Updated Feb 23, 2026 • ~7 min read
POV: Rory
I don’t sleep.
By seven AM, I’m sitting at Priya’s kitchen table drinking my third cup of coffee.
My phone won’t stop buzzing.
Dominic: “Can we talk?”
Dominic: “Please. I need to see you.”
Dominic: “I’m meeting with James today. About the legal situation. I want you there.”
James. His brother. The lawyer.
At least someone’s thinking practically.
Me: “What time?”
Dominic: “10 AM. His office. I’ll pick you up?”
Me: “I’ll meet you there.”
I don’t want to be in a car with him right now. Don’t trust myself not to scream or cry or both.
James’s law office is downtown. Sleek and modern and expensive-looking.
I arrive at 9:55.
Dominic’s already there. Sitting in the waiting room. Looking like he didn’t sleep either.
“Rory—”
“Let’s just do this.”
The receptionist leads us to a conference room.
James is waiting. He looks tired too.
“Rory. Dominic. Sit.”
We sit. On opposite sides of the table.
James opens a folder.
“Okay. I’ve been researching all night. Here’s the situation.”
He pulls out documents.
“Dominic and Celeste Ashford were legally married in 2016. That marriage was never dissolved, annulled, or otherwise terminated.”
“Because she was in a coma,” Dominic says.
“Right. Which means in the eyes of the law, you’re still married.”
My stomach drops.
“And my marriage to Rory?”
James winces.
“That’s where it gets complicated. Bigamy—being married to two people simultaneously—is illegal in Washington State. However, there’s a legal concept called ‘putative marriage.'”
“What’s that?” I ask.
“It’s when someone enters a marriage in good faith, believing they have the legal right to marry, even if the marriage is technically invalid. Since Dominic genuinely believed Celeste was dead or at least permanently incapacitated, and since you both entered the marriage in good faith, your marriage might qualify as putative.”
“Might?”
“It’s not guaranteed. We’d have to go to court. Prove good faith. But even if we succeed, putative marriage doesn’t give you all the rights of a legal marriage. It’s more of a legal acknowledgment that you weren’t intentionally breaking the law.”
“So our marriage isn’t real,” I say flatly.
“It’s… complicated.”
“Stop saying that.”
“Rory—” Dominic reaches across the table.
I pull my hand away.
“What are our options?” I ask James.
“Three main options. One: Dominic divorces Celeste. Once that’s finalized, you and Dominic can remarry legally.”
“She just woke up from a five-year coma. I can’t divorce her NOW.”
“I’m just outlining options,” James says. “Option two: We go to court, establish your marriage as putative, and fight to have it recognized as valid. This would essentially invalidate Dominic’s marriage to Celeste.”
“That’s just divorcing her with extra steps,” I point out.
“Essentially, yes. Option three…”
He pauses.
“What’s option three?”
“Your marriage to Dominic is annulled. You separate. Dominic remains married to Celeste.”
Silence.
“No,” Dominic says. “That’s not happening.”
“I’m just presenting all options—”
“That’s not an option. I’m not losing Rory.”
“You might not have a choice,” I say quietly.
“What?”
“Dominic, think about it. Celeste is your legal wife. She’s been in a coma for five years. She just woke up. Her whole world is destroyed. And you want to immediately divorce her so you can keep the woman you married while she was unconscious?”
“You make it sound—”
“Like the truth? Because that IS the truth.”
“Rory, I love you.”
“And what about her? Did you love her?”
He doesn’t answer.
“Did you love her?” I repeat.
“Yes. Of course. We were married for five years.”
“So you loved her. Then you thought she was dead. Then you met me. Then you loved me. And now she’s back and you have to choose.”
“There’s no choice. I choose you.”
“But do I choose you?”
Dominic looks like I slapped him.
“What?”
“I’ve been thinking about this all night. And I keep coming back to the same question: What kind of person am I if I fight to keep a marriage that might not even be legal while his first wife—who did nothing wrong—just lost five years of her life?”
“You didn’t do anything wrong either.”
“I know. But neither did she. And someone has to pay the price for this impossible situation. Why should it be her?”
“Why should it be you?”
“Because I have a choice. She doesn’t.”
James clears his throat.
“I hate to interrupt, but there’s another factor to consider.”
“What?”
“Celeste doesn’t know about Rory yet.”
Dominic goes pale.
“What?” I say. “She doesn’t know?”
“The doctors advised waiting to tell her. She thinks it’s still 2021. She thinks she and Dominic just celebrated their anniversary. They’re trying to ease her into the reality of five lost years.”
“So she has no idea he remarried?”
“No.”
“She’s going to find out eventually,” I point out.
“I know,” Dominic says. “I need to tell her. Soon. But the doctors said not to shock her. Her recovery is fragile. Learning that five years passed and her husband moved on could—”
“Could what? Upset her? Of course it’ll upset her! This whole situation is UPSETTING!”
I stand up.
“I need air.”
“Rory—”
“Don’t. Just—give me a minute.”
I walk out of the conference room. Down the hall. Out into the building’s courtyard.
It’s a beautiful June morning.
People walking to work. Drinking coffee. Living normal lives.
Meanwhile, my life is imploding.
My phone rings.
Priya.
I answer.
“How’d it go?”
“It’s a mess. Legally, our marriage might not be valid. And Celeste doesn’t even know I exist yet.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. Dominic wants to fight for our marriage. But I don’t know if that’s right. Celeste just lost five years. How can I take her husband too?”
“Because he’s YOUR husband.”
“Is he though?”
Silence.
“Rory, you can’t just give up.”
“I’m not giving up. I’m being realistic. This situation has no good ending. Someone’s going to lose. Why shouldn’t it be me instead of her?”
“Because you deserve happiness too.”
“So does she.”
“She’s been in a coma for five years. You’ve been building a life with Dominic. That counts for something.”
Does it?
Or am I just the placeholder wife? The woman he settled for while his real wife was unavailable?
“I have to go,” I tell Priya. “Dominic’s coming out.”
I hang up.
Dominic approaches cautiously.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “For all of this.”
“It’s not your fault.”
“Then whose fault is it?”
“No one’s. That’s the problem. No one did anything wrong but we’re all suffering.”
“What do you want me to do, Rory? Tell me and I’ll do it.”
I look at him. This man I love. My husband who isn’t legally my husband.
“I want you to meet with Celeste. Tell her the truth. All of it. That five years passed. That you moved on. That you’re married to someone else. Give her the choice.”
“The choice?”
“Let her decide. If she wants to fight for the marriage, we’ll deal with that. If she’s willing to divorce, we move forward. But she deserves to know the truth. And to choose.”
Dominic nods.
“Okay. I’ll tell her. Today.”
“I want to be there.”
“What?”
“When you tell her. I want to be there. She should see me. Know I’m real.”
“Rory, I don’t think—”
“I’m not asking. If we’re going to do this, if we’re going to figure out this impossible situation, everyone needs to be honest. Including me. I need to meet the woman whose husband I married.”
Dominic looks terrified.
But he nods.
“Okay. We’ll go together.”
We drive to St. Mary’s Hospital in silence.
The whole way, I’m thinking: I’m about to meet my husband’s first wife.
His LEGAL wife.
The woman who has every right to hate me.
This is going to be a disaster.
But it’s the right thing to do.
I hope.
END OF CHAPTER 5
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