THE LAWYER
1195 Words
_Day 7. 7:00 AM. Penthouse._
Lily woke up to silence.
No coffee. No Damian leaning in the doorway.
Just a note on her nightstand in sharp black ink.
_“Lawyer. 9 AM. Hart & Associates. Come if you want answers. - D”_
Her chest tightened. Rule 1: No secrets.
She showered fast. Wore black. Armor.
When she walked out, Damian was at the kitchen island. Still in yesterday’s shirt. Two coffees.
He didn’t look up. "You’re coming?"
"Obviously." Lily grabbed a coffee. "Page 7 is a problem, Damian."
"I know." His jaw ticked. "That’s why we’re killing it today."
The car ride was quiet. No radio. No touching. Just the weight of 90 days pressing down.
---
_Day 7. 9:15 AM. Hart & Associates. 60th Floor._
The law firm smelled like money and bleach.
Damian’s lawyer, Ms. Adesina, was 50, sharp suit, no smile. She had the prenup folder already open.
"Sit." She gestured.
Lily sat. Damian stood behind her chair like a guard.
"Mr. Hart," Adesina started. "You instructed me 3 years ago to destroy all copies of this document. I did. Or I thought I did."
"Someone kept one," Damian said.
"Obviously." Adesina slid page 7 across the table. "This clause. _Reconciliation triggers joint asset status._ It’s nasty. And legal."
Lily’s stomach dropped. "So if he reconciled with Sophia..."
"Then technically," Adesina cut in, "for 2 weeks 3 years ago, Sophia could have claimed 50% of anything Damian owned before your marriage."
Damian cursed under his breath. "But we didn’t file anything. It was nothing. Two weeks. We didn’t even live together."
"Doesn’t matter to this document." Adesina tapped it. "Which is why we need to void it."
"How?" Lily asked.
"Two ways." Adesina held up fingers. "One: Proof it was never executed. No signatures, no witness, no filing. We file an affidavit today."
"And two?" Damian asked.
Adesina looked at Lily. Then Damian. "You finalize the divorce. On paper. Right now. End the contract. The prenup becomes irrelevant."
The room went cold.
Lily stared at the pen on the table. "90 days," she whispered. "We have 83 left."
"The board is already asking questions," Adesina said. "After that fake proposal photo. Eleanor called me last night. She thinks you’re hiding assets."
Damian slammed his hand on the desk. "My mother has no right—"
"She’s Chairwoman, Damian." Adesina’s voice was flat. "She has every right."
Lily looked up at him. "Is that what you want? To end it now?"
Damian’s eyes flickered. Hurt. Anger. Something else.
"I want," he said slowly, "to not lose you because of paperwork I wrote when I was 26 and stupid."
Lily didn’t answer.
Adesina pushed two papers forward. "Affidavit of Non-Execution. And Draft Divorce Agreement. $2 million payout, per the unsigned prenup’s clause."
Lily laughed. Bitter. "So I get paid to leave either way."
"That was never the point," Damian said quietly.
"Wasn’t it?" Lily stood. "I need air."
She walked out. Down the hall. Into the bathroom. Locked the door.
Her phone buzzed.
_Unknown: Page 7 is real. Ask him about the hotel receipts._
Lily’s hands shook. Hotel receipts?
---
_Day 7. 11:30 AM. Hallway._
Damian was waiting. Leaning against the wall.
"You okay?"
"No." Lily held up her phone. "Hotel receipts, Damian? From 3 years ago? With Sophia?"
Damian went pale. "Who told you that?"
"Answer me."
He dragged a hand down his face. "Yes. Two nights. After we... reconciled. I paid. I was dumb and guilty and trying to make it right."
Lily’s heart cracked. "So there’s proof."
"Yes." Damian stepped closer. "But Lily, nothing happened after night one. I called it off. I told her I couldn’t do this."
"Why didn’t you tell me?"
"Because I was ashamed!" He snapped. Then softer. "Because I didn’t want you to think I was that guy."
Lily believed him. God help her, she did.
"Sign the affidavit," she said. "Not the divorce."
Damian stared. "You’re sure?"
"Rule 1. No secrets. We fight this."
Damian exhaled like he’d been holding his breath for 3 years. "Okay."
They went back in. Signed the affidavit. Adesina filed it immediately.
"That should hold," she said. "For now. But if Sophia produces those receipts and claims reconciliation, we’ll need to fight it in court."
"She won’t get the chance," Damian said.
---
_Day 7. 2:00 PM. Hart Estate._
They weren’t supposed to be there.
But Eleanor texted: _"Emergency board brunch. Now."_
The garden was full again. This time no flowers. Just suits.
Richard. The brothers. 3 board members.
And Sophia. Sitting next to Eleanor in white. Again.
"Lily, Damian," Eleanor smiled. Too sweet. "Perfect timing. We were just discussing damage control."
Damian pulled Lily in front of him. "What’s this about, Mom?"
Eleanor held up a tablet. The fake proposal photo. Again.
"And this." She swiped.
Hotel receipts. Damian Hart. Sophia Monroe. 3 years ago. Two nights. $8,000.
The board murmured.
"Is this true?" Richard asked.
Damian didn’t flinch. "Yes. 3 years ago. Before Lily. It’s irrelevant."
"Is it?" Sophia stood. "Because according to the prenup you drafted, Damian, reconciliation makes her a co-owner." She looked at Lily. "Sorry, babe. Did he forget to mention he was already married to me? Legally, sort of."
Lily felt sick.
Damian stepped forward. "We filed an affidavit this morning. That prenup was never executed."
Eleanor smiled. "Was it? Because I have a copy. With a signature."
She held up page 1. Damian Hart. Signed.
The world tilted.
Lily looked at Damian. "Did you—"
"No." His voice was steel. "That’s not my signature."
Sophia laughed. "Prove it."
---
_Day 7. 5:00 PM. Penthouse._
They didn’t speak for an hour.
Finally Lily broke it. "Someone forged your signature, Damian."
"Yeah." He was pacing. "And I know who."
"Who?"
"My mom."
Lily froze. "Eleanor?"
"She’s been trying to control Hart Enterprises since Dad died. If I’m ‘reconciled’ with Sophia, Sophia’s family invests. $200 million." Damian stopped. "If I’m with you, the contract bride, I look unstable."
Lily sank onto the couch. "So she’s using me."
"And Sophia." Damian knelt in front of her. "Lily, I’m so sorry you’re in the middle of this."
Lily looked at him. Tired. Honest. Terrified.
"New Rule 4," she whispered. "We don’t let them win."
Damian’s eyes softened. "Deal."
He reached for her hand. This time she didn’t pull away.
His phone buzzed.
_Unknown: You should’ve signed the divorce. Now it’s too late. Chapter 8._
Attached: A photo. Damian and Sophia. In bed. 3 years ago.
Lily stared at it. "Is that real?"
Damian looked at it. Nodded once. "Yes."
Lily stood. Walked to her room.
Didn’t lock the door this time.
Damian followed. Stood in the doorway.
"I don’t expect you to stay," he said. "But I’m not letting them take you from me without a fight."
Lily laid down. Stared at the ceiling. "Then fight."
---
_Day 7. 11:59 PM. Text from Unknown._
_Lily: The board votes in 48 hours. Choose him, and you lose everything. Choose Sophia, and he keeps the company._
Lily didn’t block it.
Day 7 of 90.
And the prenup had a signature after all.
_TO BE CONTINUED..._
- Writer
