The next morning, Hunter Quinn arrived at Delilah's penthouse at exactly 8 A.M. He had barely slept the night before, his mind buzzing with anticipation as he wondered how she was thinking and what she was planning.
He was looking forward to seeing how she would react to his presence, how she would handle the unexpected twists he had planned for her.
As he approached the elegant door of Delilah's penthouse, he took a deep breath and rang the doorbell, hoping his plan would unfold as smoothly as he envisioned.
After a few moments, the door opened, revealing a young lady who bore a striking resemblance to Delilah. He could tell she was Jessica, Delilah's widowed sister whom he had been told about.
Her green eyes, identical to Delilah's, widened in surprise as she took in the sight of Hunter standing there with a suitcase. Her blonde hair was tousled, and she wore a simple robe, clearly having just woken up.
"Good morning. I believe this is Delilah's residence?" He asked pleasantly.
"Who are you?" she asked, her tone laced with suspicion.
Hunter gave her a charming smile. "My name is Blake Davies. I'm Delilah's husband."
Jessica blinked, her surprise quickly turning into skepticism. "My sister isn't married," she said, eyeing him as if he had lost his mind.
Hunter remained calm, his smile unwavering. "I assure you, I am. You can check with Delilah. Bring her to the door."
Jessica looked him up and down once more before nodding slowly. "Wait here," she said, shutting the door in his face.
Inside the house, Jessica hurried to Delilah's bedroom, her mind racing. She had been staying with her sister for a year now, and the last thing she expected was to be greeted by a man claiming to be Delilah's husband. She gently shook Delilah awake.
"Delilah, you have a visitor," Jessica said softly.
Delilah groaned and turned over, her eyes barely open. "Who is it?" she mumbled.
"Some man claiming to be your husband."
That got Delilah's attention. She bolted upright, sleep instantly fleeing from her body. "What?!" she exclaimed, her heart pounding in her chest.
She glanced at the clock on her nightstand. It was barely past eight in the morning. Why was he here so early? She had hoped to have more time to prepare for his arrival.
Throwing on a robe, Delilah rushed to the door, with Jessica following close behind. She opened the door to find Hunter standing there, a confident smile on his face.
"Good morning, Lila. You look breathtaking," he greeted warmly.
Delilah didn't return his smile. "Come in," she said as she stepped aside to let him in, her mind racing.
Jessica, standing beside her, looked between the two of them, clearly confused.
"What's going on?" Jessica demanded. "Is it true? Are you married to this man? Since when?"
Hunter turned to Delilah, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "Didn't you tell her already, Lila?"
Delilah sighed, regretting her decision to not tell Jessica when she had the chance. "There's a mixup," she began.
"There's no mixup," Hunter interjected smoothly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.
"We got married on Friday night. I am your brother-in-law. You're Jessica, aren't you? Lila told me so much about you," Hunter said as he showed Jessica a series of photos of him and Delilah, and a photo of their wedding certificate.
Jessica's eyes widened as she looked at the photos. "This is real, D," Jessica said as she glanced at Delilah, who shook her head, frustration evident on her face.
"I don't remember doing any of that," Delilah said, her voice tight. "I'm trying to fix it."
"You don't?" Jessica asked, and Delilah bobbed her head as tears gathered in her eyes.
"I only remember going to the club, but every other thing is blank. This doesn't make any sense," Delilah cried as she slumped into the couch.
Jessica nodded, trying to keep a straight face, but Hunter didn't miss the twitch of her lip.
"Alright. Please sit down, brother-in-law," Jessica offered, and Hunter sat down.
"Can I get you something to drink? Water? Coffee? Tea?" She offered, and Hunter smiled.
"Coffee will do. Thanks," he said, and Jessica gave him a nod before walking away.
"What the hell are you doing here so early? I told you to take a week or two. Why did you have to come here so early in the morning?" she hissed irritably when they were alone.
Hunter shrugged, his smile never wavering. "I told you, I didn't need a week, baby. I missed you so much and could barely sleep all night because I was consumed by thoughts of you," he said and Delilah gritted her teeth.
Delilah took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Can you not call me anything other than Delilah?"
"No, I can't," Hunter said pleasantly.
"I'm not asking you if you can…"
"You did ask me," Hunter said and Delilah clenched her fist.
Before Delilah could say anything else, Jessica returned with two cups of coffee, and she handed one to Hunter and sipped from one.
"I need to get something. You both are married, yeah?" Jessica asked Hunter as she sat beside him, and he gave her a nod.
"So, why are you here? I mean, why isn't she moving in with you? Has she met your family? What do you do?" Jessica asked, wanting to know if perhaps Hunter was one of Delilah's victims who had played a fast one on her.
"My family is not here. And she is not moving in with me because I don't have a place of my own. I live with a couple of friends and I'm in between jobs," Hunter explained.
"You don't have a house and you don't have a job? I guess your family isn't wealthy either?" Jessica asked, her eyes dancing with laughter.
"No. I'm the breadwinner of my family," he said, and this time, Jessica burst into laughter, unable to contain herself.
Delilah glared at her. "It's not funny, Jessica."
Jessica wiped tears from her eyes, still chuckling. "Oh, it is. Trust me, D. This is hilarious!" she exclaimed.
"I can't remember the last time I heard you laugh, and then the first time you laugh after such a long time it is at my expense, really?" Delilah asked and Jessica laughed harder.
Hunter couldn't help but smile at the scene. Jessica's laughter was infectious, and for a moment, the tension in the room eased.
"You don't have to worry. I promise to work hard to take care of your sister," Hunter said, and Jessica patted his hand.
"Oh, Blake, I'm not worried at all. No pressure whatsoever," she said, finally catching her breath.
"You're welcome to the family, Blake. I will take your bag in," Jessica said, smiling at him, while Delilah eyed her with disapproval.
Delilah crossed her arms, her expression stormy. "I have no intention of sharing a room with him. Jessica, you can move into my bedroom and let him use the other bedroom until I can resolve this mess and he can leave."
"Whatever, Mrs Davies," Jessica said with a giggle.
"Hold on while I move my stuff and prepare the room for you," Jessica said to Hunter before walking away, while Delilah scowled at him before walking away as well, leaving him alone in the living room.