Married To a Stranger

"Miss Anderson, you're already married. You cannot marry again," the shocked city clerk said flatly as he slid a paper towards Ruby.

"Here's your marriage certificate, so we cannot register you again."

Ruby blinked, shocked. "I'm sorry. What did you just say?"

"You're married?" he snapped, waving to the couple behind her.

"You can't register for a second marriage until you divorce your first husband. Now, please step out of the line. I've got others waiting."

Ruby Anderson stumbled out of the line, the certificate trembling in her hand. The guy she'd hired for the day, her fake groom.

Scratched the back of his neck. "Miss Anderson, you already have a husband. Why did you waste my time and your money?"

She couldn't speak. She couldn't breathe. She just stared at the damned document like it might explode.

"Jeez, you're weird. Deposits, non-refundable, by the way," he huffed. Then walked.

Away. Ruby pressed her lips together, her head still spinning. How the hell am I married without knowing?

She looked down at the paper in her hand again. In the ID photo, the girl's smile was small and forced.

But the mole at the corner of her eye confirmed that it was definitely her. Then she saw the groom's face, sharp, elegant features.

With a faint smile, his deep-set eyes seemed to stare with such an intensity as if they could burn a hole through the paper.

Even on a grainy, black-and-white copy, he radiated a cold magnetic power.

Then she read the name Owen Knight. She had needed a fake husband, but not a man she had never met.

She wondered how on earth they were married. She pulled out her phone, snapped a picture of the certificate, and opened up a specific contact with a black avatar.

She attached the photo with a message: "Help me find out who he is." The reply was instant.

"You got it, boss." Ruby glanced at the certificate for a bit longer, then folded it and shoved it into her back pocket.

She rode her beat-up electric scooter into a gated community lined with mansions, and pulled up to the Anderson Residence, a place she hadn't set foot in for over ten years.

Today was a big day for her sister Isabel Anderson. Her fiancé was coming over to formally propose.

The house was decked out for the occasion, with staff bustling around for the Anderson family's princess.

The moment Ruby walked through the gates, she could hear the murmurs flare with every step she took.

"Who's that? She's gorgeous."

One staff member whispered, another replied quietly. "That's the."

"The illegitimate daughter that Mr. Anderson refuses to acknowledge. She's Sheila Sutton's kid."

A third voice added, "Her mom was the mistress. She just showed up pregnant at the doorstep, demanding a showdown, right when Mrs. Anderson was about to give birth."

"The whole thing ended with both of them going into labor on the same day. That woman's got some nerve, always finding excuses to hang around the house all these years."

"She never left."

"Well, this girl seems to know her place," the first person continued. "She moved out back in middle school and hasn't been home in years."

"Wonder what she's doing here today." Ruby kept her eyes down, pretending not to hear, and walked into the living room.

Her mother, Sheila Sutton, was waiting anxiously by the door. The moment she stepped inside, Sheila grabbed her arm roughly and barked.

"What took you so long? Did you get the marriage certificate?"

Ruby's voice was flat, devoid of emotion, as she nodded curtly.

Even if the groom was different, she had done as her mother had asked.

"Good. You need to remember your place. Carter Knight is your sister's fiancé."

"A family with that kind of money and status is way out of your league. Only your sister is worthy of him," Sheila blabbered on.

A flicker of sarcasm crossed Ruby's eyes. Carter Knight, the eldest grandson of New York City's most prestigious family, had spent four years chasing her in college.

Only to propose to Isabel on graduation day. When Sheila found out, she demanded Ruby find someone, anyone to marry immediately.

Just to kill any chance of her and Carter ever getting together. It had been like this since they were kids. What Isabel wanted, Sheila ensured Ruby gave up.

As the illegitimate daughter, her very existence was like the original sin. As a kid, she'd been brainwashed into thinking it was normal.

That she just had to take it. But as she grew older, she realized the Anderson estate was not her home, and this was not her family.

She was tired of being their punching bag, so she got out.

Ruby's expression hardened. "We had an agreement," she said to her mother, enunciating every word.

"This is the last time I help you out with anything."

After all the mistakes were Sheila's. She was the one who clung to the Anderson family, refusing to leave just so she could see Warren Anderson every day.

Ruby and Isabel's father. Every day, Sheila was the one who wanted to suck up to Isabel, and Ruby was done being the victim of her mother's choices.

This was her way of repaying the debt of her birth and finally cutting the cord for good.

"I know," Sheila replied impatiently as she ascended the staircase. "Come see your sister before Carter arrives."

Ruby watched her mother's back, but paused before she followed her. She opened up the email that pinged on her phone and typed a reply.

"You have my approval. Get started on the project."

"Dr. N."

As Ruby typed out her secret alias and sent the email, a wry smile played on her lips. Sheila and Isabel still thought she was a clueless fool they could push around.

They had no clue how hard she had worked to build herself and become a world-famous scientist.