Using Me as a Substitute? Did You Know Your Best Friend Calls Me Wife?

Mia Kane hadn’t gone to the studio for several days. Worried, Owen Sinclair called her, but she just used the excuse that she wasn’t feeling well and was resting at home.

Owen Sinclair thought about visiting her, but then he had another thought. ’With Adrian Preston there, what’s the point of me going over there and making a fool of myself?’

She had already given up her place in Argent and moved in with Shayla Quinn.

Shayla Quinn was very worried about her but hadn’t brought it up.

After Mia had stayed for several days with no intention of leaving, Shayla finally spoke up. "Did you and Adrian Preston have that big of a fight? You’ve been staying with me for so long and still haven’t gone back. Hasn’t Adrian come to give you an out? If you ask me, men like him really need to be taught a lesson..."

Before Shayla could finish, Mia cut her off.

"It wasn’t a fight this time."

"Well, if you didn’t fight, that’s good. So why aren’t you going back? Is he on a business trip?"

"We’re divorced."

Shayla Quinn: "..."

Her eyes widened as she stared at Mia Kane in disbelief, stunned for a long moment.

"Why? Why would you get a divorce?!"

It took her a moment to find her voice.

Mia casually made up an excuse. "We only got married in the first place because of his grandfather. I wanted to get revenge on Chase Lockwood, and his grandfather was forcing him into it, so it was a perfect match. But after a while, I stopped hating Chase. Honestly, I’d be sad if he and Vivian Lynch ever broke up. Those two deserve to be stuck with each other forever."

"And Adrian agreed to it?"

"Why wouldn’t he? We were just a couple in name only; nothing physical ever happened between us... So, it was a clean break. We go our separate ways. Hey, I even got rich off the divorce!"

Mia said, feigning a lighthearted tone.

"Are you really okay?"

Shayla was still worried. The more nonchalant Mia acted, the more certain she was that something was weighing on her.

’If she were like she was before, with Chase Lockwood’s betrayal, she would have been devastated for a few days before pulling herself together to plot her revenge. That would have meant that once she’d vented her anger, the matter would be settled.’

’But now she was pretending like nothing had happened, which made Shayla even more worried.’

Mia was well aware of this. She planned to give herself just one week off before heading back to work.

She wasn’t just fending for herself anymore; she had a whole studio to support. If she, the boss, just washed her hands of her responsibilities, it would only burden Owen. She couldn’t be that irresponsible.

After her week of rest, she went to the studio the next day, full of life and vigor.

She was the first one to arrive. She went straight into her office and buried herself in her design sketches.

Just then, her phone rang. It was a call from Owen Sinclair.

Owen Sinclair was standing at her door. Hearing the phone ring inside the office, he was taken aback for a second. Without even knocking, he pushed the door open and walked in.

"What are you doing here?"

He was completely surprised.

"If I’m not here, where else would I be? Didn’t I tell you I was coming in to work today?"

"You’re okay? Are you really okay?"

"Of course I’m fine. It was just a cold and a fever. I got over it quickly. What could possibly be wrong?"

"You know that’s not what I’m talking about!"

Now it was Mia’s turn to be confused. ’If he’s not talking about that, then what is he talking about?’

"What in the world happened between you and Adrian Preston?!"

Mia froze. ’Am I being that obvious? Shayla is living with me, so it makes sense she’d notice something was off. But Owen shouldn’t know.’

’Is his name written on my face or something?’

"Mia, you don’t have to cover for him. Did he cheat on you? I’m going to find him right now. I swear I’ll beat the hell out of him."

"What are you talking about? Who cheated?"

"You don’t know?"

Now it was Owen Sinclair’s turn to be stunned.

Just then, her phone rang, interrupting their conversation. She glanced at the screen and was surprised to see it was a call from Chase Lockwood.

She rejected the call without a second thought, but he immediately followed up with a text message.

"Mia, are you okay? Where are you? I’ll come find you. Please don’t do anything foolish. He’s not worth it."

Mia’s brow furrowed.

A moment later, her phone rang again. This time, it was Shayla Quinn.

She answered the call.

"Mia, bad news! Adrian Preston just officially announced his engagement."

Mia’s mind went blank.

’We just got divorced a week ago, and he’s already announcing his engagement?’

’Talk about moving fast.’

"When did this happen?"

"Just now. Adrian Preston left the country for a marriage alliance with the House of Wilson. The news is everywhere. The media snapped photos of him boarding the plane."

"It has to be fake..."

"It’s not... The foreign media has already announced it. The heiress of the Wilson family is getting engaged to Adrian Preston! I’m sending you a link with all the info. You should see for yourself; it’s too much to explain over the phone."

A moment later, Shayla sent her a compilation of links. It detailed the interactions between Adrian Preston and Charlotte Wilson. They had met once at a social event abroad, and afterward, Mr. and Mrs. Preston had grown very close to the Wilson Family.

Foreign media had snapped photos of Charlotte and Shannon Preston shopping together, looking very close as they laughed and chatted.

Later, someone photographed Shannon Preston appearing at a bridal shop with Charlotte immediately after being sent back abroad, presumably to help her future sister-in-law pick out a wedding dress on her brother’s behalf.

’Shannon got off the plane and immediately went wedding dress shopping?’

’When Shannon was sent away, Adrian and I weren’t even divorced yet. What is this supposed to mean?’

After Mia finished reading, her brow furrowed. The whole affair was causing a massive stir online, and the foreign press had all but confirmed the news.

Some people questioned Adrian, because news had just broken not long ago that he was married. How could he be getting engaged now?

Someone had publicly called Adrian out on social media, demanding to know what was going on.

Just twenty minutes ago, Adrian Preston had responded.

"We were not a good match and have ended our marriage. From now on, we will not interfere in each other’s lives and will go our separate ways."

It looked like he had posted it right before boarding the plane.

Mia scrolled through the articles one by one. Beside her, Owen Sinclair watched her anxiously, staring at her face, but she didn’t have the devastated expression he had expected to see.

"Are you okay?"

Owen Sinclair asked the moment she finished reading.

"I’m done reading. Since he’s made it public, I won’t hide it either. Adrian and I are divorced."

She laughed, feigning nonchalance, and picked up her phone to edit her social media status. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

"We will not interfere in each other’s lives and will go our separate ways."

She used Adrian’s exact words.

This, in a way, brought her six-month-long marriage to a definitive end.

As for whether it was a perfect end, she couldn’t say.

"Why was it so sudden? It must be his fault..."

"No, our personalities just weren’t a good fit. It was an amicable split. It’s nobody’s fault..."

"Owen, thank you for your concern, but I’m really fine. Who Adrian chooses is his business. Don’t let me get in the way of your friendship with him. Owen, if there’s nothing else, I’m going to get back to work. I have a huge pile of design sketches to get through."

"Alright. Call me if you need anything."

Owen Sinclair walked to the door, but still worried, he turned back to add one more thing.

"If you feel like crying, my shoulder is always here for you to lean on, you know?"

Her lips curved into a smile, and she told him firmly, "I’m not going to cry."

’She was the one who had asked for the divorce.’

’She knew there was never a future for her and Adrian in this lifetime. So what was wrong with him being with someone else? It wasn’t like he’d had an affair.’

’If she cried over this, she would just be overly dramatic.’

Mia gently set down her phone and refocused on her work. Afraid she was just putting on a brave face, Owen lingered at the door for a moment, peeking at her through the crack.

Just then, Rosalyn Shield came running up and knocked frantically on the door.

"President Kane, this is bad! There’s a problem with our online collection!"

Mia’s heart clenched. ’Of course. The real trouble was just beginning.’

’Now that everyone knew she and Adrian were divorced, all the people who held a grudge against her would come out of the woodwork to kick her while she was down.’