ley
e I hadn't realized I still possessed. He wasn't just accepting my impulsive p
mall smile finally breaking through my gua
eyes serious now. "
e scent of roasted lamb and unspoken tension. My parents were at the head of the long table, Holt beside my father. And across from Hol
y," my mother said, her voice strained. "P
I' m not hungry." I started to
voice was firm. "We need to
settling in my stomach. I turned slowly, my eyes ling
announce the engagement of our beloved Chandra to Ku
rmed what I already knew, what I had seen. My gaze flickered to Kurtis. H
y lips. It was quiet, but it cut th
might be difficult for you, but Kurtis and Chandra have found true happiness
e at all." I looked directly at Kurtis and Chandra. "Congratulations. I wish
mphant smirk faltered, replace
ootsteps echoing in the silence. I reached my room
or," Kurtis' s muffled voice
ently. "Bailey, I know you' re upset. But w
crack, and stared at him,
ide. He looked desperate, his eyes pleading.
You' re acting out because of the gala. I understand you' re hurt. But thi
t I was just throwing a tantrum. He truly believed I was still
d anything, Kurtis,"
Business partners, maybe." He took a deep breath. "Look, I can still ensure your position at Robinson Dynamics. And I can even... I can even put in a
rules. Especially when the reputation of Robinson Dynamics is at stake. An
liant, so detached from all this social nonsense. It' s refreshing. But sometimes, you need to play the
at meant not challenging the family
en toy. He didn' t just betray me; he utterly misunderstood me. He never saw me, not truly.
I repeated, my voice a dangerous whisper
t to see you happy. But not like this. Not with... him. A main
ied to my social standing, to who I married. The man I had loved, the man I
me, burning away the last vestiges of hurt and di
raw, echoing in the room. "Get ou
ched on his face. "Bailey
oared, pointing
n turned and fled. I slammed the door shut, my body
elebration, which, coincidentally, was on the same day Dangelo had promised to marry me. They
ak, that I would beg them to intervene, to save me from my
were
outside was a brilliant, clear b
ly orderly who was always discreetly tending to my needs.
dy. This wasn't a wedding to spite them. This was a wedding for me
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