Page 35 of Forever Fallen

“We’remarried.”

“There’s a problem with that…” she uttered, turning her back on him and wrapping her arms around her waist. “A big problem.”

“Is that why you were spitting angry – trying to push me away?”

“There is no you and me…”

“What’s the problem – thisbigproblem…”

“Don’t mock me, Ryan. It’s not funny…”

“I’m not laughing. Spit it out, Sophie.”

The silence between them was tense as she stood there, looking out the front window seeing a few kids riding their bikes down the street.To be that young, that carefree again,she wished silently.

“I didn’t know all the details…” she whispered numbly, steeling herself stoically.

It was worse than the first time she had to fire someone at work. When she knew she had to do it, she’d thrown up in the bathroom and had diarrhea for hours prior, because the stress was too much.

She was fully prepared to be violently sick for the nextdecade…

“Spit it out, Sophie.”

“I knew I had to turn in my marriage license by Friday, so I went to the courthouse today to be early about it…”

“An excellent trait…” he cut in.

“Only to find out that there was more to the will,” she hesitated.

“Like what?” he asked bluntly, freezing.

“Apparently my grandmother knew me better than I realized,” she laughed softly, feeling almost scared and maniacal in that moment. “There was an addendum that was not to be discussed until after the proof was turned in… along with a letter addressed to me.”

Neither of them moved or said a word.

“I honestly didn’t know, Ryan…” she uttered, her voice painfully quiet in the silence around them. “I knew about the letter, but not the contents of the letter nor the addendum.”

“What’s the addendum?” he said tightly.

Sophie closed her eyes as bile rose to her throat, choking her.

“Everything is to be held in trust. It’s being held in my name, and will be finalized once I’ve celebrated my one-year anniversary… and if I married within a week of her passing away?”

“Which we did…” Ryan said in a brittle and tense voice. “Wait! One… year? You said, ‘one year’?”

“Everything remains in trust though until myfifthwedding anniversary.”

Five years wasn’t a bargain between people to be dissolved quickly and easily within weeks. She knew it had to feel like the world’s worst betrayal and a life sentence to him… and there was no way she would ever expect him to go along with it.

Sophie heard his footsteps fading as he walked off behind her. She dragged in a ragged breath as the kitchen door opened and slammed shut, rattling the dishes in the cabinets angrily.

He was furious…

Sliding to the floor, she leaned forward and collapsed to the carpet, sobbing pitifully, while beating her fist against the rug at the injustice of it all.

Her grandmother had always been smart, and the letter explained the reasoning why behind it…

And now Ryan had kissed her. Not just a peck like they’d done when they had gotten married or were put on the spot?

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