaid off. Now it’s over, and we don’t have to hide anymore.”
Part of me liked his possessive streak, how he wanted everyone to know I was his.
I knew it had to do with selling our fake relationship as real, but I liked to imagine he did it because he actually felt something for me.
My heart fluttered as I looked over at my husband, one hand on the steering wheel.
He laughed. “No more hiding our fake relationship, huh?”
I wished it didn’t hurt. That calling it fake didn’t make me want to cave in on myself.
Especially with how insatiable we were. We’d fucked on every surface of the suite over the long weekend, including in the bathtub, and used an entire box of condoms, and even though I was sore and my body ached everywhere, I still wanted more of him.
It was a sobering thought, because how was I supposed to be married to him and want him this bad when it was all a lie?
He pulled up to my apartment complex, pulling into a spot, and before I could open the door, there he was, offering me a hand.
“Go get some rest,” he said to me at my door, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “Tomorrow, after work, I’ll come over and we can start packing you up to move in.”
“Alright,” I said, swallowing roughly. I didn’t know why I was so nervous about living with him, but I was.
Maybe because it would be a lot harder to hide my feelings there.
That was why I’d had the no sex rule in the first place, dammit.
Neither of us was supposed to be catching feelings, and it definitely wasn’t supposed to be me.
Even putting up barriers to protect myself, I still worried about my heart if I let myself fall into the fantasy. That was why I had rules. Because getting attached, letting myself believe in a future that wasn’t promised… I couldn’t do it again.
Ever since the wedding, everything felt different. Heightened, somehow.
“Yes.” He grinned, looking like an excited golden retriever wagging his tail. “I’m looking forward to living with my wife, Gorgeous.” He winked. “See you in the morning.”
“Okay,” I whispered, and he pressed a soft kiss to my lips, not letting it go any farther, before walking back to his car, leaving me to wonder if I’d just made the biggest mistake of my life…
Or the best.
“I knew it,” Gabbi said when she walked into my office the next morning, wrapping her arms around me in a hug. “Let me see that ring!”
“I still can’t believe you got married without us,” Angelina mused as she swung her legs from where she was perched on the edge of my desk. After her meeting with Nic this morning, she’d hopped up to that spot and hadn’t left since.
Not that I was complaining. I loved having friends close enough that they gossiped at my desk with me.
I felt sheepish as I held out my hand, her eyes alight as she inspected my engagement ring.
“We were trying to keep it secret,” I said, going with Nic and I’d agreed upon story.
“You know how it is. It’s not exactly against company policies, but it is frowned upon to date your superior. And he’s about as superior as it gets.”
She looked over at her best friend. “I know what you mean. Benjamin told Hunter he wasn’t allowed to touch me.” She rolled her eyes. “Like that was going to keep us apart.”
Angelina shrugged, like she didn’t have any control over her husband’s actions. Man was obsessed with her, so honestly, I understood that.
“You’re perfect for each other,” I said.
“You and Nic are too,” Gabbi said, squeezing my hand. “We’ve known Nic for years, and honestly, I’ve never seen him smile as much as he does around you.”
I scrunched up my nose. “He’s always smiling.”
Gabbi grinned. “Exactly. Still, I just can’t believe you didn’t even tell us you were engaged.”
“It was definitely hard to keep it from everyone. I would have loved if everyone was at the wedding, but… is it bad that I kind of loved that it was just us?”
“I’m so happy for you two. Besides, after planning a wedding, I definitely understand why you’d want to elope.
” Angelina snorted. “It was magical—besides me getting a little too tipsy since everyone kept handing me alcohol—and I’m so glad to be married to him.
” She flicked her eyes over to Benjamin, who was still talking with Nic.
“Even if he drives me crazy most of the time.”
“Yeah,” I responded, twisting the ring on my finger.
I was still getting used to wearing it, and sometimes I’d catch myself staring at it while I was at work.
Luckily, no one had caught me yet. “It just felt… right. Besides, I insisted to my parents that we’d still plan a traditional wedding ceremony.
They’ve already done it twice, but those were for my brothers, and I know how important it is to them. ”
“Hey, people thought we were crazy planning ours in less than six months, and it all worked out.”
I laughed. “You were crazy. Speaking of events, I’ve already started planning the charity gala. You in to help me this year?”
“Of course. It’s my favorite event of the year. Tell me what needs to get done on my end, and I’ll have it all to you.”
“You’re the best,” I told her, marking that off my to-do list. Delegation was everything in my job, but I didn’t want to give up the gala.
She brushed her ponytail off her shoulder.
“I know.” Angelina winked, standing up and looking at Benjamin.
“Alright, let me go rescue the boss from my husband. Otherwise, those two will probably be in there all day.” Her face curled into a mischievous smile as she looked at me.
“Our husbands. Wow. That’s crazy to say.
” She shook her head, letting out a small laugh.
“Anyway, I’ll see you later, babe. We’ll have to get everyone together for dinner some time this week. ”
“After I’m all moved in with Nic, I’d definitely be down for that.”
“If you need any help, let us know,” Gabbi said. “I’m sure the guys would all help.”
I hadn’t even considered asking, and I felt so touched. “Thank you. I… I’ll probably take you up on that, actually.”
She hugged me and then squeezed my hands. “We’ve got you, Zo. Always.”
“That’s what friends are for,” Angelina told me.
I’d never felt so lucky to have them in my life.
It took until Friday until my apartment was completely packed up. Nic had called the guys, asking for help with some of the heavy lifting.
Since we’d agreed to be married for two years, I’d broken my lease instead of subleasing it, not wanting to deal with the additional headache.
It was up soon, anyway, and it made more sense financially.
I’d rather put the rent money into savings for a future business or a future college fund than waste it on rent when Nic had a perfectly good house.
It was strange seeing my entire life packed up into boxes, all the pictures and decorations gone off my walls. It looked like I’d never even lived here, even though I’d spent the last few years in this one-bedroom apartment.
The last loads were already packed up in Nic’s car, Matthew’s truck, and Hunter’s jeep.
My extra furniture was already at Nic’s place, and we’d dropped it off the rest at a used furniture store to be sold.
I kept the heirloom antiques I’d gotten from my family, and sentimental things I didn’t want to part with.
The only thing that remained was Duchess’s cage, and after I walked out the door, I’d officially be living with my boss. And my fake husband. I looked down at my ring finger, at the ring he’d given me. I was giving up everything. My independence, my privacy. The place I’d called my own.
This was the place where I’d picked myself up after my life had fallen apart—after Samir had cheated on me, and I hadn’t been able to keep living in the place where he’d slept with someone else in my bed.
Picking up Duchess, I stroked between her ears as I surveyed the place one last time. I was surprised that I didn’t feel upset, knowing I was about to say goodbye. But I wasn’t the same girl I’d been when I first moved in. That girl was gone, and now I was someone else entirely.
Unexpectedly… A wife.
A title I never thought I’d have after I broke off my engagement. It still gave me goosebumps to think about, even if Nicolas loved to call me my wife like it was going out of style. Secretly, I loved it.
What was even more surprising was the way I was crushing on my fake husband, even when I knew I shouldn’t.
Was this a terrible idea? After the last week together, I realized maybe it wasn’t so bad to have someone else by my side. Especially when that someone else seemed like he existed solely for my pleasure.
I was changing little by little, every day. He was changing me.
“You look deep in thought,” Nic said, curling an arm around my middle. When I looked down, I saw his wedding band resting against his skin, and it made my heart flutter.
“Just thinking about Duchess adjusting to a new home,” I said, not wanting to relay the rest of my internal thoughts.
He nodded. “My dad’s going to be glad when I grab Cooper. He loves him, but I know he’s a lot.” Since he’d been at my apartment every night this week, he’d asked his dad to watch his dog, and I knew he was also looking forward to having him back.
Nic had brought his golden retriever into the office a few times, and he was a big, lovable goofball. The dog had extremely high energy levels and loved all the attention he got every time—practically the opposite of my sweet, docile cat.
“I don’t know how you think they’ll co-exist,” I muttered under my breath.
Especially when I looked at my now-empty apartment, my cat clutched in my arms. Petting her fur, I tried to give her soft words to help her relax, but I was pretty sure that I was trying to comfort myself more than her.
“It’ll be great, Zo,” he told me. “Just like us.” He grinned. “You’ll see.”
I bit my lip. “I guess.”
He pressed a kiss to the exposed skin of my shoulder.
“Are you ready?” Nic’s breath warmed my neck, and I turned, finding him with a question on his face. “Because if you’re not, we don’t have to do this. I know we’re married, and we have the contract, but—”
“Yeah. It’s time to move on.” I looked around one last time.
I was leaving my past behind—and that felt freeing in a whole new way.
Squeezing his arm that was wrapped around me, I nodded.
“I’m okay, really. Better than okay.” How could I not be, with someone as caring and thoughtful as him as my husband?
We hadn’t talked about our Vegas sex-fest, but I’d noticed that Nic had carried all of my clothes and personal items directly into his room when he’d been unloading, leaving no question of where I’d be sleeping every night.
After a week of sleeping alone, I was looking forward to sharing a bed with him again.
He was like an extra cozy blanket, and I loved falling asleep with him spooning me, or waking up draped across him.
“Let’s go home, Nic,” I told him, a slight rush coming at the words.
Ever since things had ended with Samir, I’d had no long-term relationships where we’d lived together or shared a bed. It had just felt too intimate, too real.
And now I was doing all of that with a husband. It was crazy how fast life could change.
Nicolas nodded, interlacing his fingers through mine. I left the empty apartment behind, heading towards the next chapter of my life.