Chapter 2
674words
He put everything he owned in my name because he knew I needed security.
On my twentieth birthday, at the party he threw at The Plaz,
"Leo Sinclair will only ever have one wife," he announced to everyone.
"And that's Sylvia."
"If I ever break her heart, I hope I get what's coming to me."
Then he turned to me, his eyes serious.
"Sylvia, I love you."
"I'm going to build us a family. I will never let you cry from sadness again."
But eight years passed.
The proposal never came.
Yet I kept loving him.
Just like I had for the past eight years.
—
I went to Tiffany's to pick up the pair of rings I'd designed a year ago.
The ones I'd been saving for the day he finally proposed.
But it seemed I wouldn't live to see that day.
So I thought, maybe I should be the one to propose.
I wanted to tell Leo, "Marry me, now. Otherwise, I'll be gone before you get the chance."
Walking out of the store, I looked down at the pair of rings worth seven figures.
That sickly-sweet voice from the phone call echoed in my head.
I knew who it was, Lina, the new assistant he'd hired three months ago.
In the past eight years, there'd always been other women throwing themselves at him.
But Leo was an iceberg to all of them, none could get close.
Lina was the only exception.
Suddenly Leo was taking her to all kinds of events—he used to only take me.
He punched a reporter for accidentally bumping into her, had the tattoo of my name removed for her…
Right then, my phone buzzed in my purse.
I pulled it out.
A text from an unknown number.
It was a photo.
Leo, immaculate in a Tom Ford tuxedo.
Lina, radiant in a stunning Vera Wang wedding dress, her arm looped through his, smiling a victory smile.
Instantly, I felt like all the blood in my body froze.
Then, another text:
"Leo married his assistant today. Address below."
"Curious what you'll do about it."
"I take Lina to be my wife."
When I burst into the wedding venue, the first thing I heard was,
"I take Lina to be my lawfully wedded wife."
The guests were cheering for them to kiss.
Lina, in her wedding dress, blushed.
Leo gave her that easy smile I knew so well.
He stepped toward, cupped the back of her head with one hand and wrapped the other around her waist.
Then he pulled her into a deep kiss.
The room exploded in applause.
Amid the noise and celebration,
I stood there, invisible in the crowd.
Watching the man I'd loved for eight years, the man I saw as my salvation, I finally couldn't hold back the tears streaming down my face.
Just then, one of Leo's friends noticed me.
He went sheet-white, rushing over to block my view.
"Sylvia, Leo didn't mean to hide this from you—"
I pushed right past him.
I pushed past him and marched straight toward the altar.
The crowd fell silent.
The joyful atmosphere vanished instantly.
Leo saw me from a distance.
Our eyes met across the room—but I didn't see any trace of guilt or panic in his.
Only when I stood right in front of him and Lina, my anger palpable, did Leo instinctively step in front of her.
He frowned, genuinely confused.
"Sylvia? What are you doing here?"
Seriously?
My boyfriend of eight years married another woman behind my back.
And when I found out, all he could say is "What are you doing here?"
It felt like my heart was being sliced apart, the pain so intense I could hardly breathe.
Tears streamed down uncontrollably again.
My voice broke when I finally spoke,
"Leo… why would you do this?"
"And why… why did it have to be on our eight-year anniversary?"
Leo looked at me silently, not saying a word.
