Chapter 1
My boyfriend, Antonio Kaufman, and my brother, Tyler Parrish, were both smitten with Michelle Conner, the new girl in town.
Antonio abruptly ended our engagement, coldly stating, “I haven’t had feelings for you for a long time, Grace..”
Tyler, disregarding our mom’s dying wishes that he look after me, dismissed my concerns with “Michelle has such a hard life, and now she’s like family. You get that, right?”
On my birthday, Antonio chose to be with Michelle, leaving me alone.
On the anniversary of our mom’s death, Tyler was celebrating with Michelle and her mom, oblivious to my grief.
When they were off to Abalind for Michelle’s design award, I set fire to our childhood home, a repository of shared memories.
The school was abuzz with rumors of my suicide.
They wept over my photo, expressing remorse for abandoning me, but it was far too late.
***
“We’re engaged, remember?” I reminded Antonio at a party, hoping to jolt his memory, to reclaim some semblance of our past.
The room fell silent, everyone anticipating his response.
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He looked annoying. “Our engagement was arranged by our parents. It wasn’t my choice.”
I pressed, my voice barely a whisper. “Then why did you agree to it?”
I glanced at Antonio lounging on the couch, his shirt unbuttoned, revealing a scattering of hickeys.
A wave of nausea washed–over me.
It was clear he had given his heart to someone else.
“I didn’t understand what love was until now,” he admitted, his gaze icy.
My breath hitched, a hollow ache spreading through my chest.
Antonio sighed, his irritation palpable. “Grace, we’re adults. I have the right to choose who I want to be with. Let’s not dwell on the past.”
Stunned into silence, I felt a strange sense of detachment, as if watching my own life unfold from a distance.
He’d made it easy to let go.
The door swung open, and Michelle entered, dressed in a waitress uniform, carrying a tray.
She flinched when she saw me. “Im sorry. Wrong room.”
Instead of leaving, She looked at Antonio, tears welling in her
eyes.
“I’ll come find you tomorrow,” she whispered, her voice
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Chapter 1
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trembling.
She set the tray down and turned to go.
Suddenly, Antonio kicked the coffee table in front of him.
Wine glasses shattered, spraying shards of glass across the
room.
A sharp pain shot through my arm as a piece of glass sliced into my skin. Blood welled up.
Yet, Antonio didn’t even look at me.
He strode towards Michelle, his face contorted with rage.
He grabbed her ruffled apron and ripped it off. “Michelle, I told you not to work anymore!”
Michelle quickly nodded, her voice meek, “I just don’t want to keep taking your money.
“You and Tyler have done enough for me.
“I can support myself.”
“But I don’t want you to,” he snarled, tossing the apron aside.
He pulled her towards the door. “Come on. Let’s go. If I see you working again, I’ll shut this,place down.”
Michelle shook her head, bewildered by his outburst.
Antonio turned to me, his voice sharp and accusatory. “Did you make her work here? She’s been through enough. Why are you doing this to her?”
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Chapter 1
I clutched my bleeding arm, my gaze met his, blank and
unreadable.
