ria didn’t reach for the plane tickets. She simply looked at Stephen, at the lingering excitement in his eyes, the barely
contained joy of a man preparing for his wedding.
“Stephen.” she finally said, her voice so calm it surprised even herself, “Julia is my best friend. We’ve known each other
since we were kids.”
“In middle school, when I was being bullied, she stepped in front of a bucket of glue for me.”
“In college, when a man followed me home, she was the one who stayed with me while we called the police. She helped
me fight him off.”
Stephen’s brows tightened slightly, as if he wanted to speak, but Maria continued before he could.
“And since you were willing to deceive me for six years just to marry her, even hiding our child in the process, then I need
you to-”
She paused. Every word felt like it scraped past her teeth. “Treat her well.”
Maria lifted her gaze, meeting his eyes without wavering. “Break her heart, Stephen, and I will be the last thing you ever
see coming.”
Stephen’s throat moved. He watched her, as if trying to determine whether she was bluffing.
After a long moment, he let out a short, humorless laugh. A faint trace of mockery slipped into his voice. “Are we
finished with the theatrics?”
Maria felt something sharp pierce through her chest.
This wedding.” Stephen said, stepping toward her, his tone low and unyielding, “I’ve worked on it for a long time. You
have no idea how much effort I’ve put into it.”
I won’t let anyone ruin it. Not even you.”
He paused, his eyes flickering with a strange mixture of desperation and exhaustion.
“Afterward, you can punish me however you want. Money, shares, compensation… anything. If you want me to throw
away my pride and apologize, I’ll do it.“.
Maria stared at him, stunned. She had never seen this version of Stephen. He looked almost raw. Almost desperate,
Begging, not for her, but for his perfect wedding to another woman.
For Julia, he could lower himself this far. So he wasn’t incapable of loving someone. It was simply that he had never
loved her.
Chapter 5
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“I only need you to do one thing.” Stephen said quietly when he saw the shock in her expression.
Take our daughter on vacation. Just for one month. I can’t risk anything going wrong with the wedding. Once it’s over,
I’ll take care of everything. I’ll compensate both of you properly.”
Compensation. As if throwing her the scraps left over from his grand love story could erase six years of lies and betrayal.
It would have been funny if it weren’t so tragic. Maria stayed silent for a long time, so long that Stephen almost seemed
to hope she would cave the way she always had.
Then she raised her head and asked the question she once believed she would never ask.
“Stephen… when you realized that the woman you were desperate to marry was my best friend… did you ever, even for a
second, feel guilty toward me? Toward our daughter?”
The air grew heavy. Stephen’s lashes trembled almost imperceptibly. He turned away, staring at the dark night outside
the window.
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