The End of a Fake Marriage

Renee, embarrassed, forgot to say hello to Josie and just looked at Alexander.

However, he seemed unable to collect himself, pressing the fleshy part of his palm against his eyes and stifling a yawn.

“…Is he still half-asleep?”

At that moment, he stopped dead in his tracks and turned around quickly.

“Oh, and the construction workers will be coming next week. Just so you know.”

Josie, watching the two of them leave, asked in surprise, “The construction workers? What kind of work are they doing?”

“Lift construction. “It’s simple and will be over in no time.”

Alexander, who was mumbling slowly with red blooded eyes, smiled as if talking in his sleep, holding Renee tightly, as if he could not have further conversation.

“I’m worried that Grandma might meet Grandpa before I do.”

The words were meant to be playful, but the real concern was that she wouldn’t fall down the stairs.

“……You’re the young one making mean jokes in front of the old one.”
Are they close or distant? Do they want to push each other away or draw closer? Or perhaps…

…They love each other but also harbor resentment.

‘Honestly, I really don’t get it.’

Josie Chambler stood still and watched his wife and son heading towards the main building without looking back.

She smiled quietly at Renee, who glanced back, the slightest hint of bitterness in her smile. Strangely, the image of the old woman standing there lingered in her eyes like an afterimage.

***

“Ouch. Let go now, Alexander.”

“…Ah, sorry.”

Staggering, Alexander gently stroked the forearm Renee had been holding onto, then let go.

Renee wrapped his other hand around the reddened forearm and watched him strangely as he stumbled along.

Something had definitely changed. She wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination, but since he returned from this last business trip, there seemed to be an increase in these seemingly casual touches.

It wouldn’t be a big deal if it weren’t so obvious, but the small change bothered Renee. Maybe it was the nervousness of never letting her guard down with this man.

Whether he knew Rene’s anxiety or not, Alexander kept yawning and striding across the mansion.

He must have been really tired, because his hands were heavy as he rubbed his shoulders and neck.

All the way to his room, Renee was conscious of the glances from the servants who greeted them along the corridor. She followed him until they reached his room and hurriedly urged him inside.

“You look tired. Get some rest; I’ll leave so you can relax.”

“Wait a moment.”

A sleepy voice stopped Renee as she was about to leave. When she hesitated and turned around, Alexander sighed as he washed his face and poured out what he wanted to say.

“There’s a banquet at the Ministry of Finance in two days. It’s partner-inclusive, so you should prepare.”

“In two days? That suddenly?”

“It was originally set for a week later, but it’s been moved up because they’re expecting rain then.”

It wasn’t even a typhoon, and the schedule for the dinner party at the Ministry of Finance changed so suddenly just because of a forecast for rain?

Before she could fully process the thought, Alexander, clearly exhausted, broke off mid-sentence and turned to his bedroom. Renee quickly followed him, calling out just as he stepped away.

“Isn’t the weather forecast always wrong? And even if it rains, the dinner will be held indoors.”

He collapsed on the bed helplessly, burying his face in his pillow and mumbling. “I said I wouldn’t go if it rains… I’m already busy and not in good condition, so I thought it would be annoying if it rained.”

In other words, the Ministry of Finance’s event had been rescheduled just to accommodate Alexander Chambler’s attendance.

Renee once again felt the weight of this man’s influence on the country. If a Ministry event included high-ranking nobles and royalty holding national power, it was remarkable that they’d adjust their schedule for him alone.

Renee looked at the man with such great influence lying on the bed without even changing his clothes.

He knew that he had to sleep when he could because he suffered from severe insomnia. However, that didn’t mean that he was allowed to sleep in his clothes.

She had her own strict lines in this aspect of her life.

“You can’t sleep like this, Alexander, no matter how sleepy you are. You’re dressed to go out. Get dressed. Have you even bathed?”

“…Good grief. So many people in my own home nagging me.”

“That’s why I suggested we just get separate beds. Then you wouldn’t have to hear this.”

“A wife who kicks her husband out of bed when he’s finally home after three months—what a wife I’ve got.”

“Be quiet. And take your shoes off, too.”

Alexander looked at Renee, who was glaring at him fiercely with his face half buried in the pillow and his hands on his waist. glaring as if she’d scold him if he didn’t change immediately.

Oh, terrifying.

Alexander willingly followed her orders at that fierce and cute attitude. He sat up and unbuttoned his buttons in front of her as if to show off. The orange eyes that opened wide in surprise were round and clear like ripe oranges.

In a flash, Alexander took off his shirt, threw it on the floor, and said “I showered at the office.”

Before Renee’s soft stomach and gaze were shoulders as solid as steel, a broad chest, and six well-defined abs that looked as if they’d never known an ounce of softness.

Alexander glanced at Renee, who stiffened, then smiled his trademark wicked grin and slipped his fingers into the waistband of his pants.

“Want me to show you how I take these off too?”

“Are you insane? Why would you undress here? The dressing room’s right there! No—just don’t take anything else off. I’ll get your pajamas!”

Horrified that Alexander was actually going to take off his pants, Renee ran to the closet at a shuffling pace.

But when she ran to find his pajamas in a hurry with her face flushed like an apple, he was already lying face down in the comfortable blanket.

Surprised, Renee glared at him anxiously, not even approaching the bed.

Could he really have… taken off his pants in that short time?

As she nervously hovered nearby, she suddenly caught sight of it.

There, at the far end of the bed.

His pants. The very same ones he’d been wearing just moments ago, now lying on the floor.

…He really did take them off.

Renee, who was holding Alexander’s pajamas tightly, quickly put them down on Alexander’s bedside and said.

“Here’s your pajamas, Alexander. Put them on. Right now.”

“……”

“Alexander, I said put on your clothes.”

“……”

“Sasha?” (A common nickname for Alexander in Russian culture)

“……”

…Oh no. He’s really asleep, isn’t he?

This is exactly why I insisted on having separate beds…!

Right before they got married, Renee added a clause to their marriage contract about their sleeping arrangements. It said that simple physical contact due to necessity was considered implicit consent, but sex should never be demanded or forced.

So, naturally, Renee assumed they’d have separate bedrooms.

But, as it turned out…

“Sharing a bed doesn’t automatically mean we’re having sex, so what’s the big deal?”

“Are you insane? Of course it’s a big deal. Who do you think we are, sharing the same bed…?”

“Married. Alexander Chambler, and Renee Chambler.”

“…A fake marriage.”

“Fake or not, people only see us as a married couple. A newlywed couple, too.”

“…So?”

“So naturally, they’d assume we share the same bedroom. The staff here and even Grandmother would.”

Clause 1 of the contract:
Under no circumstances should others know that it’s a contract marriage.
Efforts should be made to appear as a genuine married couple to outsiders.

He pressured her to keep to clause 1. Renee was embarrassed. She had never thought that would happen even at home. She tried hard not to tremble her voice and made a weak protest, “But we don’t necessarily have to sleep in the same bed uncomfortably.”

“Feeling a bit uncomfortable is unavoidable. You have to endure that much, Renee. Besides, I won’t be in this bed that often. I have many business trips and late-night outings ahead. What more do you want me to do?”

With that, Renee found it hard to argue back. After all, she was the one who accepted this strange contract first, and he wasn’t going to do anything morally or ethically strange to her right now.

…Or was he? Was he trying to do something strange? She felt confused, unsure if this was right or wrong, even she was unsure.

“I’m confident that I won’t run over you, and you’re not confident that you won’t run over me?”

“…Alexander, do you still think of me as a 12-year-old child? Those kinds of provocations don’t work on me anymore.”

“Then let’s just share the bed. The bed is big enough that we could fit three people comfortably, so what’s the worry?”

In the end, Renee, pushed by logic, guts, and voice, agreed to share the bed. However, that didn’t mean he was simply pushed aside.

Sleep as far apart as possible.
Don’t make each other uncomfortable.
Use a different room if either of you starts snoring or grinding your teeth.
Take off your shoes when you sleep.
Don’t turn on the lights after midnight.

…And so on. Renee outlined these little rules for sharing the bed, and he agreed to them without any argument. There was, however, one rule that Alexander insisted on adding:

We will not share this bed with anyone else.