Chapter 2
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Gabriella was about to leave when someone stopped her.
“You–go run the bath for the bride. After she showers, she’s spending the night with Mr. Durke. Don’t mess this up!”
It was one of the staff, treating Gabriella like a new hire.
She’d just come down from the mountain. The cold had cracked her face, so she’d bundled up tight to hide it, and no one recognized her as Daniel’s wife.
She tried to refuse, but the worker grumbled and shoved her up to the second floor.
Every hallway was lined with Cynthia’s portraits. Everywhere Gabriella looked there were camellias–Cynthia’s favorite. That’s when Gabriella realized just how far Daniel had gone to pamper someone else.
The wedding was lavish. Any woman would be jealous.
In the bathroom she moved on autopilot, filling the tub with hot water. Just outside, the suite was decked out for the honeymoon, and the thought of it made her cry again.
A giant wedding photo showed Daniel and Cynthia locked in a passionate kiss.
The thought hit her–while she’d been sick from the altitude, he’d been taking bridal photos with Cynthia.
While she’d been praying for his well–being, he’d been writing sappy
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Chapter 2
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vows to another woman.
Suddenly Daniel burst through the door with Cynthia in his arms. They couldn’t even wait to get to the bed. They started making out in the entryway, tearing at each other’s clothes.
The spray of water blurred the glass. Gabriella’s hand tightened on the showerhead until it trembled.
Daniel’s voice came out rough, thick with desire. “Thia, I’ve waited for this day so long.”
Cynthia sounded a little crushed. “But you still married Gabriella and had a child with her. I’m not blaming you–I’m just… sad. Our first night isn’t with each other.”
Daniel smiled, indulgent and soft. “You know, back then I missed you so much. Gabriella showed up at the right time. She wasn’t pretty like you, didn’t flirt the way you do, and her voice wasn’t as sweet, but she worked hard and treated me well. In the moment I thought trying it with her wasn’t a loss.
“And our first time? It wasn’t gentle. I was wasted, and I mistook her for you. You’re the one I want–you’re irreplaceable.”
Cynthia’s face lit up, and she kissed him eagerly.
Gabriella watched them through the frosted glass, feeling as if someone was cutting her open.
She remembered how Daniel once treated her like a treasure–calling her his salvation, his love he couldn’t turn away from.
Now, in front of Cynthia, she was the desperate fool.
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He’d turned off the lights the first time, been tender but fierce at the same time, whispering, “I love you. I want to have you forever.”
Only now did Gabriella realize his mind had been on Cynthia the whole time.
She wiped her face, kept her head down, and stepped out. “Sir, the bath is ready. I’ll be going.”
She squeezed out the words, not wanting to witness what would happen next.
They were down to the last scraps of clothing.
Daniel said in a low voice, “From now on, call Gabriella ‘Mrs. Durke.“”
Gabriella flinched, closed her eyes, and answered like someone resigned to a sentence, “Yes, Mr. Durke and Mrs. Durke.
Congratulations on your marriage.”
Cynthia laughed, all charm as she lounged on the bed. “Danny, don’t be so mean. She did witness the wedding–give her something, a little tip.”
Daniel pounced and bit her lip playfully. “Call me honey, not by my
name.”
Gabriella stood frozen, hollow inside, as Daniel carelessly tossed a wristwatch at her.
“Take this downstairs. Serve the new Mrs. Durke well.”
Cynthia squealed. “Isn’t that the watch Gabriella designed herself for you? You’re just giving it to a servant?”
Daniel chuckled. “It’s our wedding day–give the staff a gift. Later we’ll say it got lost. Gabriella won’t make a fuss. She always brings me those
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random little presents. I can’t treasure them all.”
Gabriella pressed the watch into her palm, numb. She pushed open the door and ran out.
They’d been together two Valentine’s Days now. For three months she’d apprenticed with a craftsman to design and build that one–of–a–kind watch for Daniel.
He wore it everywhere afterwards–it was his profile pic, his show of affection. Friends teased him for being sentimental, and he loved it.
Now, on Valentine’s Day, he’d tossed that watch to a servant like trash and crawled into bed with another woman.
Gabriella wandered the street in a daze and, when she couldn’t bear it anymore, hurled the watch into a roadside trash can–along with the foolish, naive version of herself she’d once been.
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