Page 30 of The Unwanted Husband
“I needed to show you this.” He walked past her and held the large envelope.
She watched him open the envelope and pulled out what looked like a certificate. “This is what we needed to move forward with the adoption.”
She took the embossed document sheet and looked at it.
It was a marriage certificate.
Something hit her deep inside although she knew it was a generated document for the adoption process. A single man or woman would have no chance to adopt twins.
“How did you manage to get it?” She didn’t have to go to the registration office or the court for the certificate. All she had to tell him was that they should get married.
“I managed.” He shrugged.
She swept her eyes over the certificate and noticed his name.Ashoka Veera Devendraseema
She looked up at him. “I’m married to a stranger? I don’t know this guy. I thought I was marrying Ashok Dev on paper.”
He took the certificate from her and chuckled. “You’ve been conned into marrying a stranger.”
“Do I need to worry about alimony when I want to divorce you?” She was suddenly at ease with him. Maybe because she knew it was a matter of time she would be able to go back to San Francisco. But she needed to finish filing her father’s case and have it all set before she left.
He only shook his head with a small smile on his face.
“And no angry girlfriend that I need to explain about this arrangement?” She had been curious about the guy’s personal life. He was handsome, well to do and seemed to be well connected too.
“No time for a relationship and now it’s against my policy to have one since I technically have a wife.”
“Thank you,” she said and in response to his puzzled expression she added, “For having Nina and Varun work with me.”
“Consider it a thank you for this,” he held up the marriage certificate before slipping it back into the envelope. “Now I need to get my family to attend the birthday party.”
Oh yes! There was that!
What if his family doesn’t reconnect with him? Could he raise the kids on his own once the adoption goes through?
He seemed to be doing okay on his own. Definitely far better than her.
CHAPTER 12
“There’s the face I love.” Aman smiled looking at Isha on the video call. “And why are you up so late?” It had been a few days since she had seen Aman as he was traveling for work.
“I’m wrapping up some work.” She smiled.
“You are on family leave, why are you working?”
She chuckled. “I’m bored.”
“Go out with your sister-in-law’s brother if you are too bored.” Aman was pulling her leg knowing how much she could not bear his energy when she had talked to him, just after her brother’s funeral.
“The guy is busy with work or with the kids. One dedicated uncle.” She paused and added, “This is why I want to set him up with every legal step that is needed for him to adopt the kids.”
Aman scrunched his nose. “How can he adopt both kids? Don’t they have limitations in India about who an unmarried man can adopt?”
She nodded. “Yes, indeed and technically he is married so he will be able to.”
“I don’t understand.”
Isha smiled at Aman’s puzzled expression. “Don’t tell my mom, but I am the one who he is married to, obviously on paper to get the adoption process going.”
