CHAPTER 3 Paper Trap

　　Now that he clearly remembered that his first moment with his instant wife was nothing but embarrassment, he didn’t even know how to talk her out of this situation.

　　This woman whom he just met saw his weakness which no one has ever witnessed in his entire existence.

　　He wished she would never bring that up and yet here she was retelling the whole story as if it was her story to tell. Now that he was almost dying of embarrassment, he immediately cut her by pounding the armrests,

　　“I believe…” his stern voice rose, then he stood up and sent a clear signal to her, “...we don’t need to get into details, do we?”

　　She was caught off guard and almost choked. After talking for almost half an hour about what happened, she felt dryness in her throat and realized she probably hit the mark.

　　“My bad,” she tensely responded. “Y-you’re right we shouldn’t talk about what happened yesterday night…given how drunk we are,” she exclaimed in agreement.

　　Feeling satisfied, he cleared his throat, and successfully shifted the topic to something else when Hawkins entered the room for the second time.

　　Hawkins just got off the phone and nervously looked at his boss who’s now eyeing him like a hawk. He swallowed the saliva he’s been holding inside those chapped lips of his.

　　When he opened it, the cool air of tension coming from his boss suddenly engulfed him, causing him to stutter, “S–sir Schneider… Uh, t–the lawyer said the marriage contract is actually legit.”

　　“Say it again, Hawkins…” a threat came out of his mouth wishing it was all just a dream, “... as you mean it,” his authoritative voice made him shiver even more. He knew what he meant with those words.

　　“The marriage contract was successfully registered yesterday night, Sir Schneider. Therefore, Miss Chloe Myers is now officially your wife,” he looked at the girl whose face was as white as snow.

　　“And you are unexpectedly married, Sir,” his voice became firmer while adjusting his necktie.

　　Tyler bit his lips out of frustration, “Goddammit!”

　　Hearing the bad news Chloe held her breath for a few seconds and grabbed her chest with her right hand while her left hand was supporting her body weight.

　　It seemed that she was about to pass out but she tried to keep her senses intact, “Uh, H–hawkins, right?”

　　“Yes, Mrs. Schneider, you can call me Hawkins or Bruce if you like,” a smile on his lips appeared.?

　　Sweat obviously accumulated on her forehead as her tongue stuck out to wet her lips every five seconds. Her heartbeat continuously rose.?

　　“Uh, right,” she anxiously uttered, “Firstly, don’t call me that, please. Just Chloe, a–and secondly, is there a way to nullify it immediately? I–I can’t get married, not even before I started working. Please,” she begged with her whole heart as her blue topaz eyes were almost covered in tears.

　　Tyler, who may seem cold among the others unexpectedly emphasized her in this predicament. He washed his face with both his palms expressing his grave disappointment.

　　“What do you say, Hawkins? You heard her. Can it be done? And how quick would it be?”

　　Hawkins already knew the answer to their questions. He already anticipated this scenario in his mind.

　　What he didn’t brief himself on was the severity of the situation. So he stood as firm as he could as he delivered more bad news from them.

　　“I’m afraid you have to wait for three months before we can process your divorce,” announced Hawkins.

　　“Bollocks!” she yelled at them as she charged toward him, a curse word from her mother's origin.

　　“So you’re Irish after all? I was right,” Tyler couldn’t let her pure Irish accent go unnoticed.?

　　“That’s not the time Mister Schneider, can’t you see? We’re trapped in this loveless marriage for three fucking months!” she taunted him.

　　But for some reason, he couldn’t hear any other word but?‘loveless’?that made him burst into laughter, “Loveless you say? Huh!” he scoffed at her then continued, “From what I could tell from yesterday night, love is a senseless feeling.”

　　She growled at him even more, “Will you take it more seriously?” then she scanned him from head to foot, “It figures, though, what could a bummer jobless rich kid as you know about a career path? So excuse me for being rationally sane and asking for divorce!”

　　“Mrs.–I mean Miss Myers you are mistaken. Mr. Schneider is–” Hawkins was trying to defend his boss when he cut him off.

　　“You are excused!” and he grinned at her. “Hawkins, show her the way out, and don’t forget to get her contact number,” he composedly pointed at the door.

　　To avoid unnecessary arguments between the husband and wife, Hawkins guided her to the door and explained why the process had to take three months in total.?

　　She tried to state her piece but there was nothing he can do about it. So she finally backed down.?

　　“I’m sorry about this Miss Myers, but we will contact you once the process is expedited,” Hawkins politely said, then handed over a card to her.

　　She quickly placed it inside the bag and didn’t bother looking at it. It was obvious how disappointing this turn of events for her was, “Thank you, Hawkins,” and then she walked away while trying to find balance in her long strides,

　　“What a ridiculous night!” she mumbled to herself.

　　As Hawkins went back inside the hotel room, he saw Tyler Schneider, his boss, already fixing his expensive suit.

　　“Sir?” he called softly.

　　“We’re going now. What time will the?Old Man?arrive at my office?” he coldly asked his secretary.

　　“He will land from Germany in three hours, Sir,” he directly answered.

　　“We still have a lot of time, I want you to arrange me a meeting with our best hired lawyer, let’s get this shit over with,” his adamant voice dominates the air.

　　“Copy that. And Sir…” he hesitated at first, “Miss Winter is on her way to the airport. Do you want me to drive–” he stated his concern but he was immediately halted.?

　　“I appreciate your concern, but I don’t look back nor care about leftovers,” then he left and went straight to his car.

　　The words that came out of his lips and the thoughts stuck in his mind were completely opposite. No matter how much he loved Isabella, she chose a different path–a path without him.?

　　Before the pain would be seen in his green eyes, he shut them and silently succumb to the journey of loneliness and separation.

　　It was already almost noon time on a Saturday yet Chloe is nowhere to be found. Her friends waited patiently inside the hotel room they got for themselves as they tried to contact her but they couldn’t reach her.

　　They began to worry about her whereabouts plus the fact that they had to leave in an hour or so.

　　Buzzing sounds from their mumblings and bickerings were heard all over the family suite room, until a doorbell rang.

　　They immediately opened the door and when they saw Chloe’s disappointed face, there was utter silence for a second.

　　Chloe entered as if she was out of her mind and didn’t even say hi to her worried friends. She walked to the couch and lay down. This behavior stirred them up, especially Bridgette who was worried sick,

　　“Bitch! This is what we got after getting worried sick about you! What the hell?”

　　Her high-pitched voice sent an eerie echo in their senses. But Chloe didn’t even have the strength nor the will to engage in a cat fight, so she took out the marriage contract from her bag and laid it down at the center table.

　　What they saw shook them, they went looking back and forth at Chloe and at the marriage contract, and realized it was real.

　　They all had a meltdown and the only thing they could say was, “Spill the hot sexy bean, you bitch!”