I said the words and waited for his reaction. Anger. Regret. An order to get out of his car. Leo was quiet for a moment, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel.
“My ex-girlfriend told me last week that her boss needs her more than I do, so she’s choosing to stay by his side as his assistant instead of marrying me.”
He gave a humorless laugh.
“For all I know, she’s pregnant with his kid. Who knows?”
He looked at me, his face half-lit by the passing streetlights, his jaw tight.
“So,” he said, turning back to the road, “we’re a couple of jilted fools who made a rash decision. You have my phone number, my company’s address, and a marriage certificate with my name on it. I’m not going to hurt you or try anything. You need a place to clear your head. I need someone to help me deal with my family. My mom has late-stage lung cancer. Her last wish is to see me settle down.”
The car filled with silence again, broken only by the hum of the engine. The city lights streamed past the window like a silent river.
“Deal,” I whispered.
The car pulled into a modern condominium complex. Leo’s apartment was on the twelfth floor, a one-bedroom furnished with the sterile simplicity of a hotel suite. It had very little personality. He opened the door to the spare room, which was set up as an office with a pullout sofa.
“You can sleep here. The linens are fresh. There’s some food in the fridge. I’ll take the living room couch.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
He turned to leave, then paused.
“What’s your plan for tomorrow?”
Tomorrow. The word felt alien. Tomorrow I had to go to work and face the sympathetic or gossipy looks of my colleagues. Tomorrow I had to tell my mother I was married, but not to Alex. Tomorrow I had to figure out what to do about the baby in my belly.
“I don’t know,” I said honestly.
Leo nodded.
“Then just get some sleep. The world won’t end. And even if it does, there are two of us to hold it up now.”
He closed the door. I sat on the unfamiliar bed and turned on my phone. Dozens of missed calls and messages flooded in from Alex, my mom, my best friend Maya, and a long rambling voice message from Alex. I deleted it without listening. Then I opened Maya’s text.
“Chloe, where are you? Alex is losing his mind. He called me saying you’re pregnant and married someone else. What is going on?”
I called her. Maya was my college roommate, my closest friend. She picked up on the first ring.
“Chloe, are you okay? Are you safe?”
“I’m safe,” I said, my nose starting to burn. “Maya, I did something completely insane today.”
After I finished my story, Maya was silent on the other end for a full minute.
“So… you’re in a strange man’s apartment right now. Chloe, I know Alex is a bastard who broke your heart, but this is… do you even know this guy? What if he’s dangerous?”
“He doesn’t know I’m pregnant. I mean, he heard me say it, but we haven’t talked about it. And his mom has terminal cancer. He just wants to fulfill her last wish. We’re both just using each other.”
“Using each other?” Maya’s voice rose. “Is that what marriage is now? This is a legal contract, Chloe. You’re his wife. What if he has debts? What if he’s a con artist?”
“Maya,” I interrupted her, “Alex conned me for three years. I moved to Denver for him. Left a great job in Chicago. I helped take care of his sick father. When he was starting his business, I gave him my entire savings. And what did I get? Stood up at the altar for the third time. If a man really wants to marry you, he doesn’t make you wait three times.”
