The Tie That Binds: A Marriage of Convenience Novel

Istare at my phone, confused. I’ve texted Daniel a couple of times and I’ve called him too, but he hasn’t replied. Even if he’s in a meeting, he’ll always message me to let me know, but today he’s been awfully quiet. He hasn’t been in the office today either. He’s mostly been working at Devereaux Inc.

“Alyssa, Daniel just called to confirm the client meeting with Basel Tech. Will you be attending this with him? I’ll put it in your schedule if so,” Kate says. I frown at her.

“Daniel just called? When?”

She hesitates before she answers. “Uh, a few minutes ago.”

I glance back at my phone and nod. “Yeah, plan it in,” I murmur. Kate has taken on the role of my secretary in addition to being Daniel’s, and so far she’s doing an excellent job. It’s just right now she annoys me, even though she hasn’t done a single thing wrong. I’m annoyed Daniel managed to find the time to speak to her but can’t find time to reply to my texts.

By the end of the day, I’m alarmed by the radio silence. I rush home as soon as I’m done with work and my heart sinks when I walk in to find the apartment dark and empty. I walk into the living room and jump in fright when I spot a dark shadow.

I rush to turn the lights on and find Daniel sitting on the chair by the window. He doesn’t look up when I approach him. Instead, he merely stares out the window as though I’m not there and takes a sip of what looks to be a glass of whiskey.

“Daniel?”

I place my hand on his shoulder, but he doesn’t respond. My eyes fall to the stack of papers on the floor and I lean down to pick them up. My hands freeze mid-reach. I’m trembling when I finally grab hold of them.

“Divorce papers?” I whisper, my mind racing back to Vincent’s call. He said he’d get them delivered, but I assumed he’d get them delivered to me at DM. There are several post-it notes on the papers and I flip through them out of habit, as I would with any contract. I stare at the pages in disbelief and flip through them again and again, but the result never changes. Daniel has signed everywhere he needed to.

I truly thought we’d talk about this and laugh it off. I thought we’d remain married and rip the papers up together. I knew there might be a chance that he’d want to get divorced, but I thought it’d be a small chance. I thought I could’ve changed his mind. I sink to the floor with the papers in my hand and look up at him. When he finally glances at me, his expression is cold.

“You signed them,” I whisper.

Daniel smiles without a trace of emotion. “Hmm, I signed. Our time is up. You reached your goal of becoming CEO. Your father’s shares are yours, and my stake in DM is secure now.”

He sighs and looks away, as though he can’t stand to look at me for a second longer. “It’s been fun playing house with you, but enough is enough. I guess the sex wasn’t bad and I’ll definitely miss your sweet pussy, but there are plenty of fish in the sea. You’re too young to be married. Hell, you were a fucking virgin. I definitely didn’t think I’d be married now either.”

I clench the papers in my hands, wrinkling them. “Playing house? That’s what our marriage was to you? You’re telling me the sex wasn’t bad? I thought you didn’t mind me being a virgin. I never once heard you complain about it.”

He turns so I can’t even see his face, and I long to cup his cheek and make him face me. But that feels wrong now. He feels out of reach.

“Alyssa, of course we were playing house. You and I were never together because we wanted to be. We were forced together. If your dad hadn’t written that will, then you and I never would’ve gotten married. Hell, we never would’ve even gotten together. I’m ten years older than you. You’ve never even really dated.”

I glance at him and try my best to keep it together. “So what were we doing last year if we weren’t dating?”

He turns towards me, and the look in his eyes chills my bones. “We were making do.”

I lower my face and hide behind my hair as a tear rolls down my face. I wipe it away furiously.

“So when you asked me to make our relationship official, you were just making do? If you knew you wanted to divorce me, then why did you insist on being with me? Why did you tell me we’d be faithful to each other and why did you publicise our relationship? If all you wanted was sex, then why didn’t you just agree when I suggested that we both keep our separate lives? It makes no sense, Daniel. Please tell me you’re joking. Please tell me this is all just a misunderstanding.”

He stands up and walks away from me. I rush after him and grab his arm, but he shrugs out of my hold. When he turns to face me he looks cold, an unreadable, bored expression on his face. It’s like he’s an entirely different person from who he was yesterday. How can the man standing before me be the same man that filled our house with roses and candles?

“Fine. I did want to see what might happen between us. I did want to fuck you, and I didn’t want anyone else to have what was mine. We got that out of our systems, and it’s time to move on now, Alyssa. I guess we were dating, so let’s break up. We’re done.”

I grab his shirt and shake him, as though that might make him see reason. “Don’t do this to us. What we have is something other people can only dream of. Aren’t you happy with me?”

His expression falters and he buries his hands in my hair like he’s done so many times and lowers his forehead to mine. I take the opportunity to pull him closer and kiss him. Daniel freezes and for a second panic grips me, but then he kisses me back hungrily. His hold on my hair tightens and before I know it I’m pushed against the nearest wall, Daniel’s tongue tangling with mine. I unbutton his shirt while he pushes my skirt up, our lips never leaving each other. As my hands find his zipper, his hands find my breasts. He undoes the buttons with so much force that he sends a few of them flying. He groans when I grab hold of him, and he pulls back long enough to lift me up and push me back against the wall. I squirm in his hold and he smiles against my lips when I finally have his dick right where I want it. He looks at me as he sinks into me, his expression intense.

“Oh god, Daniel,” I whisper. His lips find mine again and he thrusts roughly as he kisses me.

“This is the last time, Alyssa. This is the last time I’m fucking you.”

I bite down on his lip harshly. “No.”

Daniel pulls out all the way and then thrusts into me hard. “Yes,” he snaps.

I pull hard on his hair and drag his lips to mine, kissing him with all I’ve got before I move my lips to his neck. “No,” I say as bite down on his skin. I suck down on his neck as hard as I can to make sure I leave a mark. “You’re mine.”

Daniel moans and changes the angle so he’s pushing up against my g-spot, and I’m panting as I try to hold on to my sanity.

“I’m not letting you go,” I tell him, my voice husky.

Daniel kisses me and fucks me so hard that I know I’m going to be deliciously sore for days.

“I’m not giving you a choice.”

I close my eyes and bite down on my lip, but nothing I do will keep me from coming. Not when he’s fucking me this good.

“Baby, please,” I whisper.

Daniel grins smugly and slows down the pace, keeping me at the edge. “No,” I whimper. “Please.”

Daniel chuckles and fucks me slowly. I scratch his back with my nails and he groans. “I need you. Now, baby.”

He bites down on his lip and nods, thrusting into me hard, his eyes never leaving mine. My entire body seems to tingle as I come harder than I ever have before. My emotions turn me on even more and I struggle to think rationally. Daniel comes seconds after I do, and the two of us collapse on the floor, still connected. Daniel shifts so he’s sitting back against the wall and I remain in his lap, my hands on his chest.

“How can you call this making do?” I whisper, my voice breaking. Daniel looks into my eyes and he looks as hurt as I do.

“Is it her? Is it the girl you said you’d propose to when we divorced? Is that why you’re leaving me?”

Daniel looks devastated and he grits his teeth. He looks away and inhales deeply before nodding.

“Yes,” he says. “I don’t know when and I don’t know how, but I’m irrevocably in love with her. She occupies my every thought and all I want to do is make her happy.”

I tremble in his hold and stare at him in disbelief, my eyes filling with tears. I blink them away as best as I can and push away from him. I turn my back and cover my face with my hands. While I’ve been falling head over heels for him, he’s been falling for someone else.

“Did you cheat on me, Daniel?” I ask, my voice shaking.

My heart breaks as he remains silent, but eventually he answers. “No, Alyssa.”

I hear him stand up and straighten out his clothes. He might not have cheated on me physically, but for him to fall for her, he must’ve been cheating on me emotionally. Is she someone that works for Devereaux Inc.? Is that why he’s been there every single day? I assumed he was giving me so much responsibility because he trusted me, but is it because he wanted to spend his time with someone else? I turn around and try my best to cover as much of my body as I can, but my broken shirt buttons don’t make it easy.

“Who is she?”

Daniel hesitates, but then his expression hardens. “It doesn’t matter, Alyssa. You and I are done. You have no right to pry into my private affairs going forward.”

I inhale sharply and try my best to ignore the dull ache in my heart. No right? I chuckle darkly.

“I haven’t signed the divorce papers, Daniel. I have every right. I won’t let you do this to us. I’m not signing. You might think you’re in love with someone else, but you’re wrong. I’ll prove it to you.”

Daniel runs a hand through his hair and closes his eyes. “You will. You’ll sign the papers, eventually. I’m leaving, Alyssa. I want you out of my house by the end of the day tomorrow. If you refuse, I’ll just find somewhere else to live.”

He walks towards the lift and grabs a bag that he seemed to have packed before I even got home. I’m tempted to run after him, but he knows as well as I do that I can’t in the state I’m currently in.

He doesn’t look back once as he walks out of the door and out of my life.