Chapter 28
“Brother,” I whispered into the phone, my voice trembling as I stared out the hospital window, eyes swollen from hours of crying. “I’m sorry… Please, take me back home. I’m going to divorce my husband.“\
There was a long pause on the other end, a silence that hit harder than any slap.
Then came his voice–cold, sharp, and laced with disappointment. “What’s wrong now, Nadia? You’re divorcing the man you left our entire family for? After five years of turning your back on us, now you come crawling back?“}
I closed my eyes. “He betrayed me.“”
Another pause.\
Then a chuckle. “Ah. Right. I saw the video. The infamous kiss cam. Colton and Beatrice, huh? Your husband and your best friend. That’s gotta sting.“”
It did. More than anything ever had.”
“Good thing you finally snapped out of your delusion,” he continued. “You’re always welcome home. But I’ll give you one week, Nadia. Settle everything–your marriage, the divorce. Because once that’s over, I want you to finally marry the man you were supposed to marry.“”
The line went dead. I stared blankly at the screen. One week.
I had seven days to end five years of blind love, denial, and foolishness.
wiped my tears, picked up my phone again, and called the lawyer. “Draft the divorce papers,” I croaked. “Today.”
But her voice was hesitant. “Miss Nadia… I checked the prenup. You can’t file for divorce unless Mr. Colton agrees first.”
I gritted my teeth. “Then draft it anyway. I’ll get him to sign.”
That night, Colton never came. Not a single text. Not a missed call. Nothing.”
and signs
I lay curled on the hospital bed, eyes swollen, arms empty. I should have been cradling my baby. I should have been humming Jullabies. But instead, all I had was silence and the throbbing emptiness of a womb robbed of life.
And still–Colton was with Beatrice, no doubt.
The next morning, I checked myself out of the hospital. No one stopped me. Only the butler waited outside the entrance, standing stiff and uncomfortable like he didn’t know what to say.”
“Sir Colton is… busy, ma’am,” he mumbled as he opened the car door.
Busy. My lips trembled, but I said nothing.&
We drove in silence until I spoke. “Take me to Colton’s office.”
“Ma’am?”
“I need him to sign something.“”
He hesitated before nodding, and changed direction.
When we arrived at the building, I stepped out like a ghost–no makeup, hospital band still clinging to
I walked the familiar hallway, each step heavy, until I heard voices echoing near Colton’s office.
Male voices. Familiar ones. His friends.\
“Dude, what are you gonna do when she brings up that viral kiss cam?” one of them said, laughing.
my wrist.
- t.
Colton’s voice followed, smug and cruel. “What else? Lie. Pretend. Nadia’s stupid. She loves me too much to question anything.“”
My heart clenched, knees threatening to buckle.
“She doesn’t even know I only married her because of her last name. ‘Nadia Halvorsen‘ opens doors. I used her to get contracts signed, deals closed. Everyone thinks they’re dealing with her father’s legacy.“}
A sharp breath left me.”
“And Beatrice…” he sighed, “She’s always been the one. Once I wrap this final deal, I’ll dispose of Nadia. Smooth. Quiet. Maybe send her on some long trip and never let her come back.“}
Dispose of me.
The hallway spun around me, and my vision blurred. But I didn’t cry. Not anymore.”
Instead, memories crashed in.
Five years ago. My parents had warned me. My brother had screamed at me. “He’s using you! He’s from the rival family, Nadia! Are you blind?“M
I had been.
Colton had seemed so charming, so gentle–so different from the stories whispered between boardrooms and family
inbotinne I told myself he wasn’t like them That he couldn’t he He had chacer me for three weare Waiting nuteide my
2/28.02
4:02 PM P
meetings. I told myself he wasn’t like them. That he couldn’t be. He had chased me for three years. Waiting outside my university gates. Leaving notes in my books. Calling when I said not to. Smiling like I was the only thing in his world. I thought that meant something. I thought that was love.
And when I started to fall, I fell hard.”
My family tried to stop it. My father grounded me. My mother cried. My brother called him the enemy. “You’re handing over our legacy to someone who will use it to destroy us.“\
I didn’t care. I ran away from home.
I begged Beatrice–my best friend–to deliver my letters to him when my parents locked me away at the lake house. She was my lifeline, my only hope. She smiled, nodded, said she supported me. Said she was rooting for us. That she believed in love.”
Lies. All of it. I thought she was helping me build my future. I didn’t know she was helping herself to it.”
And when Colton asked for my hand, I said yes, heart full of joy and naivety. I thought I had fought for a once–in–a–lifetime kind of love.
But now I saw it clearly.
I was a pawn. A stepping stone. A fool.
I didn’t confront him. I didn’t barge into that office or throw the papers at his face.
I waited. When he left for a meeting, I slipped into his office using the emergency pass in my wallet–the one he forgot existed.
His laptop was unlocked. I moved quickly.
In less than five minutes, I found the folder.
The deal. The final contract he wanted to close before discarding me.
It detailed fraudulent transactions, hidden accounts, and forged authorizations using my name and signature.
He was a thief. A liar. A monster wearing my husband’s face.
I transferred every file into my flash drive.
Then I picked up the phone and made one final call.
“Scott Valencia, the deep voice answered.}
མེད་ས་ ད་དང་དས་་་ད ོ་ནང་གནས
ད་
“It’s Nadia,” I said, heart hammering in my chest. “If you still want to destroy Colton Montgomery… I just handed you the key.””
There was a long pause. Then, “And what do you want in return?”
I swallowed. “Marry me.“”
