His Revenge Bride: The Billionaire's Contract Wife

Chapter 2: The World Watches Me Break

The Montgomery family jet touched down in New York at 1:47 AM local time. Jessica kept the i********: Live running the whole flight. By now, we had 5.8 million people watching.

"This is so romantic," she whispered to the camera, her words slightly slurred. "We're going to surprise her future husband! This is like a movie!"

The penthouse was in Tribeca. The most expensive building in Manhattan. Alex and I had picked it out together six months ago. I remembered that day perfectly. He had kissed me in the empty living room and said, "This is where we'll start our life together."

I couldn't wait to see his face when I walked through the door.

Jessica fumbled with the key. The lock clicked. The door swung open.

The lights were dim. Soft music played from the bedroom—jazz, the kind Alex knew I loved. Candles flickered.

My heart skipped. Maybe Alex was waiting up for me after all. Maybe he had planned a romantic surprise.

"Alex?" I called out, walking toward the bedroom. My heels clicked on the marble floor. Jessica followed, phone still recording, giggling. "Baby, I'm home early! Surprise!"

I pushed open the bedroom door.

Time stopped.

Alex was in bed. Our bed. The one we had picked out together at that boutique in SoHo.

But he wasn't alone.

A man was with him. Naked. Tangled in the sheets. Dark hair messy. Perfect abs. I recognized him instantly—Julian Reyes. The supermodel from the Calvin Klein campaigns. The one Alex said was "just a business contact" when I asked why they had lunch together last month.

They were kissing. Deep and passionate. Alex's hand was in Julian's hair.

This wasn't a mistake. This wasn't a drunk accident.

This was real. This was them.

My champagne glass slipped from my hand. It shattered on the floor. The sound echoed like a gunshot.

Alex jerked away from Julian. His eyes went wide. His face drained of all color.

"Sophia!" He scrambled up, pulling the sheet around his waist. "This isn't—it's not what it looks like!"

I couldn't breathe. My chest was tight. My hands were numb. The room spun.

"Oh my God," Jessica whispered behind me. The phone in her hand was still recording. Still live. I could see the screen from the corner of my eye—6 million viewers now. The comments were scrolling so fast they blurred.

"You're live," I said. My voice sounded strange. Distant. Like someone else was speaking. "Jessica. You're still live."

She looked down at her phone. Her face went white. "Oh s**t. Oh s**t, Sophia, I'm so sorry, I forgot—"

But it was too late.

5.8 million people had just watched my fiancé cheat on me with a man.

The comments exploded.

"OMG IS THAT JULIAN REYES???"

"ALEX IS GAY???"

"SOMEONE SCREEN RECORD THIS"

"#SophiaAndAlexForever IS OVER"

Julian grabbed the sheets, but every detail was already captured. His face. The hickeys on Alex's neck. The way they had been tangled together.

"Turn it off!" Alex shouted, lunging toward us.

Jessica ended the Live with shaking hands.

But the damage was already done. Screenshots were already being taken. Screen recordings were already being uploaded. The video was already spreading across Twitter, t****k, f*******:, every corner of the internet.

"Let me explain," Alex said, his hands shaking. His eyes were desperate. "Sophia, please, let me—"

"Explain what?" My voice cracked. The numbness was wearing off. Pain crashed into me like a tidal wave. "Explain that you're gay? That our entire relationship has been a lie? That you've been using me?"

"It's not like that! I care about you! The marriage is still—the business deal is—"

"Still a business deal?" I laughed, but it came out as a sob. "That's all it ever was to you, wasn't it? You needed my money. My family's name. My father's connections. And I was stupid enough to believe you loved me."

Memories flashed through my mind. Every kiss that felt cold. Every time he said he was too tired for s*x. Every business trip that lasted weeks. Every time he looked at his phone and smiled at a message he wouldn't let me see.

I had ignored all of it. Made excuses. Believed his lies.

"I do care about you," Alex said, but his voice was hollow. "The wedding can still happen. No one has to know about—"

"Six million people just watched you f**k another man!" The words ripped out of me. "The entire world knows!"

My phone started buzzing in my purse. Then ringing. Then buzzing again. Over and over and over.

I turned and ran. Jessica called after me, but I was already at the elevator. I jabbed the button until the doors opened. I fell inside and pressed the button for the lobby over and over.

The doors closed.

And then I broke.

The sobs came from somewhere deep in my chest. Loud and ugly and raw. My carefully applied makeup ran down my face. My hands shook so hard I dropped my purse.

The elevator dinged. Lobby.

Paparazzi were already there. Cameras flashed. Voices shouted.

"Sophia! Did you know he was gay?"

"Sophia! Are you calling off the wedding?"

"Sophia! Look over here!"

I shoved through them, ignoring the questions, ignoring the cameras. I made it outside and flagged down a taxi.

"Drive," I told the driver. "Just drive."

He pulled away from the curb. I looked back once.

Alex was at the entrance now, wrapped in a robe, shouting my name.

I turned away and let the tears fall.

My phone wouldn't stop ringing. I finally looked at it.

847 missed calls. 12,483 text messages.

One from my mother: "Call me NOW."

One from my father: "What have you done?"

And one from Alex: "I'm sorry. Please. We can fix this."

I turned off my phone and watched the city lights blur past the window.

Everything I thought I knew was a lie.