Oops... I Married the Wrong Billionaire

7

The clock on the kitchen microwave read 6:15 AM, and Ava stood in the middle of the massive penthouse living area in her sleep shirt, her hair messy, staring at the empty glass table near the floor-to-ceiling windows. Her bag—the big brown leather one that held her sketchbooks, drawing tablet, and measuring tape—was gone.

She marched toward the kitchen, where Lucas was standing by the counter in a dark suit jacket and slacks, drinking black coffee and reading on a tablet.

"Where is my bag?" Ava demanded, stopping on the other side of the island.

Lucas didn't look up immediately. "In the hall closet near the main entrance."

"You went near my things again!" Ava threw her hands up. "I left my bag on the table in the living room last night!"

"Your room is down the hall," Lucas said, finally setting his coffee down and looking at her with a calm, plain expression. "But you left your bag in the common area, eighteen inches from the primary window. Level Two security means heavy bags stay in the closet overnight so they do not block a exit if there is a fire."

"My bag was on a table, Lucas!" Ava said, leaning over the marble counter. "It wasn't blocking anything! You're using security as an excuse to clean up after me!"

"Your handbag was blocking an exit," Lucas said flatly.

"My handbag has never blocked an exit in its life!" Ava shot back. "It holds a sketchbook and some pencils!"

"In the dark, a strap on the floor can trip someone," Lucas said, completely unbothered. "I put it in the closet. That is all."

Ava glared at him, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. "You are unbelievable. You know that? You probably have a schedule for when people are allowed to breathe."

"I do not," Lucas said deadpan. "That would be inefficient."

"I will go to your room, I will mix up your socks," Ava warned him, pointing a finger at his face. "I am going to put the dark gray ones with the black ones and ruin your morning."

Lucas stared at her for a second, his gray eyes steady. "That would cause unnecessary delay."

"Good!" Ava said. "Because moving my bag caused me an unnecessary headache!"

Before she could say another word, Lucas’s phone buzzed on the counter. He answered it, listened for a few seconds, and then looked at her.

"Dress warmly," Lucas said, picking up his suit coat. "We are meeting Victoria, Ethan, and the registry employee at a private office downtown in twenty minutes."

The meeting took place in a quiet, windowless conference room in a private building near the financial district.

When Ava and Lucas walked in, Ethan and Victoria were already sitting on opposite sides of a long glass table. Ethan looked tired, his clothes a bit wrinkled, while Victoria sat up straight in a brown coat, looking neat and cool.

As soon as Ava came through the door, Ethan stood up immediately. His eyes softened, and he walked straight over to her, pulling her into a quick, warm hug.

"Are you okay?" Ethan asked softly, his hand lingering on her arm as he pulled back. "You look tired. Is he making your life miserable?"

Ava gave him a faint, reassuring smile, leaning into his touch for a second. "I'm okay, Ethan. Just fighting with him over where I put my bag."

Ethan squeezed her hand gently, his thumbs brushing her knuckles before he let go. They had been together for six years before this nightmare happened, and even with the legal disaster hanging over them, the habit of caring for each other was still there.

Across the room, Victoria didn't look bothered at all. She looked at Lucas, and Lucas looked back at her. Neither of them smiled, and neither of them looked angry. It was just a quiet, clean, businesslike silence between two people who knew each other too well to waste words.

"Sit down," Victoria said, breaking the silence. "The man is here."

In the corner sat a nervous, middle-aged man in a faded jacket. His name was Horace Doggs, a low-level worker from the city registry office. He was clutching a paper cup of water, his hands trembling.

Lucas walked to the head of the table, his tall frame instantly taking over the room. He leaned his hands on the glass surface and looked down at Doggs.

"Mr. Doggs," Lucas said, his voice low and firm. "Tell us what happened."

Doggs swallowed hard, looking terrified. "I didn't forge any signatures! I swear! The signatures on the paper documents are real!"

"We know the signatures are real," Victoria said smoothly, folding her hands on the table. "Who paid you to change the system records before we signed?"

"I don't know who it was!" Doggs blurted out. "Someone sent a burner phone to my house three days before your appointments! They knew I needed money for my debt. They said if I logged into the system at 09:14 AM and swapped the file codes, I would get two hundred thousand dollars in an account."

Ethan frowned, stepping closer to the table. "You ruined four people's lives for a bribe?"

"I just pressed a few keys!" Doggs said, his voice cracking. "The computer made the wrong documents automatically! I didn't even know who you were!”

Ava stared at the man, shaking her head. "So somebody blew up a big corporate deal and accidentally gave me a husband... because you wanted quick money?"

Lucas turned his head, his cool gray eyes resting on her. "That is one way to look at it, Ms. Carter."

"It's the most honest way, Lucas," Ava shot back.

Victoria cut in, looking at Doggs. "How did they contact you? Name, address, anything."

"It was all through the phone!" Doggs insisted. "The only real thing I got was a big grey envelope in my mailbox with the instructions."

"Was there anything on the envelope?" Lucas asked, his tone dropping into a hard, quiet register.

Doggs paused, trying to remember. "No name. Just a wax seal on the back. It had a picture stamped into it. A bird with its wings open... a silver falcon."

The room went completely quiet.

Ethan looked confused. "A silver falcon? What is that?"

Ava looked at Lucas, expecting him to explain, but Lucas didn't say a word. His face was totally still, his jaw locked tight. For a second, Ava saw a flicker of real concern in his eyes. He knew what that symbol meant.

Lucas picked his phone and dialed a number and soon Harrison came in. "Harrison," Lucas said quietly. "Take Mr. Doggs outside to my security team."

Harrison gestured for Doggs to follow him out the door.

Once the door closed, Ethan turned to Ava, his face full of worry. He took her hand again, holding it tight. "Ava, this is dangerous. Silver wax seals and secret payments? You can't stay at his penthouse anymore. Come stay with me, or let me get you a hotel room."

Ava hesitated, looking down at their joined hands.

"No," Lucas said, his voice cutting through the quiet room.

Ethan turned to him, his eyes narrowing. "She's my partner, Lucas. I'm not leaving her in your apartment while people are pulling stuff like this."

"Ms. Carter is staying at the penthouse," Lucas said, his voice totally steady and unyielding. "My residence has a full security team, private access, and biometric locks. Outside of my home, she is an open target for the press and whoever sent that envelope. She is safer there than anywhere else."

Ethan looked at Ava, then looked at Lucas. He hated to admit it, but Lucas was right. Ethan’s own small apartment had zero security, and reporters were already parked on his street.

Ethan let out a long breath, looking back at Ava. "Is that what you want?"

Ava looked at Ethan softly, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze before letting go. "He's right, Ethan. It's safer for now. We need to figure out who did this and get our lives back."

Ethan nodded slowly, though he clearly didn't like it.

An hour later, Ava and Lucas returned to the quiet penthouse.

Ava sat on a stool at the kitchen counter, sketching in her notebook while Lucas stood by the window, answering emails on his tablet. The silence between them was heavy, but no longer angry.

Suddenly, Lucas's phone rang.

He answered it, listened for a moment, and Ava noticed the tight tension in his shoulders instantly disappear. His face softened in a way she hadn't seen before.

"Bring him up," Lucas said into the phone before hanging up.

Ava looked up from her sketchbook. "Who was that?"

"My uncle," Lucas said, setting his tablet down on the counter. "Richard."

Ava tilted her head. "Your uncle? Is he coming to talk about company business?"

"Richard does not care about company business," Lucas said, and for the first time, his voice sounded almost warm. "He runs our family's charities overseas. He is the only person in my family who treats me like a person instead of a manager."

The private elevator chimed, and the heavy doors opened.

Ava stood up, expecting another cold, rigid man in a suit. But the man who stepped out into the hallway was wearing a simple jacket, holding a paper bag that smelled like fresh pastries, and smiling warmly.

Ava looked at him, then looked at Lucas, realizing very quickly that Richard Ashford was going to change everything.