Chapter 22
A few simple words, yet they struck Grayson like a knife to the chest.
He couldn’t understand. For five years, they had been in love, happy in a way that felt unshakable. Why would she regret it? And that word–regret–what did it mean? Did she no longer love him?
The thought alone sent a sharp pain through his heart.
No. Impossible.
It had only been a month. How could she stop loving him so quickly?
She was still angry. She hadn’t forgiven him yet–that was all.
He stepped forward, reaching for her hand, but she moved back immediately, putting distance between them.
That hurt. More than he expected. But he swallowed it down and spoke, almost pleading
“Aurora, I didn’t mean anything else. I just want to explain. Believe me. From the very start, I’ve only ever loved you. Ruby meant nothing to me. Can you forgive me? Come back with me? I swear, there will never be another woman by my side. I’ll prove it to
you. We’ll have another wedding, bigger than before. I want the whole world to know how much I love you.”
His eyes shone with a desperate kind of hope.
Aurora didn’t move. Her face remained impassive.
“Five years ago, you said the same thing. You swore you’d love only me. And then you betrayed me. I won’t believe you again. I
won’t forgive you, ever. Go back. Stop looking for me.”
The first time she discovered his affair, the pain had been unbearable. It had shattered something inside her.
But then, when she saw how he still treated her the same, as if nothing had changed, she hesitated.
She thought–perhaps if she ignored it, if she pretended not to know, they could still go on. He would marry her, treat her well,
and keep that woman far away from her world,
But then came the lies. Again and again. And she saw it for herself–the way he was with Ruby, the intimacy between them, the quiet moments they shared when they thought no one was watching.
She realized she couldn’t do it.
She couldn’t pretend nothing had happened.
What she wanted had never been comfort or stability. It had been love–real, untainted love. And Grayson had tainted it beyond
repair.
