Chapter 10: Marriage Registration

"Miss, are you sure about this?" the middle-aged staff asked Katie. "Let's do it. I've made up my mind," Katie said. "I haven't quite made up mine," Wesley muttered. The staff looked at his pout and couldn't believe it. With a woman like Katie, and he was still hesitating? Did he even know his place? What really got to her was that, with a guy like Wesley, Katie was the one with the initiative. "You're not going to go back on your word, are you?" Katie's voice went cold as she looked at Wesley. "Of course not. I agreed, didn't I? I don't go back on what I agree to." Since they'd both agreed, the staff went ahead and processed it.  Later, they walked out of the city affairs bureau with their certificate. The moment they stepped outside, they glanced at each other. Wesley had figured Katie would be just a brief detour in his life. He hadn't expected the two of them to end up legally married.  As for Katie, she never imagined she'd end up marrying a delivery guy. At this point, there wasn't much she could say. "Come on, I'll take you home and show you around," Katie said, tossing him the car keys. In her eyes, he was her husband in name. Letting him drive felt perfectly natural. "Wait, do you even know how to drive?" she asked, suddenly uncertain. "More or less," Wesley said, sliding behind the wheel. The engine roared to life the moment Katie buckled in.  The sudden surge pinned her back, and she let out a sharp scream before clapping a hand over her mouth.  She prided herself on keeping it together. She wasn't the type to scream like a maniac. Wesley drove far faster than most people dared, even in the city.  The Maserati shot through traffic, weaving through with ease, drifting through turns now and then. Katie's heart pounded, feeling like it might leap out of her chest. Caution had always been her way. She was certain she had never ridden in a car going this fast in her life.  It felt, at every turn, as if they were about to clip another vehicle, and yet the Maserati kept slipping through with room to spare. "Do you have a driver's license?" Katie finally blurted. "No," Wesley replied. "Pull over. I'm getting out," she said at once. She clutched at her chest, her face gone pale. If she had known he was unlicensed, she would have driven the car. Wesley didn't slow down. He pressed the accelerator. "Aaaah!" Katie screamed her head off, the breakneck speed and sudden drifts making her feel she might black out at any moment. At last, a traffic jam ahead forced the car to stop, and Katie managed to steady her breathing. "Are you stopping or not? If you don't stop, I'm jumping out!" she shouted at Wesley. She swore that, given another chance, she would never ride with him again. Putting her life in his hands like this was insane. "All right, all right, I'll slow down, okay? And stop yelling." Only then did Wesley ease off, settling into a normal speed and following the GPS toward Katie's house. Katie exhaled, and her nerves finally began to settle. They pulled up in front of a luxurious villa. Inside, the housekeeper hurried to open the door, revealing a maid in her twenties. "Her name is Milina," Katie said, introducing them once she stepped out of the car. "Milina, this is Wesley Kershaw. He's my husband." With that, Katie walked into the living room. Halfway there, she heard an odd murmur behind her. She turned and blinked. Wesley was chatting with Milina in Epean. "He speaks Epean?" Katie frowned. In her mind, at best, Wesley might speak a couple of phrases. It was nothing to make a fuss over. She went into the living room and took a seat. After a while, hearing the two of them still chatting away happily outside, irritation flared. "Wesley Kershaw, get in here. I'll show you the house," she called. Wesley waved to Milina and came into the living room. "I'll show you your room," Katie said, heading straight for the staircase with him in tow. Later, she opened a door on the right and gestured inside. "This is your room." Wesley stepped in and looked around. It was spacious, with an immaculately made bed. On the side table sat a high-end desktop and an iPad. An entire row of wardrobe doors lined one wall. "Not bad. No wonder so many guys don't mind living off a woman," he quipped. He slid the wardrobe door open and stared.  Inside hung an array of designer suits, shirts, and even sweatpants, with belts lined up neatly, their polished buckles gleaming. There were several ties, too, each rolled just so. Wesley shook his head. For all that he was only a husband on paper, Katie had gone out of her way to outfit him. It meant she had, at the very least, put thought into this arrangement. "Thanks," he called toward the door. He turned and found the doorway empty. Katie had already slipped away. He stepped out and headed down the right-hand corridor. A few paces on, he saw a door standing ajar. "Maybe this is my wife's room?" he murmured. He nudged it open and went in. Bookcases and a dressing table gave the space a polished, bookish elegance with an old-money touch. A light, intoxicating feminine scent lingered in the air. "Nice," he said softly. His gaze snagged on the bed, beside an embroidered pillow. A lace lingerie was lying there. Wesley went closer. It was lacy, with little cutouts. The thought of it on Katie, barely concealing and all the more alluring for it, sent his heart into a faster beat. The memory of that night flashed through him. He lifted the lingerie to his nose and drew in a breath. "Wow, it even has a faint, sweet scent," he murmured. "What do you think you're doing?" A small hand darted in from behind and snatched the lingerie away. At some point, Katie had come in. She clenched the piece behind her back, her face flushed a fierce crimson. She had never imagined that one slip would let Wesley catch a glimpse of something so private. "Honey, I didn't mean to," Wesley said sheepishly. "I told you not to go into my room! That's a fifty-dollar fine!" Katie yelled. She pointed at the door. "Out!"