Chapter 1 Marriage at First Sight

Sarah POV

The bell above the restaurant door chimed softly. I quickly closed my sketchpad and looked up with my best service smile. "Good afternoon, welcome to Bella Vista. Table for one?"

The afternoon shift was always slow, and I'd been sketching during the lull between lunch and dinner rushes. This evening gown design had been nagging at me all week, and I couldn't let the inspiration slip away—not when rent was due next week and I'd already turned down two design commissions this month because they didn't pay enough.

But the sight in front of me made me forget how to breathe.

The man standing in front of me was... wow. Dark hair, brown eyes, wearing a simple navy button-down. No flashy jewelry, no obvious designer labels, just this effortless elegance that made my heart do a little skip.

He smiled politely. "Actually, I think I'll just sit at the counter. Could I get a coffee, please?"

Suddenly remembering Mom's reminders, I caught myself unconsciously biting my lower lip. "Michael?"

The man blinked. "Uh... yes, I'm Michael. How did you..."

Holy shit. This guy was actually set up by Mom? After all those weird disasters she's put me through, she finally found someone who doesn't look like he crawled out of a cave...

Six years ago, I was just finishing my freshman year at Star City University. Fashion design had been my world, filling me with dreams of runway shows and my own label someday. Then Mom's car accident happened.

The medical bills were crushing for a single-parent household already stretched thin. I made the only choice I could: dropped out to work full-time. That's when Blake, my boyfriend since high school, delivered his final blow: "Sarah, I don't think we're compatible anymore. I have my own future to think about."

The financial pressure, emotional betrayal, shattered dreams—everything collapsed at once. Depression swallowed me whole for months, and even after therapy helped me climb back out, I could never quite remember the details. Most of what I know about that time came from Mom filling in the blanks afterwards.

Mom blamed herself completely. She was convinced she'd destroyed my future, and later her matchmaking had become an all-consuming obsession. I'd catch her lying awake at 3 AM scrolling dating apps, barely eating while grilling me about giving guys "a fair chance."

Just this morning, she'd grabbed my hands and said, "Sweetie, I've got another one lined up for you. He'll come straight to the restaurant. You have to give this one a real chance, okay?"

I understood her anxiety was literally making her sick. If getting married quickly would give her peace, then that's what I'd do. I just had to see what today's candidate was like first.

But I never expected him to be this good.

"Not exactly embarrassed, are you?" I said, starting to pour his coffee. "Since you're here, might as well get to know each other. I'm Sarah Martinez. I work here as a server, live in a rental with my mom, and she's a janitor at the hospital."

Michael opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, then closed it again.

"Don't be shy," I continued, sliding the coffee toward him. "Mom already told me your basic stats. Correct me if I'm wrong? You work at Pinnacle Industries Group, parents passed away, looking to get married for the tax benefits and homebuying stuff. Your name's Michael..."

"Michael Johnson," he said with a small smile, seeing me struggled to get his last name. "I'm in business development, travel a lot for client meetings. Currently renting, drive a Honda Accord."

His honesty was refreshing. Most guys I'd met spent the first ten minutes trying to impress me with stories about their imaginary startup or their buddy's borrowed BMW.

I leaned forward. "Michael, may I ask you something?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Will you marry me?"

The corner of his mouth quirked up, like he'd been expecting something like this. "You're serious about this, aren't you?"

"Dead serious," I said. "Look, I need a husband to make my mom stop worrying, and you obviously need to get married for financial reasons. Why not?"

He leaned back slightly. "We literally just met. Don't you think this is moving a little fast?"

"Come on, people get married quickly all the time now," I pressed on. "We could get the paperwork done, take time to actually get to know each other. If it works out, great. If not, we divorce."

Michael studied my face for a moment, his smile never wavering. "If you really want this... okay. Let's try it."

I quickly ducked into the kitchen to ask Tony to cover the front while I stepped out. The cook nodded without looking up from his prep work.

An hour later, we stood in line at the county clerk's office downtown.

The whole process felt surreal—filling out forms, showing our IDs, paying the fee. When the clerk behind the bulletproof glass asked if we had witnesses, I realized we'd overlooked that detail completely. She casually waved over two employees on their coffee break who signed our papers with all the enthusiasm of people doing a favor for strangers.

Walking out with our marriage certificate, we exchanged phone numbers. When I saw what Michael had saved me as in his contacts, my cheeks went hot.

"'My Queen?' Isn't that a bit much?"

"Not at all," Michael said softly. "We're married now. You are my queen. Should we head home to meet your mom?"

I nodded. "Yeah, she's going to flip when she meets you."

But just as we started walking toward the street, a flashy red sports car roared to a stop. A guy in his early twenties jumped out.

"Bro! Finally found you!" he shouted, jogging toward Michael. "Come on, we gotta go! The client situation got crazy and they're asking for big boss now!"

I frowned, looking between them. Big boss? But didn't he say he was just in business development? And this car...

Michael's expression stayed completely calm. "Oh, this is my... colleague Chris. He's a rich kid, likes to joke around, always calls me 'boss.' That's his family's car."

The Chris guy blinked, glancing between me and Michael, then quickly caught on. "Ha! Yeah, exactly! I just like calling Michael that because he's always solving problems for me."

My suspicion faded, and I laughed. Young people like to be dramatic.

"Sarah, I'm sorry," Michael said apologetically. "I probably can't walk you home after all. Rain check on meeting your mom?"

"Of course. Work comes first."

Michael stepped closer and pulled me into a gentle hug, pressing his lips to mine in a soft, sweet goodbye kiss.

The moment our lips touched, fragments of something flickered in the back of my mind. A gentle voice whispering behind my ears, warm hands holding mine, the same scent that made me crazy... But the images dissolved before I could grasp them.

Why did I feel like we'd been together like this before? Could this have happened during those years I couldn't remember?