THE BRIDE’S REVENGE

CHAPTER2

EMMA'S POV

I wiped my eyes quickly, embarrassed that a stranger was seeing me like this. "I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was here."

"Don't apologize." He closed his laptop and set it aside. "You look like you need this space more than I do."

He was handsome in a casual, unassuming way. Dark hair that looked like he'd run his hands through it a few times, sharp blue eyes that seemed to actually see me, not just look at me. He wore jeans and a simple button-down shirt, definitely not a wedding guest.

"I'm Lucas," he said. "I was just fixing the hotel's network issues."

"You work here?"

"Freelance IT consultant." He gave a slight smile. "The hotel manager called me in a panic this morning. Router problems." He studied my face, and I saw kindness there, not judgment. "Let me guess, wedding gone wrong?"

I laughed, a broken sound that came from somewhere deep in my chest. "Is it that obvious?"

"The wedding dress and tear-streaked makeup were subtle hints." His tone was light but not mocking. "Want to talk about it?"

I should have said no. I should have pulled myself together and figured out my next move. But something about this stranger made me feel safe. Maybe because he didn't know me, didn't have any expectations or judgments already formed.

I sat down on the bench beside him. "I just caught my fiancé cheating on me."

"Ouch."

"With my twin sister."

Lucas winced. "Double ouch."

"They've been together for six months. My mother knew and didn't tell me. They were still going to make me marry him for business reasons." The words poured out of me like water from a broken dam. "My whole family thinks I'm pathetic. Forgettable. Not worth choosing."

"Your family sounds terrible," Lucas said quietly.

I laughed again, this time more genuinely. "They really are, aren't they? I've spent my whole life trying to make them proud, trying to prove I'm just as good as my sister. But it doesn't matter what I do. I'm always the second choice."

"Then stop trying to impress them," Lucas said simply.

"It's not that easy."

"Why not?"

I thought about it. "Because they're my family. Because my grandmother left me her company, but my mother took control of it somehow. Because I have nowhere else to go."

Lucas was quiet for a moment, watching me carefully. "What if you did have somewhere to go?"

"What do you mean?"

He leaned back against the bench, choosing his words carefully. "I have a problem too. My grandfather built his company from nothing, and now he wants to retire. But he won't hand over control unless I'm married."

"That's ridiculous," I said.

"It is. But he's old-fashioned and stubborn. He thinks marriage will make me more responsible, give me someone to work for besides myself." Lucas ran his hand through his hair. "The problem is, every woman I've dated turns out to be more interested in my bank account than in me."

I frowned. "You're an IT consultant. How much money could you possibly have?"

Something flickered across his face, amusement maybe, or guilt. "My grandfather's company does well enough. The point is, I need a wife to satisfy his requirements. You need a way to fight back against your family and reclaim what's yours."

My heart started beating faster. "What are you suggesting?"

"A business arrangement," Lucas said carefully. "A contract marriage. One year. You help me get control of my grandfather's company, and I help you reclaim yours. We keep it professional and simple. After a year, we divorced and went our separate ways."

I stared at him. "You're seriously proposing marriage to a stranger?"

"Think about it logically. You need a husband to contest your grandmother's will and gain independence from your family. I need a wife to satisfy my grandfather's conditions. We both benefit."

"This is insane," I said, but my mind was already racing. With a husband, I could challenge my mother's control of the company. I could stand on my own instead of being the pathetic daughter who got left at the altar.

"Insane is going back in there and marrying a man who doesn't love you," Lucas pointed out. "Insane is letting your family keep treating you like you're worthless. At least this way, you choose your own path."

He had a point. I thought about Olivia's smile, my mother's cold dismissal, and Derek's cowardice. I thought about my grandmother, who always told me I was stronger than I believed.

"What would this contract involve?" I asked.

"We get married as soon as possible. Live together for appearances. Attend family functions together. Act like a real married couple in public." Lucas met my eyes. "But in private, we're just business partners. No romantic expectations, no complications. After one year, we filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences. Simple."

"Nothing about this is simple," I said.

"Maybe not. But it's better than your current options."

He was right. What were my options? Go back upstairs and apologize? Marry Derek knowing he loved my sister? Run away with no money and no support?

Or take control of my own life for the first time ever.

"One year?" I asked.

"One year," Lucas confirmed. "I'll support your fight to reclaim your grandmother's company. You'll help me satisfy my grandfather's requirements. Then we part as friends."

I took a deep breath, looking down at my ruined wedding dress. This morning, I'd thought I was getting married for love. Now I was considering a contract marriage with a stranger.

But at least this stranger was honest. At least he wasn't pretending to love me while sleeping with my sister.

"Okay," I said. "Let's do it."

Lucas extended his hand. "Partners?"

I shook it, feeling the warmth and strength of his grip. "Partners."

"Good. Now, first things first, let's get you out of this hotel before your family finds you." Lucas stood and picked up his laptop bag. "My car's in the parking garage. Do you have anything you need from inside?"

I thought about my purse in the bridal suite, my phone and wallet inside. "I need to get my things."

"Too risky. I'll buy you a new phone. Do you have credit cards on you?"

I shook my head.

"We'll handle it. Come on." He took off his button-down shirt, leaving him in just a t-shirt, and draped it around my shoulders. "Cover up the dress. Try to blend in."

We made it to the parking garage without being spotted. Lucas's car was a modest Toyota, not what I expected from someone whose family company supposedly did well.

"Where are we going?" I asked as he started the engine.

"To meet my grandfather. He'll want to meet you before we make this official."

"Wait, now? I look terrible."

Lucas glanced at me and smiled. "You look like someone who just escaped a terrible situation. My grandfather will respect that."

We drove through San Francisco toward the suburbs. I expected him to pull up to some mansion, but instead, we stopped at a modest two-story house with a neat garden.

"This is it?" I asked.

"What were you expecting?"

"I don't know. Something more... impressive?"

Lucas gave me an odd look. "My grandfather believes in living simply. He says too much luxury makes people soft."

An elderly man answered the door. He was in his seventies, with white hair and sharp eyes that reminded me of Lucas. He wore slacks and a cardigan, looking like someone's friendly grandfather, not a business owner.

"Lucas!" He smiled, then saw me. "And who is this?"

"Grandpa, this is Emma Hayes. Emma, my grandfather, Henry Grant."

Henry's eyes widened with recognition. "Hayes? Wait a moment. Aren't you the young woman from the park?"

I blinked in confusion. "I'm sorry?"

"Three months ago," Henry said, stepping forward. "I had a heart episode in Golden Gate Park. You stayed with me until the ambulance came. I wanted to thank you, but you disappeared before I woke up in the hospital."

The memory clicked into place. I'd been sitting in the park, taking a lunch break from work, when I saw an elderly man collapse. I'd called 911 and stayed with him, holding his hand and talking to him until the paramedics arrived. Then I'd slipped away, not wanting to make a fuss.

"That was you?" I asked.

"It was. You saved my life." Henry looked at Lucas. "This is the woman I've been telling you about. The one who helped me without knowing who I was or expecting anything in return."

Lucas looked surprised. "You didn't tell me her name."

"I didn't know it. She was gone before I could ask." Henry smiled at me. "But fate has brought you back to us. Come in, please. Tell me everything."

Inside, the house was cozy and warm, filled with family photos and comfortable furniture. Nothing like the cold, expensive elegance of my mother's house.

Henry made tea while Lucas and I sat in the living room. When he returned, I explained everything, the cheating, the betrayal, Lucas's proposal.

Henry listened carefully, his expression serious. When I finished, he said, "Your family treated you terribly. You deserve better."

"Thank you," I said quietly.

"And you're willing to marry my grandson? Even though you just met?"

"It's a business arrangement," I explained. "Lucas needs a wife to satisfy your requirements. I need support to reclaim my grandmother's company. It makes sense logically."

Henry looked at Lucas. "And you're sure about this?"

"Yes," Lucas said firmly. "Emma and I understand each other. We both want the same thing, independence and control over our own lives."

Henry was quiet for a long moment. Then he smiled. "Alright. You have my blessing. But I have one condition."

"What?" Lucas asked.

"Don't let this one go," Henry said, looking at me with surprising warmth. "She's special. Anyone who would help a stranger in the park without expecting anything in return, that's someone worth keeping."

I felt my cheeks warm. "Thank you, Mr. Grant."

"Call me Henry." He patted my hand. "Welcome to the family, Emma."

That night, Lucas drove me to a hotel and paid for a room with cash. "Get some rest," he said. "Tomorrow we'll go to the courthouse and make this official. Then we'll deal with your family."

"Lucas," I said as he was leaving. "Why are you really doing this? You could find any wife you wanted. Why me?"

He paused at the door, thinking. "Because when I saw you in that garden, you reminded me of myself. Tired of being what everyone else wanted instead of who you really are. I thought maybe we could help each other figure out who that is."

After he left, I sat on the bed in my ruined wedding dress, trying to process everything that had happened. This morning, I was Emma Hayes, the forgettable daughter about to marry the wrong man. Now I was about to become Emma Grant, married to a stranger in a business arrangement.

It should have felt wrong. Instead, for the first time in years, I felt like I was making my own choice.

My phone buzzed with texts from my mother, Olivia, and Derek, all angry, all demanding I come back and fix the mess I'd created.

I blocked all their numbers and went to sleep.