THE SPITEFUL BRIDE: Marry To Rival's Son novel Chapter 94

Chapter 94

Mia nodded, “You can tell she didn’t expect it. Her reaction was everything.”

Stefan shifted in his seat. He turned his gaze, letting it wander to the dark horizon where the last embers of the fireworks were dying out. The letters were gone now, but his chest still felt the burn. 1

She never even thought it could be him.

He let out a breath, calm and controlled. Mia didn’t notice i

She was still watching the couple, her eyes twinkling with that soft kind of envy only people pretending not to feel

can carry.

Stefan leaned back into his seat. Smiled again. This one was steadier. He’d worn that kind of smile his whole life, that he was so use to it.

The one that hides everything.

He wasn’t going to tell her. What was the point?

She already made up her mind. Thought it was meant for someone else. Thought he wasn’t capable of something that intimate, that thoughtful.

He let the rest of the show play without so much as a glance upward.

And when the final crackle of fire lit the air again, he didn’t even bother looking up.

His gaze was glued to his drink. Until he heard her soft gasp

It was a short, sharp gasp. Like it had grabbed her by the throat.

Stefan slowly lifted his eyes. She wasn’t watching the sky this time. She was staring at him. No…. through him.

Her face was unreadable. Confused. Shocked. A little breathless.

Why was she looking at him that way? Like she was trying to look into his soul.

Then her eyes slowly lifted again, and instinctively, he followed her gaze.

Another explosion split the sky. Soft blue at first. Then came three letters, clear as glass.

1. S. S. 1

Mia. Stefan. Sterling.

His chest tightened.

Why was this here? He hadn’t asked for it.

The initials hung there, shimmering in the night sky like they belonged.

He’d only arranged for the “I love you” message. That was what he told Mose. 2

But this… His throat felt dry. This had Elena written all over it. MOSE… He’ll surely hear from him. 1

He didn’t look at the sky again. He looked at Mia, watching the way she went from shocked to confusion.

She turned slowly to him, her gaze never breaking.

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TET ME TREAT YOU THE WAY & HUSBAND HARD TREAT HIS WIFE

Her lips parted. “That’s… our initials.”

He didn’t say anything. Just held her stare. The quiet between them stretched long and thin. His silence confirming her question.

“Why didn’t you tell me it was planned by you?” Her voice trembled slightly.

Stefan exhaled sharply, his eyes not wavering. He opened his mouth. Then closed it.

She blinked. The lights from the firework danced in her eye. Why didn’t he say anything?

“I didn’t think it mattered anymore,” he finally said, voice low. “You already gave the credit to someone else.” Mia’s eyes softened. A breath escaped her lips, but she didn’t look away.

The couple who had just been hugging minutes ago was now in chaos.

“Honey, that isn’t our names!”

“You lying bastard!”

“I thought you’d changed, but you’ll never change!”

The woman’s voice sliced through the romantic hum of the restaurant. She was smacking her husband with her tiny clutch bag, his arms up in defense as people around them began to murmur and shift awkwardly.

But Mia didn’t notice any of it.

Her eyes were fixed…..unmoving…. on Stefan.

On the man who had filled her chest with a thousand emotions in the past few days.

The man who had unknowingly, or maybe knowingly, shaken her world in ways she wasn’t prepared for.

She didn’t know when she sat down. Her legs moved before her mind caught up. She swallowed.

“Why?” she asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

The flickering light of the candle on their table caught the side of Stefan’s face, highlighting the tension in his jaw, the storm in his eyes.

He met her gaze, not looking away. His voice was low, steady.

“Because… that’s exactly how I feel.” Her breath caught in her throat. 1

Her lips parted slightly, something resting at the edge of them, but before she could speak.

“L”

“I know how you feel,” he said, cutting her off gently.

Mia blinked

“You do?” Her brows knit together. Was he… was he aware of what she’d been feeling? The flutter in her chest, the ache in her stomach, the way his smallest gestures made her forget to breathe?

“Yes.” He said it like a quiet certainty.

Her heart skipped. Was she that obvious?

But just as she was about to speak…. again….. Stefan cut in.

“I know… you don’t feel the same way.” Her head jerked slightly.

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94 LET ME TREAT YOU THE WAY A HUSBAND SHOULD TREAT HIS WIFE

“Wha…?” What was he saying? She had always seen Stefans someone who was sma

beginning to think otherwise.

“I understand, Mia.” His hand reached for hers across the table, fingers brushing against hers with a tenderness she didn’t expect.

Her breath caught again, silencing all her thoughts. But, she tried explaining again, because she knows it took a whole lot of things for Stefan to go against his belief.

“Stefan….

”

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