Chapter 16

Finale

I glance away from Elliot. "It's nothing. I have a stomach bug, that's all." "Are you sure?" Elliot asks. "Yes." "I'm not ready to tell him I'm pregnant yet!" I tell myself. I desperately try to change the subject. "Now, tell me more about the trial. Any news about Mina?" I questioned Elliot. "Yes, actually. A doctor checked if Mina was pregnant, and as we expected, it turns out she lied about it. It also means that this 'Evidence" can't be disclosed in the trial." he explained. "Thank God. I'm so relieved she isn't pregnant." "I knew she wasn't. I was telling you the truth before." "I know." I rise on my toes to kiss him. "Now, let's go get some dinner, shall we?" Ten days flew by fast, and it was finally time for the trial. "I need to look professional. We're going to the court, after all." I put on my outfit, and moments later I hear a knock on my door. "Babe, are you ready? We need to leave now, or we'll be late." Elliots informs me. "I'm ready!" he enters the room and looks at me."Wow, you look stunning." He smiles. "Thanks. Let's go win this." Fifteen minutes before the trial, Paul, Elliot, and I gather around. "Alright, Let's discuss our strategy one last time. We're going to mention that you had filed a restraining order. Then we're going to call multiple witnesses who will testify to Mina harassing you." Paul reminds us. "There's also the fact that I'm already married to Evie," Elliots adds. "Yes, that. We don't have Fabian, but I still think we have a solid chance to win." "A solid chance? It sounds like we have the upper hand!" I replied to Pual statement. "Unfortunately, Mina has some things going for her as well. She has the tape where Elliot claims he wasn't married. The judge might rule in her favor, seeing your secret wedding with Evie was presented only after the Las Vegas marriage with Mina," Paul states. "I can't falsify a contract, and she can drug someone in order to marry them? How is that fair?" Elliot responds. "Well, this will include you lying under oath, which is a serious offense." Paul turns to me "There's also the contract that Elliot signed." "Can I have a look at it?" I asked. "Sure." he opens the portfolio and hands me the contract. I read through it slowly, making sure I don't miss anything important. When I get to his signature down at the bottom, I pause. "Wait a minute..." " I already checked it, Evie. There's nothing we can do." Paul interrupts. "Yes, there is! This isn't your signature, Elliot!" "Are you sure?" Paul asks. "I was his assistant for half a year, Paul. Don't you think I'd recognize my own boss's signature?" I answered. "Let me see." Elliot and Paul reach for the contract at the same time, almost ripping it apart. "Look at your signature, Elliot! There's a missing L in your name." Paul points out. " And I never do that fancy loop. She faked the signature!" Paul smiles triumphantly and pats Elliot on the shoulder. "I think we just won the trial, my friend." Paul announced. One hour later... The trial was over almost as soon as it began. Naturally, we won, and Mina was left with nothing. When it was all over, we were almost trampled by paparazzi and journalists who were yelling questions all over the place. "How does winning the trial feel, Mr.Anderson?" the paparazzi asked. "All I can say is that justice won," Elliot answered. "What's going to happen after this, Mr.Anderson?" The paparazzi questioned. "The only thing I want to do right now is go home and celebrate with my beautiful wife and closest friends." Elliot reaches for my hand, and together we try to get away from the paparazzi. Suddenly, Mina stands before us with her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed. "You might have won this round, Elliot, but you and I both know it was pure luck." Her eyes dart to my figure, and she scowls. "Keep pretending all you want, I know your marriage is fake. And one day, the world will know it too." Mina curses. "And I know you're a fraud, and now the world knows that too," I tell her. Mina stomps away angrily, and Elliot and I laugh. "I don't think she will be bothering us anymore." I smiled. "You've got that right." Once we're back home, Paul and Thea come over to celebrate with us. "Cheers to winning the case!" Paul cheers. "That witch got what she deserved. I've got one word for her, karma!" Thea laughs. "I hope she learned her lesson and that her scamming days are over," Paul comments. "One can only hope," I replied. "So, what are you guys going to do now once she's gone?" Thea asks. "What do you mean?" "There's no reason to keep faking it. Are you still going to live together?" There's an uncomfortable pause before Elliot answers. "Yeah. I mean, if she wants to." Elliot replies. I feel six pairs of eyes on me, waiting for me to reply. "Yeah, sure." In an attempt to remove the focus on me, I decide to ask Thea and Paul about their relationship. "How about you two? Aren't you guys quite serious now?" I asked. "We are. We're actually moving in together!" Paul announce. "Wow, congratulations!" I congratulate them. "Thank you!" "Let's make a toast. For winning the case, and for love!" Elliot Said out loud. We all clink our glasses together but I never drink. Elliot throws a suspicious glance at me, and I know he's on to something. "Paul, Thea. Could you guys give us a moment? I need to talk to Evie about something" Elliot interrupts the fun. "Uh oh, he knows!" I tell myself. "Uhh, actually, I think we left some cookies in the oven," Thea replies. "Yup! I think we did!" Paul adds. "Guys?!" Thea and Paul leave through the door, waving at us. 'I can't believe them!" I turn to Elliot and find him looking at me expectantly. "This is it. Be brave, Evie. Just rip it off like a band-aid." I encouraged myself. "I'm pregnant." There's a heavy pause, in which Elliot just stares at me with wide eyes. "Are you serious?" "Yes, I am. I don't know how it happened, but—" Elliot suddenly grabs me and spins me around! After a few seconds, he puts me down and plants a kiss on my lips. "Wow, You seem happy about it" I point out. 'Why wouldn't I be? This is great news! I've always wanted to have kids." "And you're okay having the kid with me?" Elliot looks confused at my question. " I mean, we're faked married." "Evie, what I feel for you is anything but fake. Of course, I want to have kids with you." Elliot tells me. "He said kids, as in plural." I thought to myself. I gaze into his eyes, and I can tell that he means everything he just said. I throw myself into his arms, overwhelmed by emotions. He catches me and lifts me up and then he carries me to the bedroom. He lays me down carefully on the bed before he crawls over to me. "Evie, How could you possibly think this is fake?" He lifts my shirt up and starts kissing my belly, and I giggle. He captures my lips with his, gently and lovingly. "I want to take things slow with you this time, show you what you mean to me." Elliot explains. And so he does, for hours... A few days later... My husband walks in on me while I'm lying on the couch. "Hey, what are you doing?" Elliot asked. "Nothing, just reading a book." I slam my book shut and go up to kiss him. As I come closer, I see that he's hiding something behind his back. "What's behind your back?" I asked. "I have a surprise for you." "His devilish grin tells me I'm going to like it." I tell myself. Elliot shows it to me, and my jaw drops. In his hand is the most beautiful dress I've ever seen. It sparkles in a way that's making me think it's made of real diamonds. "Is this for me?" "of course, Beautiful. Try it on!" I run to the bathroom, slip out of my yoga pants and tee carefully slide the dress over my head. I walk out of the bathroom, like a model. "Wow. You look even better than I imagined you would." Elliot compliments me. "I love it! I feel like a princess. Or a queen." 'You are. My queen." Elliot comes closer and kisses me softly. "Is there any particular reason for this beautiful gift?" I asked. " I just wanted to give you something." he replied. "Elliot, this dress looks expensive. Are you sure there's no other reason?" 'I just want to take you out for dinner and show you off, that's all. I hope you're hungry." he finally confesses."Can we stay in tonight instead? I really don't want to go out... I don't feel so well." I asked him. He smiles at me softly and raises his arm to caress me. "No problem. Let me make you a cup of tea." Elliot disappears into the kitchen, and I change out of the dress. I make my way to the couch and slouch down, pulling a blanket over me. I rest my head against a pillow and close my eyes. A few minutes later, Elliot enters with a cup of tea and a cookie. " I brought you something sweet since you didn't get any dessert." "That's so sweet, thank you." I reach for the cookie and pause when I see a diamond ring lying next to it. I look at him with wide eyes, and then he goes on one knee, grinning. 'Sorry about this. I had to improvise on the spot" he apologize. I cover my mouth in surprise and nod, suddenly overwhelmed. "Evie, I love you. You challenge me, you make me laugh, and you make me want to be a better man. I want to share the rest of my life with you if you'll let me. Will you marry me... for real this time?" he asked. "Yes! A thousand times yes!" I get up from the sofa and throw my arms around him. I bury my face in his shoulder as he embraces me, and my heart feels like it's going to explode. " I love you, Elliot. I can't believe I'm so lucky to have you." "I'm the one who's lucky." He presses his mouth against mine, and the whole world disappears. When he moves away, he slides the ring onto my finger, and I can't help but admire it. "This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." 'yes. It truly is." I glance up, and I find him looking at me with the biggest smile on his face. We stumble into the bedroom an hour later, happy and drunk on the feeling. Elliot scoops me into his arms, and together we fall onto the bed, still wearing our clothes. Elliot looks at me, his eyes glistening in the fading light. "I don't think I've ever been so happy" Elliot grinned. 'I know how you feel." "Evie... I think I was in love with you before you even were my fake wife." Elliot admits. "Really?" ' I could never take my eyes off you. I would look at you as you reach for a book on the shelf, on your tippy toes. And I said to myself. "I'd love to share a toothbrush cup with this woman." 'Really?" We laugh, and it's the most beautiful sound in the world, Elliot cups my face with his hand, and when we locked eyes, he softly brushes his lips against mine. "Good night, Mrs, Anderson." I close my eyes while listening to Elliot. I eventually fall asleep. I begin to hear beeping noises. I open my eyes to see my alarm clock got off. I rub my eyes and turn to the other side of the bed. "What an interesting dream." The End.