Chapter 5
I opened the car door and stepped out.
Every movement was deliberate, measured–exactly as my mother had taught me. No matter how furious you are, never lose your
composure.
Alexander and the others stiffened instantly. Their shoulders tightened, hands drifting toward the guns hidden beneath their jackets,
like soldiers sensing an unexpected threat. Damian stopped them with a single look.
I walked forward until I stood directly in front of them–three steps away. Close enough to catch the panic flickering in Damian’s eyes.
Close enough to smell the mingled scent of sweat and Scarlett’s perfume.
“Having fun, Damian?”
He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
“Elara, this isn’t what it looks like-”
Alexander stepped in quickly, trying to patch the damage, sweat already glistening on his brow.
Before he could finish, Scarlett let out a slow, satisfied smirk.
It was full of malice. Of victory.
She deliberately hooked her arm through Damian’s, possessive and bold, and looked straight at me. Triumph gleamed in her green
eyes. She was pleased I’d found out–like this was exactly how she’d wanted it to happen.
I remembered her warnings. Telling me not to marry him. Saying he was dangerous.
The fight she’d staged just to leave.
A fury I’d never known before rose up, threatening to swallow me whole.
I raised my hand.
And slapped Damian across the face.
The crack echoed sharply. His head snapped to the side, a perfect red handprint blooming against his cheek.
“So this is Grayson loyalty,” I said coolly, my voice edged with ice.
“The engagement is over. We’re finished.”
Scarlett’s smile widened. She clung to Damian’s arm like a predator staking her claim.
Then Damian shoved her away,
Panic exploded across his face as he lunged toward me. “Elara–wait!”
I turned to leave.
“Elara!”
He grabbed me from behind, his grip painfully tight. I couldn’t pull free.
“Please,” he begged. “Just let me explain.”
Scarlett’s perfume clung to him–mixed with sweat and something I refused to name. My stomach churned.
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My Fiancé and Best Friend Tre…
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Chapter 5
“It was Scarlett,” he said frantically. “She seduced me. I never meant for this to happen, I swear.” His breath trembled against my ear.
“She stole a key card to my hotel room when I was in Miami for that negotiation. I was drunk, and we-”
I stopped struggling.
Slowly, I turned to face him.
Miami.
The last time he’d been there was a year ago.
And he’d proposed to me right after he returned.
A year.
They’d been sleeping together for an entire goddamn year.
“Elara, you have to believe me,” he pleaded, tears pooling in his eyes. He looked small. Desperate. “Even if I slept with her, my heart is yours. Only yours. You know that.”
Nausea rolled through me.
I shoved him away and turned to Scarlett. She stood beside her motorcycle, that smug expression still firmly in place. No explanation. No denial. No apology. Just watching–as if this were entertainment.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” My voice trembled despite my effort. “Ten years of friendship, and you won’t even try to explain?”
She shrugged. “What’s there to explain? Elara, I told you he wasn’t right for you.”
Something inside me shattered completely.
So you were right for him, Scarlett?
I lifted my left hand. The diamond engagement ring caught the pale morning light–ten carats. A symbol of the Grayson name. Of our two years together. Of the wedding that would never happen.
I slid it off my finger.
“Elara, don’t-” Damian whispered.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly, staring at the ring. “I don’t understand your world. I don’t understand how a man can say he loves you while betraying you. Or how a woman can claim she cares while stabbing you in the back.”
I placed the ring into Damian’s trembling palm.
“But I do understand this,” I said steadily. “The wedding is off. Stay away from me.”
I turned toward my car,
“Elara!” Damian shouted, then barked at his men. “Stop her! Don’t let her leave!”
Alexander and the others moved quickly, forming a wall around my car,
I didn’t slow down.
I walked straight to the driver’s side, got in, and shut the door.
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My Fiancé and Best Friend Tre…
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Chapter 5
Through the window, I met Damian’s gaze. His face was twisted with humiliation and pain, desperation filling his eyes.
I started the engine. The roar shattered the quiet dawn.
I shifted into drive and eased forward–slowly, steadily.
Alexander and the others hesitated. They looked at me, then at their boss.
They understood.
When it came to this woman, the Don had no authority.
They stepped aside.
For the first time, he gave an order–and I overruled it.
I drove back to the estate. The house built from our memories. Our supposed sanctuary.
It all felt false now.
Every tree, every flower had been chosen by Damian for me. He’d hired a hundred gardeners so I would only ever see perfection.
Inside, I packed only what belonged to me.
From the jewelry box, my mother’s necklace.
From the closet, the dresses I designed myself.
From the shelves, the art books I’d collected since childhood.
The rest could stay.
The walls were covered in photographs of us–a gallery of lies that burned my eyes.
He once said he wanted to travel the world with me. To fill a lifetime with pictures. That he was only happy when I was beside him.
Now he and Scarlett could keep their games here.
I dragged my suitcase to the door, ready to leave forever.
My hand had just closed around the handle when the elevator chimed.
Hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway,
A familiar voice, raw with tears, called from outside the door.
“Elara.”
Damian was slumped against the bedroom door, his face streaked with tears–looking, for the first time, like a broken boy.
