MARRIED TO MY EX-BOYFRIEND FATHER

Episode 3

Jessica’s POV

The hotel’s air buzzed with tension, Jade’s voice slicing through my shock like a blade. “Jessica? What the hell is going on? And why is my father holding your hand?” His eyes burned with betrayal, the velvet ring box in his hand glinting under the chandeliers.

Damien’s grip on me tightened, his body radiating menace as he glanced between us, suspicion flickering in his gray eyes. My heart thundered, the world narrowing to this moment. Jade wasn’t supposed to be here. He wasn’t supposed to see me with Damien, my accidental husband from a drunken night I barely remembered. And Damien didn’t know I was Jade’s ex—or that I’d signed his contract marriage deal to destroy his son.

“Jade,” I stammered, my voice barely a whisper, “this isn’t—”

“Enough,” Damien snapped, his tone cold, commanding. He pulled me closer, his arm a steel band around my waist. “She’s with me. Leave.”

Jade’s face twisted, rage and confusion warring. “With you? Dad, what the f**k?” He stepped forward, the ring box snapping shut in his fist. “Jessica, explain this now.”

Panic clawed at me, but Sandra’s shout from Chapter One echoed—Damien’s offering a contract marriage to secure his empire.* Ten million dollars, a year of pretense, and a chance to make Jade suffer for his lies: eight months of cheating, a secret Vegas wedding to Elise, and now this ring, another cruel twist. But if Jade spilled our history, Damien would know I’d targeted him for revenge. My secret teetered on a razor’s edge.

“Jade, please,” I said, my voice trembling but firm. “We’ll talk later. Not here.”

“Later?” he roared, drawing eyes from the hotel patrons. “You’re cozying up to my *father*!”

Damien’s eyes narrowed, his grip loosening slightly. “You know my son?” His voice was low, dangerous, probing.

My stomach plummeted. “We… went to school together,” I lied, praying Jade wouldn’t contradict me. “That’s all.”

Jade’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t call me out. Instead, he glared at Damien. “This is low, even for you, Dad. Poaching my friends for your games.”

Damien smirked, unfazed. “Jessica’s more than a friend. She’s my fiancée.” The word hit like a bomb, and I froze, the memory of that blurry night—signing a contract, a ring on my finger—crashing back. I’d thought it was a drunken mistake, but Damien’s certainty chilled me.

“Fiancée?” Jade’s voice cracked, his eyes darting to me, searching for denial. I couldn’t meet his gaze, guilt and fury warring inside me. He’d married Elise, betrayed me for months, yet his pain stung.

“Enough of this,” Damien said, steering me toward the exit. “We’re leaving.”

But Jade lunged, grabbing my other arm. “She’s not going anywhere until I get answers!”

The hotel security surged forward, my boss, Victor, at their helm. “What’s going on?” he barked, his eyes landing on me. “Jessica, my office. Now!”

“She’s not your employee anymore,” Damien declared, his voice cutting through the chaos. “She’s my wife, and she’s coming home.”

The room gasped, and my knees buckled. Wife? The marriage certificate I’d seen at Damien’s mansion flashed in my mind, my signature scrawled beside his. But I’d been drunk, manipulated—or so I thought. “Damien, I didn’t—” I started, but his glare silenced me.

“Jessica, what the hell?” Jade’s voice was raw, his grip tightening. “You married my *dad*?”

“I… I don’t know,” I whispered, my head spinning. “It was a mistake.”

“A mistake?” Damien’s laugh was cold, his eyes glinting with possession. “You signed the contract, Jessica. You said ‘I do.’”

Victor stepped in, his face red. “Jessica, explain this, or you’re fired!”

Before I could speak, a new voice cut through—a woman’s, sharp and venomous. “Well, isn’t this cozy?” Elise sauntered in, her emerald eyes locked on me, her pregnant belly barely visible under her designer dress. The sonogram she’d shown me weeks ago burned in my memory—Jade’s baby, another lie he’d buried. “Jessica, still chasing my husband? And now his father?”

The crowd murmured, and my heart stopped. Elise knew about Damien’s claim, and her smirk said she’d use it to bury me. Jade’s face paled, his grip loosening. “Elise, what are you doing here?”

“Protecting what’s mine,” she purred, stroking her stomach. “Unlike some people.” Her gaze raked over me, dripping with disdain.

Damien’s expression darkened, his patience fraying. “This is irrelevant. Jessica, we’re leaving.”

“No!” I yanked my arm free, my voice rising. “I didn’t agree to this, Damien. I was drunk, and you took advantage of me. That’s not a marriage—it’s a scam!”

His eyes flashed, but before he could respond, Elise laughed, a chilling sound. “Oh, Jessica, you're in deeper than you think.” She pulled out her phone, swiping to a video and holding it up. My blood ran cold. It was me, swaying in a Vegas chapel, giggling as I said, “I do,” to Damien, a ring sliding onto my finger. Worse, the timestamp was *two weeks ago*—not the night I thought. The video panned to Elise, smirking in the background, her presence a sinister twist. She’d been there, orchestrating this trap.

“You set me up,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “Both of you.”

Elise’s smile was pure malice. “You made it easy, darling. So desperate for revenge, you didn’t see the cage closing.”

Jade’s face crumpled, realization dawning. “Elise, what did you do?”

“What I had to,” she snapped. “You’re mine, Jade. And Jessica’s little stunt with your father ends now.”

Damien’s jaw tightened, his confusion morphing into rage. “You planned this?” he growled at Elise, stepping toward her. “You used my name for your games?”

Elise didn’t flinch. “You wanted a wife, Damien. I delivered. But Jessica’s past with Jade? That’s just a bonus.”

My world spun. Elise had manipulated us all, using my pain to trap me in a marriage with Damien, ensuring Jade stayed hers. And Damien, oblivious to my history with Jade, was a pawn in her scheme. My revenge had backfired, and now I was bound to a man who thought he owned me.

“Jessica,” Jade said, his voice hoarse, “is this true? You and my dad?”

Tears burned my eyes, but I lifted my chin. “You broke me first, Jade. You lied, cheated, and married her. Don’t act like the victim.”

He flinched, but Elise’s laughter cut through. “Enough drama. Jessica, you’ll stay with Damien, or I’ll leak that video to every tabloid. Your life will be over.”

Victor cleared his throat, sensing the chaos. “Jessica, you’re suspended until this is resolved. Sort it out.”

Damien grabbed my wrist, his touch both possessive and protective. “You’re coming with me. We’ll deal with this at home.”

“No!” I pulled free, my voice shaking with fury. “I’m not your wife, Damien. I’ll fight this—whatever it takes.”

He studied me, a flicker of respect in his eyes, but his voice was steel. “You signed, Jessica. You’re mine until I say otherwise.”

Before I could retort, a man in a tailored suit burst through the crowd, his face grim. “Mr. Blackwood,” he said, addressing Damien, “we have a problem. The merger’s at risk. Your… marriage to Ms. Carter is invalid. The officiant was unlicensed, and the contract’s under investigation for fraud.”

The room gasped, and my heart leapt—freedom, maybe—but Elise’s face didn’t falter. She smirked, as if she’d planned this too. Damien’s expression turned lethal, his eyes locking on Elise. “You’ll pay for this,” he growled, but she just shrugged, unfazed.

Jade stepped closer, his voice low, desperate. “Jessica, we need to talk. I didn’t know about Elise’s games. I… I still love you.”

My breath caught, his words a cruel echo of the past. But before I could respond, my phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number: Leave Damien and Jade, or the video goes viral. You have 24 hours. –E. Attached was a photo of me and Damien in the chapel, my face clear, damning.

My hands shook, tears spilling as I looked from Jade’s pleading eyes to Damien’s furious ones, Elise’s smirk a backdrop to my unraveling life. The video, the invalid marriage, Jade’s confession—it was too much. And then, from the corner of my eye, I saw Sandra, her face pale, holding a USB drive, mouthing, “I found something.” My heart raced. Whatever she had, it could be my way out—or the final nail in my coffin. As Elise’s deadline ticked down,

I stood frozen, caught in a web of lies, with no idea who to trust or what would break first.