Chapter 1: A Failed Marriage

Amia only met her husband once—on their wedding day. He was tall, handsome. But after that, they each got busy with their own lives and never thought about their marriage again. So much so that a year later, when George returned to the country, they ended up working in the same office. Yet neither of them realized they were actually married. A series of misunderstandings led them both to believe the other was already married. Even if they wanted to get closer, they felt they absolutely couldn't. --- San Diego. Standing at the entrance of a historic church, Amia was lost in thought, holding some documents. She knew that coming to the church to marry another man was her grandmother's way of making up for her own guilt. Three years ago, something happened that caused Amia to be ostracized by her family. Her grandmother, feeling remorseful but too old to take care of her, arranged for Amia to marry someone else. In fact, three years ago, Amia had developed a fear of marriage. And seeing those around her constantly divorcing made her even less inclined to get married. But to fulfill her grandmother’s wish, she had come to the church. "Miss Amia!" A deep male voice interrupted her thoughts. Amia turned around to see a man dressed in a clean, black suit. She pulled out her phone and checked a photo, realizing this man was indeed the one she was supposed to marry. So this was the person she had been looking for. Her first impression was quite good—the man was very handsome, about six foot three, and well-groomed. Meeting him made Amia feel a bit happy. Walking up to him, she said, "You must be Mr. George?" George nodded, and together, they walked towards the church. At that moment, Amia hesitated, stopping in her tracks, and looked at George curiously. "Mr. George, are you sure you want to marry me? I can still give you a chance to back out." Amia spoke seriously. Marriage isn’t a game or something to be taken lightly; it requires careful consideration. "I’ve already thought it over, no problem. Do you have a problem?" George glanced at her. Amia had wanted to ask if George knew anything about her. But then she thought that he was likely in the same situation as her, pushed into this marriage by his family, so she decided not to ask, feeling it would be pointless. She shook her head, and the two of them went to the church’s registry office. With the priest as their witness, they were married and exchanged tokens of love. Afterward, George handed Amia a black credit card. "You can use the money in this card however you like. The password is six ones. I’ll be very busy with work, so I won’t have much time to spend with you." As Amia was about to ask more, George had already gotten into a car and driven away. Holding the black card, Amia felt a mix of emotions. She worked at TekTech Company as a team leader. She had never planned to rely on a man’s money for the rest of her life. She wanted to earn her own money through hard work. Her dream was simply to marry, have children, and live a happy life. Everything else was just to appease her family. But if George was willing to spend the rest of his life with her and be serious about their marriage, Amia was ready to give her heart to him. After leaving the church, Amia sent a picture of their marriage certificate to her grandmother. "Grandma, I’ve done what you asked. George and I are married now." Amia informed her. Her grandmother sounded very pleased on the other end, "Good, good. It’s good that you’re married. George is a great man; don’t disappoint him. May God bless you both!" Then she hung up, but Amia still felt something wasn’t quite right. In this society, while most parents aren’t overly strict with their children, marriage is still a big deal. So they often push their children to get married. But Amia felt that even though she was married, it didn’t feel like she was. After the wedding, George was nowhere to be seen for a year, and Amia started to feel like her husband had vanished into thin air. If it weren’t for the few thousand dollars he sent every month, she might have thought she was a widow. Over the course of a year, Amia’s outstanding performance led to her being transferred to the secretary department at TekTech Group. One day, she and her colleagues received instructions that the company’s CEO was arriving, so they lined up at the elevator, waiting for the CEO of TekTech to arrive. Soon, the elevator doors opened, and out stepped a tall man, about six foot three. "Amia, that’s our CEO, Mr. Steve." A colleague whispered. Amia glanced at Steve, thinking he was quite handsome, though somewhat familiar. "I didn’t expect Mr. Steve to be so handsome and manly." Amia muttered to herself, as this was her honest impression. "Of course, he’s handsome. That’s why he’s the CEO. Unlike some people who just want to marry into a wealthy family without any real skills." The speaker was Mike, who often made things difficult for Amia at work. Mike had once confessed to Amia, but she had rejected him in front of everyone, so he was always angry with her. "What are you all talking about? Come to my office." Steve’s assistant, Marilyn, pointed at Amia and the other two. Marilyn was leaving for another position, so they needed to select someone to be the CEO’s new assistant. The candidates were to be chosen from among Amia and her colleagues. As they entered the CEO’s office, they were struck by its size. There was a large floor-to-ceiling window, and the space looked very luxurious. A few small church sculptures were even displayed in the corner. "Mr. Steve, I’ve brought the candidates for you." Marilyn said as Steve scanned the group with his sharp gaze. Feeling Steve’s cold stare, the group shuddered, not daring to meet his eyes. Mike stepped forward nervously, "Mr. Steve, my uncle worked under you for ten years. He was your most trusted assistant." Steve glanced at Mike but didn’t respond. He had little respect for people who used family connections to get ahead. Then Steve looked at Amia, and as she took a closer look at his handsome, stern face, she felt an unexpected sense of admiration. Steve’s face was cold yet handsome, with a high, sculpted nose like a statue. However, Amia couldn’t shake the feeling that Steve looked familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere before, though she couldn’t quite place it. What Amia didn’t know was that Steve was actually George. He had changed his appearance slightly, so Amia hadn’t recognized him. George had disguised his identity because he didn’t want anyone to know about his background.