My Wife and I: Married in Name, Never on Paper

My wife, Emma Davies, and I have held our wedding and stayed together for five years. However, we still have not registered our marriage.

Every time we plan to do it, her colleague, Keegan Estrada, somehow causes trouble.

The first time, he cannot handle a document, so she eagerly stays at the company to help him.

The second time, he has a fever. She hangs up and leaves without hesitation.

The third time, he is undergoing his performance evaluation. She gets so anxious that she leaves me waiting at the City Hall for an entire day.

This happens 15 times in total. Every time we are about to register our marriage, Keegan will always have something going on that disrupts it.

I finally understand. I do not want to waste my time on Emma anymore.

But when I walk away for real, she chases after me desperately to the point that she even disregards her own life.

Nathan's POV

Today marked Emma Davies' and my fifth wedding anniversary, as well as the 15th time we were supposed to register our marriage.

We had planned to go to my favorite restaurant for lunch, then head to City Hall afterward.

However, when I finished my work and rushed to the restaurant, I found a large crowd of people.

I froze, my expression turning dark. I looked at Emma, my eyes full of questions.

"Nathan, you're here."

Emma waved at me. "Keegan landed a big deal today. Everyone wanted to celebrate, but they couldn't get a reservation, so I just brought them along. It's just a meal anyway. It'll be lively with more people."

Her words made my chest tighten.

It had taken me two weeks to get a reservation at this place, just because it was the only restaurant in Aldrath that made Emma's favorite cuisine.

I wanted to make our anniversary perfect.

And yet, she… didn't seem to care at all.

"Hey, Nathan! I didn't want to interrupt your romantic date, but Emma insisted on helping me celebrate. You're not mad, are you?"

Emma's colleague, Keegan Estrada, flashed me a grin.

"It's fine." I shook my head, forcing my disappointment down.

"Come on, sit down," Keegan urged but didn't offer to move so that I could sit next to Emma.

I had no choice but to sit across from them.

"Emma, this meat's too fatty. I don't want it," Keegan said, smiling at Emma.

Without a second thought, Emma grabbed the piece he'd left on his plate and popped it into her mouth.

She didn't even look up, as though she'd done it a thousand times before.

Seeing that, I couldn't help but feel a sharp pang in my chest.

Emma wouldn't even share a cup I had already used. And now, she was eating food someone else had bitten into.

Staring at the table full of dishes, I suddenly lost all appetite, but Emma didn't notice.

Though my stomach was upset, I still took one drink after another for her