Ryan looked utterly aghast. “Idiot!” he blurted, realizing his mistake. “Mr. Thompson, I know I messed up! I have an 80-year-old mother and a child on the way! If you fire me, they’ll starve! Mr. Thompson, I beg you, please give me another chance!”

Michael held up three fingers. “Three.”

Ryan’s face fell. “Mr. Thompson!”

Michael held up two fingers. “Two.”

Ryan, desperate, started to babble thanks as Michael cut him off. “Thank you, Mr. Thompson!” He scurried out of the office, defeated.

Michael watched him go, then his eyes flickered to Emily. “Have I seen her somewhere?” he murmured, a thought nagging at him. “Alex Johnson.”

“Yes, Mr. Thompson?”

“Bring me my marriage certificate. And by the way, last year, what was the name of the person you found for me to marry?”

Alex, ever efficient, replied, “Olivia Bennett, sir. Are you sure?”

Michael frowned. “I’m sure. Must I have remembered wrong?” He turned his attention to Emily. “Emily Carter, I’ll get you some materials to review. Okay?”

“Okay,” Emily replied, still a bit stunned by the abrupt turn of events.

Later, Alex brought Emily a stack of documents. “Take these documents back and study them,” he instructed.

“Okay,” Emily said, heading back to her new, albeit temporary, desk.

Days later, Michael was in his office, a frustrated frown on his face. “Mr. Johnson, I’m sorry,” he said, looking at Alex. “Any luck finding it?”

“Not yet, sir,” Alex admitted, looking equally perplexed. “I remember leaving it right here, in this spot. But it just… vanished.”

Emily, passing by, overheard. “Assistant Alex, what are you looking for?”

“My marriage certificate,” Alex mumbled, still searching.

“Let me help you search!” Emily offered, stepping forward.

“No need,” Michael interjected curtly. “Go get the product ingredient list for my signature.”

“Ingredient list?” Emily asked, a bit confused.

“Yes. Okay, go.”

Meanwhile, Ryan, still reeling from his demotion, approached Sophia. “Mr. Thompson, I sincerely regret my actions. Please don’t fire me.”

Sophia smirked. “I can keep you employed, Mr. Patel, and…” she leaned in conspiratorially. “You must help me this time. I can’t lose my position at Thompson Enterprises.”

“I’ll assist you,” Ryan said eagerly. “If you handle something for me. What is it?”

“Make Emily Carter leave Thompson Enterprises,” Sophia stated, her eyes glinting. “Emily Carter… she’s the reason I got fired by Mr. Thompson.”

“Don’t worry,” Ryan promised, a nasty smile spreading across his face. “I’ll make sure she’s gone.”

“Proceed,” Sophia urged. She watched Ryan walk away, a triumphant smile on her face. “Michael Thompson, I’ll remove every woman who dares to covet you. You’re mine alone.”

Later, Emily was about to enter Michael’s office when Sophia blocked her path. “Who let you in here?”

“Mr. Thompson,” Emily began, “I lost an earring here. Right here,” she insisted, pointing to the floor.

“Without my permission, don’t enter my office,” Michael’s stern voice came from inside.

“Okay, Mr. Thompson,” Emily mumbled, retreating.

Sophia, seeing her chance, marched into Michael’s office. “What are you doing here?” she demanded of Emily, who was now holding a document. “Flaunting yourself for Mr. Thompson again?”

“I’m delivering the ingredient list,” Emily explained.

Sophia snatched the document. Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?! You dared to tamper with the formula! Adding mercury to it? If this goes into production, the entire batch will be ruined! You’re trying to destroy Thompson Enterprises!” she shrieked, making a dramatic show of it.

“I didn’t do it!” Emily protested, her face pale. “I never touched this document. I just got it from R&D.”

“How dare you lie?!” Sophia’s voice was shrill. “Adding this is illegal! Come with me to HR!”

“I won’t go! I didn’t do it! Let me go! Let me go!” Emily struggled as Sophia grabbed her arm, dragging her towards the door.

“What’s going on here?” Michael’s voice boomed, stepping out of his office.

“Mr. Thompson!” Sophia cried, practically throwing Emily towards him. “Emily Carter tampered with the formula, damaging our reputation!”

“I didn’t! I never touched it!” Emily pleaded, tears welling in her eyes.

“Stop lying!” Sophia spat. “Where’s the original formula? Did you sell it to competitors?”

Michael’s gaze was piercing. “Emily Carter, any explanations?”

“I swear I didn’t touch it! Taylor Green told me to retrieve this document! I didn’t even look at it! How could I possibly…?”

“Enough with the act! Let’s go to HR!” Sophia interrupted, pulling at Emily again.

“I told you I didn’t! I’m not going! Let me go!”

“Enough,” Michael said, his voice laced with an undeniable authority that stopped them both. He looked at Emily. “Did you go anywhere else?”

Emily, still shaken, thought for a moment. “The pantry. I went to the pantry for a minute. It must have been swapped there!”

“Check the security footage from the pantry!” Michael ordered.

Sophia scoffed. “A thief crying, ‘stop thief’! Everyone knows the pantry cameras were broken.”

Michael’s eyes narrowed. “Mr. Thompson, the surveillance cameras were repaired long ago,” Alex Johnson said, stepping forward with a tablet showing live footage.

On the screen, Ryan Patel was clearly seen swapping documents in the pantry.

“It’s him?!” Michael exclaimed, recognizing Ryan. “Wasn’t he fired? Why is he still here?” He turned to Alex. “Bring Ryan Patel here!”

“Yes, sir!” Alex hurried off.

Moments later, Ryan was dragged back into the office. “Let go of me! Release me! And why are you arresting me?!”

“Still making excuses?” Michael’s voice was icy. “The surveillance footage is right here. Why did you swap the files to frame her?”

Ryan’s face drained of color. “Yes… It’s…”

Sophia, surprisingly, tried to intervene. “How dare you lie in front of Mr. Thompson? You’d better think carefully before acting!”

“I… I just couldn’t accept it,” Ryan stammered, his eyes darting wildly. “I wanted Emily Carter to get fired too! Mr. Thompson, I never meant to… harm the Thompson Corporation!”

“Save that story for the police,” Michael said, his voice flat. “Take him away now.”

“Let go! I can walk myself!” Ryan protested as he was led out.

Michael turned to Emily. “Emily Carter, you failed your duties. You’re fired.”

“Why?!” Emily cried, utterly shocked. “Wasn’t this already investigated? It wasn’t me!”

At that moment, Alex rushed back in, a worried expression on his face. “Mr. Thompson, did you find it? It’s my negligence, sir. I lost your marriage certificate. Not sure if Mrs. Thompson still has hers.”

Michael’s eyes hardened. “I checked. One certificate is enough for divorce.”

Emily’s head spun. Marriage certificate? He’s married?

“Fine, I understand,” Michael said, dismissing Alex. He looked at Emily, his expression unreadable. “Get out.”

“Let’s go,” Sophia said triumphantly, taking Emily’s arm.

“Let go! Stop dragging me!” Emily pulled away.

Later that evening, sitting on her worn couch in her modest apartment in Queens, Emily’s phone rang. It was her «mysterious husband.»

“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice small. “You and I have no connection.”

“Stop calling me your husband, Emily. This is a misunderstanding. I’m…”

“Get out!” she snapped, the frustration of the day boiling over.

The voice on the other end paused, then, “Mr. Thompson, the matter has…”

“I said, get out!” Michael Thompson’s voice, sharp and distinct, came through the phone. Emily blinked. Wasn’t this already investigated?

She held the phone away from her ear, realizing she had confused Michael Thompson with her actual mystery husband. “Hello? I’m sorry, I… I left early this morning.” She hoped he hadn’t heard Michael’s angry outburst.

“Are you crying?” her mystery husband asked, his voice softer now.

“No,” she lied, wiping a tear from her cheek.

“Did you call about the divorce matter?” he asked.

“About the divorce,” Emily said, steeling herself. “Let’s delay it by a month. I need you to act as my wife, to meet my grandfather.” She knew it was a big ask, but she had to try. “Don’t worry. I’ll compensate you for this month.”

“That’s unnecessary,” Emily replied, genuinely. “The money you gave me last time saved the life of my only family, my grandma. You’re my benefactor now. I can’t take more money. Rest assured, I’m good with elderly people.” A small smile touched her lips. “We’ll proceed with the divorce soon.” Then she remembered. “Oh, and our marriage certificate. I accidentally lost mine. Do you still have yours?”

A brief silence. “Yours is missing too?” he asked, a hint of surprise in his tone.

“I lost your marriage certificate,” Emily admitted.

Suddenly, she remembered something Alex Johnson had said earlier. “Taylor Green just mentioned Mr. Thompson’s marriage certificate is missing.” What a coincidence. Two. Your marriage certificate is also missing. A strange feeling crept over her. “If that’s the case, it’s a problem.”

“It’s okay,” her mystery husband said reassuringly. “A colleague of mine today also lost their marriage certificate.”

What was I thinking? Emily thought, shaking her head. How could my mysterious husband be Mr. Thompson?She took a deep breath. “You… are you facing some difficulties? I heard you crying earlier, even though this is a sham marriage. But tell me if you need help. I’ll do my best to assist you.”

Just then, Michael’s voice, clear and commanding, came through the office speaker. “Mr. Thompson, Mr. Davis, and his team have arrived.”

“Bring the contract,” Michael instructed.

Emily’s mystery husband’s voice cut back in. “I’m fine. Right before you called me, I got fired from the company. I just lost control of my emotions.”

“Work at your company,” her husband offered.

“No need,” Emily said, a renewed resolve in her voice. “Don’t worry. I won’t be easily defeated.”

“Your boss firing you shows his poor judgment,” her husband commented.

Emily couldn’t help but agree. “Hmm. He really is blind.”

“Never speak ill of others behind their backs,” her husband chided gently.

Just as he said that, a car pulled up outside her building. Michael Thompson. Speak of the devil. Here he comes.

“I need to go,” Emily said quickly into the phone. “Something came up. We’ll text about the details later. Got it.” She hung up, rushing downstairs.

The next day, back at Thompson Enterprises, the office was abuzz with whispers. “Emily Carter, you’re Mr. Thompson’s new assistant, right?” A co-worker asked. “Do you know who Mr. Thompson’s mysterious wife is? I always thought Mr. Thompson was the city’s most eligible bachelor. Never imagined he’s married.”

“Even if Mr. Thompson were single, you’d still have no chance,” Sophia interjected, a venomous smile on her face.

“Hey, rumor says Mr. Thompson’s planning to divorce his secret wife! Is that true?” another gossiped.

“Seems plausible,” said another. “Does that mean I still have a shot?”

“Too much free time on your hands?” Michael Thompson’s voice suddenly cut through the air, sending a chill down everyone’s spine. He looked directly at the gossiping employees. “Pack your belongings and leave the company immediately.”

The office fell silent. “What’s happening?!” a stunned voice whispered. “No idea…”

Later, Sophia cornered Emily. “Taylor Green, do you know Mr. Thompson’s schedule?”

“His schedule is confidential,” Emily replied, recalling Alex Johnson’s words. “Only Sophia and Taylor Green have access.”

Sophia smirked. “Do you know who Mr. Thompson is meeting with today? Probably CEO Davis from Celestial Group. Mr. Davis.”

Emily, remembering her conversation with her «husband» (Michael, she now realized with a jolt), suddenly understood. Michael was going to meet Mr. Davis. “Hey, where are you going?” Sophia called after her as Emily hurried away.