Nora's POV
We ran.
Elias grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the chapel. Our footsteps echoed through the empty hospital corridors. My heart hammered so hard I thought it might explode.
"Where are we going?" I gasped.
"Somewhere public. Somewhere with witnesses." He turned a corner, still gripping my hand. "If we're going to announce our engagement, we need people to see it happen. Make it impossible for our families to deny or undo."
We burst into the hospital cafeteria. Even at 12:30 AM, it was half-full with night shift workers grabbing coffee and late meals. Doctors. Nurses. Security guards. At least thirty people.
Perfect witnesses.
Elias stopped in the middle of the room. Everyone turned to stare at us—the cold Dr. Bennett who never socialized, holding hands with the new night shift nurse.
"What are you doing?" I hissed.
"Something crazy," he said. Then, loud enough for everyone to hear: "Nora Chen, will you marry me?"
The cafeteria went silent.
I stared at him. He was supposed to ease into this. We were supposed to have a plan. This was—
"Say yes," he whispered, and in his eyes I saw pure desperation. "Please. They're coming. We need witnesses right now."
My father was on his way. Elias's mother probably knew too. In ten minutes, maybe less, they'd be here trying to tear us apart.
So I did the only thing that made sense.
"Yes," I said clearly. "Yes, I'll marry you."
Elias pulled me into his arms and kissed me. Not the desperate kiss from the chapel—this one was for show. Sweet. Perfect. The kind of kiss people would talk about.
The cafeteria erupted in applause and cheers.
"Did you see that?" someone said.
"Dr. Bennett is engaged!"
"Oh my God, this is so romantic!"
People pulled out phones, taking photos and videos. Perfect. This would be all over social media in minutes. My father couldn't erase what dozens of people had witnessed and recorded.
When Elias pulled back, he was breathing hard. "We need to talk. Somewhere private. Now."
We grabbed coffee and found an empty conference room. The moment the door closed, I rounded on him.
"What were you thinking? We didn't even discuss—"
"We're out of time," Elias interrupted. "My brother texted our mother. Your father is probably already in the parking lot. We had maybe five minutes to make this real before they arrived and stopped us." He ran his hands through his hair. "I'm sorry. I should have warned you. But when I saw all those people in the cafeteria, I just—I acted."
I wanted to be angry. But looking at his panicked face, I realized something.
He was just as scared as me.
"Okay," I said, sitting down at the conference table. "We're engaged now. In front of thirty witnesses with photo evidence. What's next?"
"Next, we get our stories straight." Elias sat across from me. "When our families arrive—and they will arrive—we need to have answers. How we met. Why we fell in love. Why we're getting married so fast."
"The truth is we're doing this for revenge," I pointed out.
"The truth is what we tell people." His eyes met mine. "So let's create a better truth. One they'll believe."
We spent the next thirty minutes building our fake love story.
We met three months ago when I started working night shift. Elias noticed me immediately but was too shy to talk to me. So he wrote letters. When I figured out it was him, we started talking. We fell in love over midnight coffee breaks and quiet conversations in empty hallways.
It was simple. Believable. Almost true, actually.
"Why are we getting married so fast?" I asked.
Elias hesitated. "Because I'm dying."
I froze. "What?"
"Not really," he added quickly. "But that's what we'll tell them. The car accident six years ago did more damage than anyone knows. I have a heart condition. Progressive. I've got maybe two years left, five if I'm lucky." He looked away. "It's a lie, but it's believable. People will understand why we're rushing. They'll think it's romantic instead of suspicious."
"That's dark," I whispered.
"That's strategic." He met my eyes. "Your father can't object to his daughter marrying a dying man without looking like a monster. My mother can't force me into an arranged marriage when I'm supposedly running out of time. It's perfect."
It was perfect. And horrible. And genius.
"One rule," I said firmly. "No more secrets between us. You tell me everything. Every plan, every lie, every truth. If we're doing this, we're doing it as partners."
"Agreed." Elias held out his hand to shake. "Partners."
I took his hand, and that electricity shot through me again. His scarred fingers closed around mine, warm and strong.
"You should know something," Elias said quietly, not letting go. "My mother is vicious. She'll try to destroy you. She'll dig up every secret, every weakness, every embarrassing moment from your past and use it against you."
"My father already did that," I said. "I don't have secrets left to hide."
"Good." He squeezed my hand. "Because mine will try to buy you off. She'll offer you money to leave me. Lots of money."
"I don't want her money."
"I know. That's why I trust you." He pulled out his phone. "I need to make a call. Get my lawyer started on suing your father for your trust fund. If we're doing this, we're doing it right."
While Elias talked to his lawyer, I checked my phone. Fifty-three messages. Most from unknown numbers calling me names. But three were from Maria, the head nurse.
"Did you just get engaged in the cafeteria??"
"OMG the video is everywhere!"
"Girl, you better call me!"
I opened social media. Sure enough, videos of Elias proposing were already spreading. Hundreds of views. Thousands of likes. Comments ranging from "SO ROMANTIC!" to "Who is she?" to "Dr. Bennett finally smiled!"
We'd done it. Made it public. Made it real.
My phone rang. Unknown number. I almost didn't answer, but something made me.
"Hello?"
"You stupid, stupid girl." My father's voice was ice. "You think this changes anything?"
"Where are you?" I asked.
"In the parking lot. I arrived five minutes too late, apparently. Your little stunt is all over the internet." He laughed, but it wasn't friendly. "Did you really think I'd let you marry into the Bennett family? Did you think I'd just accept this?"
"You can't stop us—"
"Can't I?" His voice turned dangerous. "That merger I signed with Bennett Medical? It has clauses, Nora. Protections. If Elias marries without his mother's approval, he loses his position in the company. He becomes nothing. Just a surgeon with a tragic past and mounting debt." He paused. "Is he worth it? Is your revenge worth destroying his entire life?"
My blood ran cold. "You're lying."
"Read the contract yourself. It's public record." He hung up.
I stared at my phone, horror washing over me.
Elias finished his call and looked at me. "What's wrong?"
"My father," I whispered. "He said the merger has clauses. That if you marry without your mother's approval, you lose everything."
Elias's face went pale. "He's bluffing—"
"Is he?" I pulled up the merger documents on my phone, searching frantically. There. Page forty-seven. A clause about family approval for major life decisions.
I showed Elias. He read it twice, his face getting paler.
"This can't be legal," he said.
"It is. I recognize this language—it's how my father controls people. How he controlled me." I looked up at him. "Your mother must have insisted on it. She knew you'd rebel eventually. This was her insurance."
Elias set down his phone very carefully. "So if I marry you without her permission, I lose my position at Bennett Medical. Which means I lose my income, my reputation, everything I've built since Sarah died."
"Yes."
We sat in silence.
"We can still back out," I finally said. "We can say it was a joke. A misunderstanding. You can—"
"No." Elias's voice was hard. "I'm not backing out."
"But you'll lose everything—"
"I already lost everything once, Nora. Six years ago when Sarah died. I rebuilt myself from nothing. I can do it again." He stood up, pacing. "Besides, my mother made one mistake with this clause."
"What mistake?"
"She assumed I'd need her approval." He turned to me, and his smile was sharp. "But the clause says 'family approval.' Not specifically the CEO or the parent. Just family."
I frowned. "I don't understand—"
"My brother James. He technically counts as family. And he's the one who warned us tonight." Elias pulled out his phone. "He and my mother have been fighting for years. If I can convince him to give his approval instead, the clause is satisfied."
"Why would he help you?"
"Because he hates our mother as much as I do. She's been controlling both of us our entire lives." Elias was already texting. "James is weak, but he's not cruel. If I explain the situation, if I tell him about your father—"
His phone rang. Elias answered on speaker.
"James?"
"You're insane." James's voice was cold. "Mother is furious. She's on her way to the hospital right now with lawyers."
"I need your help—"
"No." James laughed bitterly. "You always do this, Elias. You make impulsive decisions and expect me to clean up the mess. Not this time."
"James, please—"
"Marry her if you want. Lose everything. But don't ask me to go against Mother." He paused. "You should know—she's not just bringing lawyers. She brought someone else. Someone you're going to want to see."
Elias went very still. "Who?"
"Helena Rothschild. Your arranged marriage fiancée. The one you've been avoiding for six months. Mother told her about your 'fake engagement' to some scandal-ruined nurse." James's voice turned cruel. "Helena is not happy. At all. She's threatening to sue you for breach of contract."
"There is no contract—"
"Actually, there is. Mother had you sign papers six months ago. Remember those 'estate planning documents'? They included a marriage agreement. Legally binding." James laughed. "You're engaged to two women now, brother. Good luck with that."
The line went dead.
Elias stared at his phone like it had bitten him.
"You're engaged to someone else?" I said slowly.
"I didn't know—the papers—I signed them without reading because my mother said they were routine—" He looked at me with horror. "Nora, I swear, I didn't know."
Before I could respond, the conference room door slammed open.
A woman stood there. Tall, beautiful, wearing a designer suit that probably cost more than my rent. Her eyes locked on Elias with pure fury.
"Hello, darling," she said, her voice dripping poison. "Surprised to see your actual fiancée?"
Helena Rothschild had arrived.
And behind her, I could see Victoria Bennett and my father walking down the hallway together.
Our families had united against us.