My Husband's Affair My Anniversary Gift (Lily and David) novel Chapter 216

Seven Years Later.

The hall was full of lights and cameras, the kind of place David usually avoided unless business forced him. Tonight he came only because the organizer personally requested his presence as a VVIP guest. His company sponsored a small part of the event, so he had no excuse to refuse.

He sat in the front row, dressed in a simple black suit. He didn’t smile. He rarely did anymore. His face looked calm, but inside there was nothing. No excitement. No interest. Just a man living because his body continued to breathe.

He didn’t care. He hadn’t cared about anything for years.

Seven years of emptiness had turned him into someone even colder than before. Work was the only thing that still moved his day. Outside of that, he lived like a ghost.

The host’s voice echoed through speakers.

“And now presenting our highlight collection of the night… designed by the brilliant Aurora.”

David’s hand paused on the armrest.

Aurora.

A name he heard in magazines. In business talks. Everywhere for seven years.

His fingers stiffened. His back locked. His breath paused just half a second.

He kept his face blank, but inside, something old and buried twisted painfully.

Lily. Aurora.

The designer everyone admired.

The lights dimmed. Music started. Models began walking out.

David stared ahead like he wasn’t really seeing them.

Then she appeared.

Lily.

She walked out with her team behind her. Simple black dress, hair tied back, confidence in her steps. She looked stronger, calmer, like a woman who rebuilt her whole life from ashes.

Their eyes met.

The moment her gaze landed on him, she stopped breathing for a second. He saw it. He felt it. As if something from seven years ago cracked open between them.

David didn’t move.

His face stayed empty.

He trained his eyes to stay cold. He forced his breath to remain steady.

She looked away first, trying to hold herself together as she continued guiding her models to the center of the stage.

But David didn’t give her anything. Not even a flicker of recognition.

Because if he let one emotion show, even one, the dam inside him would break, and he might never put it back together.

Seven years ago, he let her walk away.

Seven years ago, he held their divorce papers in shaking hands and told Roy not to search for her.

Seven years ago, he lost the woman he loved without ever telling her he did.

And now she stood in front of him, glowing like a completely different person.

Stronger.

Untouchable.

Far from the woman he broke.

He felt his throat tighten, but he swallowed it down and kept his mask on his face.

The show continued. The lights swirled. Cameras clicked. People clapped and cheered.

But for David, everything felt muted.

Only one thing existed.

Lily.

Aurora.

The woman he let slip out of his life.

And the woman he was now pretending not to know.

She ended the segment with a small bow. Her hands trembled. She glanced at him one last time before she walked backstage.

He didn’t look away.

He didn’t blink.

But he also didn’t move toward her.

He sat there like a statue, even when his heart felt like it was being torn in two.

Because David learned one truth these past seven years:

When you destroy someone once, you don’t get the right to walk back into their life easily.

Even if seeing her again left him breathless.

After the event, David was on his way to the bathroom when he heard two women talking in the hallway. Their voices were loud enough that it was impossible not to hear.

“Did you see how beautiful Aurora is? My god, she’s so beautiful.”

David slowed down. His steps almost stopped without him noticing.

“Yes, right? I wonder why she never showed up in events before and why she suddenly decided to appear now,” the second woman said.

He kept walking, but his ears stayed focused on them. He didn’t know why.

Then one sentence made him freeze.

“And did you know? I heard she has a son.”

David stopped as if someone grabbed his shoulders.

His breath hitched. His chest tightened so fast he almost stumbled.

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