Eight Years of Maybe One Day of I Do—Bride Swapped Deal With It novel Chapter 84

Chapter 6

My phone wouldn’t stop vibrating.

It buzzed against my palm in this frantic, insistent rhythm that made my whole hand shake.

Call after call after call.

I’d lost count by the time the flight attendant leaned over, gently reminding me to switch to airplane mode.

My hands were trembling. I tried to hit decline, but my thumb slipped and suddenly Derek’s voice was in my ear.

“Hey, we’re still stuck here. Probably another hour at least.”

That familiar apologetic tone, like he was asking me to wait five more minutes.

“If you’re hungry, just eat without us. We’ll head back soon as we’re done.”

The urge to laugh was almost overwhelming.

The man’s wedding photos were trending on Twitter, and he was still pretending to be my devoted husband.

How many lies did it take to prop up one massive deception?

Did he even remember which story he’d told me anymore?

I stayed quiet for too long. Finally managed to push out: “Okay.”

Right then the airport announcement system kicked in, cycling through departure gates in crisp, clear English.

Derek heard it instantly. “Annie? Where are you? Is that… are you at an airport?”

I kept my voice flat. “No. Just the TV.”

He seemed to buy it. Maybe because I’d been so eerily cooperative all day, he actually relaxed enough to add what he probably thought was comforting:

“Don’t stress about this, alright? I told you-once Simon’s enrolled, we go right back and make it official again. Nothing really changes.”

“You and me, we’re solid.”

I couldn’t think of a single thing to say to that.

Should I ask if the marriage was fake? Should I mention the pregnancy test?

Honestly, at this point Derek probably couldn’t keep his own lies straight.

A woman’s voice floated through the background-soft, affectionate, calling his name.

He didn’t even wait for me to respond. “Gotta run” and the line went dead.

Turned out that was the last time we’d ever speak.

I sat there staring at the dark screen for maybe three seconds.

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