JOKE

''I am not sick,'' Elvina sighed when she saw the look of disbelief on his face, ''You don't trust me?" she asked.

Archer's gaze was doubtful. Trust her? Did she hear herself? Watching her act like a sweet wife was the highlight of his day.

And now, he could only think of reasons why she was acting this way.

He'd rather have her glare at him.

Elvina caught him off guard when she suddenly got her wrists out of his grip and placed her palms on his shoulders before standing on her tiptoes.

She pressed her forehead against his, ''Do you trust me now?" she whispered, looking into his eyes, her warm breath falling on his lips.

The living room was dead silent. Gold was asleep and Archer hoped for him to wake up, to make sounds or scratch stuff because the sound of his rapid heartbeats was reverberating in his ear.

For fuck's sake, was he that needy for women?

The woman standing in front of him married him for his money, schemed and manipulated her personality in front of him, and even admitted to having done all that.

Then, she let a man kiss her hand. Yes, unaware to Elvina, he had seen that pretty man kissing her hand that day. Their silhouettes were visible through the glass windows that had white sheer curtains.

They looked intimate and this was not the Victorian era for them to be acting that way.

She did not let him inside the house and it meant she wanted to be alone with that pretty woman which, in itself spoke the truth.

Archer reminded himself of all possible reasons for which he had concluded that he hated her.

But his body was betraying his mind, refusing to step back.

Looking at the man who was in a trance, Elvina stepped back from him. She snapped her fingers in front of his eyes.

Archer glanced at her, feeling the loss of her touch on his body. Her touch was somewhat cold but everytime she touched him, there was a lingering warmth left in his body.

''Let's have dinner together,'' Elvina motioned her thumb towards the dining table.

Looking at her sparkling eyes, he cleared his throat, ''After you,'' he said.

She walked towards the 10-seater dining table and he followed her.

Archer pulled out a chair for her and after she took a seat, he pushed it before taking a seat next to her.

''Was this food delivered by your secretary again?" There was untouched lunch on the dining table and next to it was the dinner which seemed to be freshly prepared.

''No, it's the chef. She was on a day off earlier this morning so I had to get my secretary to deliver our breakfast,'' Archer paused, ''The Chef called me and said that she wanted to see you but you were not around," he looked at her.

''Did she check in my room?" Elvina asked without a single shift in her expression.

''Maybe not,'' Archer said, serving the food on his plate.

''I was sleeping so I did not know when she came,'' Elvina answered, inwardly hoping that Claire has already dealt with the CCTV of the times when she left and came back.

Back in the club, she was a bit distracted when she left the suite after overhearing the conversation between both men.

Claire's bag was left with her so she took her car and drove back to the Silverton Estate.

Those bodyguards should have gone whining to her anyway so she believed that her sister won't have any trouble coming back home.

Archer nodded, ''Did you go out today?"

''Why do you ask?" Elvina placed her chin on the back of her palmas she looked at him, ''Did you miss me?"

Archer narrowed his eyes, ''Stop overestimating yourself.''

''Come on now. You told the reporters that I am your priority,'' Elvina batted her eyelashes, ''So what if I married you for money? I certainly won't mind a loving husband in the 'buy one get one free' offer.''

Archer glanced at the woman quietly.

If looks could kill, Elvina would have been dead a few times by now.

''Your love and dedication moved my money-minded heart,'' Elvina dramatically placed her palm on his chest as she leaned back on his chair, ''So, what do you say? Shall I move into your room and onto your bed?''

Archer's lips thinned. The moment when he thought that she had a different side to him, something that she had kept hidden within her, she proved him wrong.

This relationship, this marriage, everything was a joke to her. Not like he expected anything more from her.

But still, he was disappointed in himself for wanting to know her real self, constantly denying that the person sitting in front of him was real.

Elvina was a money-minded, manipulative woman, a person who grew up poor and aimed to be rich. Someone who did not care about things like 'love and affections' just like him. To her, everything was just a 'JOKE', including him.

''I will cooperate with the HR department and shift the media's focus from our marriage soon. Then, we can get divorced privately without any delay. Take the alimony and go abroad,'' Archer pushed himself to his feet, the chair screeching back by his sudden movement.

Divorce? As if! He could forget about it till she finished her work here.

Elvina's brows tugged together. But, what happened to him suddenly though?

''Hey, what about your dinner?" He barely ate anything.

''The sight of you makes me lose my appetite,'' Archer shoved his fist in his pocket and walked towards the coffee table without paying much attention to the woman who was sitting stunned at the dining table.

He picked up his suit jacket with his left hand and swung it over his left shoulder before he ascended the staircase.

''Who do you think you are?" Elvina snapped, coming back to her senses.

Archer paused. He looked at her from above his shoulder, ''The rich man whom you married for money,'' with that said, he turned around and left without looking back.

Elvina's jaw dropped.