Chapter 1

MAY. “She can’t stay here anymore, Anna!” I hold my breath, scared that they might hear me from where I lean against the thin wall. I really shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but I can’t help it. They’re arguing about me like they do every single day. “And you expect me to throw my sister out? Where else would she go? I am all she has!” Anna yells, frustration evident in her strained voice. Tears prick my eyes. She’s right. She is all I have. Our parents died when we were fresh out of high school. A car accident. It left wounds. The kind that never heal. Anna and I barely made it through the first months after their deaths. Many times, I wished I had died in the car with them. I know Anna did too. But we’d never spoken the words out loud, choosing instead to be each other’s strengths. Be that tether that pulls the other through the raging storm. College had been difficult, but Anna had always been there, making it easier to get through every day. She was a constant in my life, and I’m not sure how to live without her. I have to find a way, though. My way, because Sean isn’t having it. He’s changed over the past few months. It was alright when he was courting Anna, agreeing to let me live with them until I could figure out my path and get my shit together. Now, though, he can barely stand being in the same room with me, and he does little to hide his displeasure. “She isn’t a child anymore! I’m sick of this, Anna. We cannot keep feeding and pampering her. She’s a grown-ass woman. I want her out of here before the week runs out—“ “Sean!” Anna cries. “I can’t do that to May.” I push off the wall quietly, the sound of my sister crying pushing me further into my room and closet. I pull out my clothes, wiping tears off my cheeks angrily. Yeah, Sean, I am a grown-ass woman. I can find my own way. I wait tables at a semi-upscale diner, the kind that actually takes reservations. The tips are decent, and I contribute what I can for my share of the household expenses, so it's not like I'm a total leech. But that still doesn't stop Sean's comments. The big problem is that there seems to be nowhere nearby that's not sketchy and that I can afford. I suppose I could get another waitress job in a cheaper city. Or perhaps I’ll sleep under a bridge like a troll. Doesn’t matter. I’ll figure it out when I leave. I am halfway through sorting my things when I hear a knock on the door. “May?” My heart slams into my chest and I shove my things back into the closet before she can see it and break down again. The door creaks just as I slam the closet door shut and I lean against it to keep it closed. “Hey.” She smiles, but I see the sadness and fatigue in her blue doe eyes. “You’re dressed. Heading somewhere?” “Ah…yeah…Just headed to the grocery store. I’ll be right back,” I lie, pulling my coat off its hangar. I wrap my hair into a bun and shrug into the coat as I head out the door. “May,” Anna calls out as my fingers grasp the doorknob. I turn slightly, forcing a smile on my face. “Yeah?” Her eyes are lined with silver and red-rimmed. “You know that I love you, right?” My smile widens. “Yeah. Love you too, sis.” Yeah. She knows she has to kick me out. I can already tell. I don’t fault her for it. Sean is her family now, and they’re having a kid soon. She shouldn’t have to ruin her marriage because of me. I won’t let her do that. **** I have no idea how I noticed, seeing as I have been lost in thought for the past hour. But I do, somehow. There’s an old woman crossing the street with a cane. The approaching car is racing too close for comfort, apparently unaware of the flashing crosswalk sign. She won’t make it in time, I realize. Already, the pedestrians on the sidewalk are yelling at the driver, yelling at her, like they can’t see that moving is already hard enough. She’s limping. Some have their phones out, already videoing the accident that they think is about to occur. It's like a scene out of a movie, where some hero might swoop in and save her. In this movie, that hero would be the closest person — me. Groaning, I race for her. I am pretty close and it only takes a second to reach her, and I grab her hand and pull her into me before the speeding car can put her down. She stumbles with a surprised yelp, toppling us over. The car whizzes past the next second, snapping her forgotten cane in half. “Nice save!” someone exclaims, walking past us and I resist the urge to cuss at them. “Oh dear, are you alright?” the old woman says as I help her to her feet. Her fingers clutch my arm firmly as she inspects the blood on my elbow. I snatch my arm back. “I’m fine. It’s nothing.” She smiles, fingers reaching up for my face. I try not to flinch. Since Mom died, no one has ever touched me with this amount of warmth. “Thank you, child. You saved my life.” I shake my head, smiling softly. “It’s alright. I hope someone got the license plate number.” She waves me off, fingers slipping into mine as she limps toward a small car parked a few feet away. “Are you perhaps married, child?” I blink, not following. “What?” "I'm sorry for being so direct, but when one gets to be my age, wasting time isn't a luxury anymore." "Married? Uh..." Lady, please don't say what I think you're about to say... “My grandson is a bachelor. So handsome, well mannered, but he won’t bring home a woman. I'm running out of time to see my future great-grandchildren.” “Ma’am, I don’t—” She turns suddenly, taking both of my hands in hers. Her eyes are wide and hopeful. “Will you just meet him? As a favor to me? He really is a nice young man.” I can’t tell if she is being serious. “But you don't know anything about me.“ She squeezes my hands tightly. “I know that you're the type of person who would risk injury to save a wobbly old lady. Just meet him. I promise no obligation beyond that." **** “I do.” My heart slams into my chest as the judge turns to me, his lips parting to ask me the same question he asked Mr. Chase, the man I’m about to be married to. When Mrs. Chase suggested I meet her grandson, I agreed because I didn’t know how to turn her down gently. Yeah, things escalated quickly after the one "coffee date." I look at the groom and I can’t believe this is happening. Someone this hot wouldn't agree to marry me. Maybe I fell down in that crosswalk and bumped my head; maybe I'm in a hospital right now, dreaming all of this. I've never had preferences when it comes to men, because I've never been in a serious relationship, but this guy is gorgeous. Clad in a simple suit that does not particularly scream wealth or power, there is a grace with which he moves. Sophisticated, yet...simple. His wavy black hair is styled around his chiseled features in a way that makes it look more prominent. With little effort, he is a stunner. Jaw-dropping. “Do you take Ethan Chase as your lawfully wedded husband?” I don’t look at the judge. My gaze is fixed on Ethan. His steel-grey eyes observe me coolly, watching, waiting for my response. No expression. No emotion. Nothing. I can't tell what he thinks, and it makes me more anxious. Standing in front of him feels like being in front of a wall of heat. He is several feet taller than me, and when he peers down at me, it makes me feel warm and cold all at once. He arches a brow, gaze flicking to the judge who awaits my response, and his words at the café replay in my mind, grounding me. **** “What do you say to marriage, May?” I blinked. “I’m not following.” He clasped his slender, manicured fingers together, leaning forward across our corner table in the cafe. “I’m asking you to marry me.” My cheeks heated up and I laughed nervously. “You can’t be serious. You barely even know me.” But he wasn’t smiling. He wasn’t joking. I sat up when I noted the truth in his gaze. “You can’t just expect me to up and marry you after having coffee." "Did you not enjoy our date?" "I did, very much, but... I have a life, you know.” Even I could hear the lie in that, and I suspected he did too. What life? I didn’t even have a place to sleep that night, not without going back to my sister's and begging. This would be a way out if I was crazy enough to consider marrying him—and I was not. “Tell me about this life you have, Ms. May.” Normally, I would have taken offense to that, but there was something about the way Ethan spoke. It was charming and humorous and I found myself saying, “Might want to grab some tissues for this. Or napkins if you're desperate.” I told him everything, and I had never felt so light in my life, so free. I couldn't believe how much I opened up to him, yet I had no desire to stop. Maybe he'd hear my sob story and realize I'd saved him from an insane marriage idea. Maybe he'd excuse himself to the bathroom and that would be it. But he listened to every word attentively, eyes never leaving mine, and when I was done, he said, “Accept my offer and you won’t ever have to worry about any of that anymore. A new life, a new home, a warm bed to sleep at night, and a full stomach.” My lips parted in surprise, and just because I was not sure what to say yet, I tried diverting his attention. “I’m not sharing a bed with you.” He shrugged nonchalantly. “There are no strings attached to my proposal. You do not warm my bed, and I do not warm yours. We are two people in need, helping each other out. This is for the practicality of it. Nothing more. Say yes, and I will give you everything you need to start over.” **** Now, I let out a shaky breath and turn my gaze to the judge. Adrenaline has my heart racing and my blood rushing. I couldn’t think up a reason to say no. I can’t be a burden to Anna anymore. I need to find my way and, regardless of how insane this might be, at least it is a start. “I do.”