Page 57 of Her Possessive Dominant Fake Husband

He sounded different. He sounded like every dream I’d never dared let myself believe. And that scared me. That thrilled me.

I looked at him, searching for a hint of doubt, a hint of the cold, controlling man I’d first thought I’d married. But there was none. Just warmth. Just sincerity. Just a promise he’d been proving every day, that he’d love me the way I deserved to be loved.

I dragged in a breath. “Of course, I want to renew our vows.” I loved the man. There was no denying that. And he’d been proving he loved me too, in ways that were far deeperthan words. Breakfasts in bed, thoughtful gifts, helping me learn piano, he just knew me in a way no one ever had before.

His hand was warm as he reached for mine, warmth that traveled through me, igniting a spark of hope that I had no way to extinguish. It was just us now, just the two of us against everything we’d ever been too afraid to face. The truth of that made my pulse race. Made me trust that this time, I wouldn’t be left with nothing but heartbreak.

“I love you,” he said, pulling me into a kiss. With that, we began our walk to the vehicle he’d hired to take us to Kyoto.

“Did you already pick a place?” I asked.

He glanced at me, putting a finger to his lips. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Hours later, after getting to our hotel and settling in, we found ourselves in a beautiful garden. The soft rustle of leaves carried through the incredible space, blending with the quiet murmur of the stream winding its way over smooth stones. Lanterns flickered as dusk settled, their glow casting golden light across the ancient wooden bridge where I stood, waiting.

Alexander faced me, his expression unreadable for a fleeting moment—until his eyes softened, filled with the kind of love that had shaped every step we’d taken together since he confessed in front of my family.

I hadn’t expected this to feel so different from our wedding. That had been something else, a contract, something that bound us at the expense of someone else. Someone no longer in our lives. But this—this was something deeper, something beautiful and real.

He took my hands, warm, steady.

“I never thought I could love you more than I did the day you pulled me into a hug when I needed it most, or the time you helped me back down at a difficult family dinner, or any other of the times you supported me in little ways that meant everything,” he said, his voice low, reverent. “But I do. Every day, I do.”

Tears gathered, but I didn’t blink them away.

“You saved me,” I whispered. He grinned and I couldn’t hold back. “Not with money, not in some grand way. Not in ways anyone could see. But in the quiet moments—the ones that could have broken me. You were there. And I love you more for it.”

His fingers tightened around mine. No grand gestures this time, no flourished words. Just us.

Just love.

And in this sacred, fleeting moment, beneath the cherry blossoms that swayed in the evening breeze, I knew one thing with absolute certainty—

I would choose him again.

Always.

The next morning, I stared at the calendar app on my phone, my pulse thudding in my ears.

Late.

Not by much. Just a handful of days. But enough that my stomach knotted up tight, my mind racing through possibilities.

I pressed the heel of my hand against my forehead, forcing myself to breathe. Maybe it was the travel throwing off my cycle. Stress. Diet. Anything.

Or maybe it wasn’t.

The thought sent a rush of heat through me, equal parts excitement and terror. Alexander was still asleep, something I didn’t want to interrupt with speculation. Why get him all worked up if I was wrong? I needed confirmation. I needed a test.

And that meant stepping out into Kyoto, into streets I hadn’t wandered alone yet among people whose language I didn’t speak.

The convenience store near the hotel was bright, stocked with everything from neatly packaged bento boxes to stationary. I hovered near the shelves, scanning the unfamiliar labels, heart pounding. Where were they?

A kind voice said something I didn’t understand.

I turned, blinking at the older woman beside me. She wore a soft green blouse, her expression kind but curious.

“I—uh—” The words tangled in my throat. I scrambled for a polite way to ask for something so personal, my translation app failing me completely.

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