Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Finally revealing the truth?
I watched with satisfaction as Cathy faltered for a brief second before scoffing loudly, still unwilling to back down.
"You think having another man beside you makes you powerful now?"
"No," I answered before Rhys could. "Leaving your worthless son did. If anything, I am glad he cheated on me, else I might still have been stuck with that piece of trash."
Her knuckles were bleached as she glared at me, her eyes shooting daggers at me. "How dare you call Lucas worthless and trash!"
"I will call him whatever I want," I said, keeping my voice steady and my eyes fixed on her.
"You will come crawling back to him one day," she spat the words out like they were poison in her mouth. "You should already consider yourself lucky that my son even married you. Do you really think a housewife like you can find someone better than my son?"
I turned to look at Rhys, interlocking my fingers with his as if it were something I did every day. I let a smile form on my lips when we locked eyes, her words not bothering me at all.
"I already did."
These three words were enough to get her riled up.
Cathy’s eyes widened in disbelief, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly as she stared at me. Clearly, she hadn’t expected me to say something like that. Not to her face. Not with this much confidence.
And definitely not while holding another man’s hand.
Beside me, Rhys let out a low chuckle. His large calloused hand tightened around mine ever so slightly, his thumb brushing against my knuckles in a way that sent my pulse spiraling out of control.
"Well," he mused casually, "she’s not wrong. My girlfriend’s never wrong," he added, sending a wink my way.
Cathy looked like she was seconds away from exploding.
"You—!" Her chest heaved violently as she glared between the two of us before her gaze finally landed on me. "You will regret this one day!" She sneered, stomping her foot before turning around to leave.
I stared at her retreating silhouette, my heartbeat finally stopped racing a mile a minute.
I had almost forgotten that I was still tightly gripping onto Rhys’ hand until I felt his fingers squeeze mine slightly as if to comfort me.
"You okay?" His voice broke through the murmurs that rose from the crowd that was watching the entire thing unfold the whole time.
My eyes found his, concern swimming in the depths of his dark eyes. I swallowed the lump in my throat. "Yeah...yeah. I’m fine," I assured him, but the frown on his face told me he didn’t seem convinced. "Seriously," I added.
His forehead creased slightly, but he didn’t argue with me. Instead, he only left some cash on the table and led me out of the restaurant, away from the nosy gazes and rumours flying through the thick air.
I had just slipped into the passenger seat, but I could already feel his eyes on me.
"Do you..."He started, caution threading beneath his low voice. "...want to talk about it?"
I looked down at my wringing hands, and my chest felt tight. Do I finally come clean? Do I tell him everything? Most important of all...would he actually believe me? How would he react when I tell him the truth?
"That was my mother-in-law. Soon to be ex-mother-in-law," I corrected softly. "She’s unhappy that I chose to leave her good-for-nothing son after I found out about his affair with my sister."
He was silent for a while, as though he was carefully sifting through his options on what to say next. His voice was quiet when he finally spoke. "Had things always been like this? All these years."
Tears pricked at my eyes as the past seven years flashed past me like a cruel montage. Seven years of my youth were wasted, all thrown away because of one mistake—a mistake that cost me everything, including the love of my life.
A single stray tear escaped the brim of my eye, and another chased after it. I was sobbing before the words even left my mouth. Before I knew it, he was leaning in closer to me, his cologne enveloping me.
His thumb gently brushed my cheek, swiping away the tears that rolled down my face. His features twisted in a way that made me think that his heart might have ached for me somehow, but that expression quickly disappeared.
"I’m sorry," he whispered, his voice was rough, cracking ever so slightly. "I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you."
More tears spilled from my eyes. My throat was dry as ash, and I could hardly speak. But I managed to squeeze the words out. "It’s...not your fault, Rhys. I was the one who fucked everything up. I probably deserve this."
"You don’t," he said firmly. "You don’t deserve any of this, Evelyn."
My voice was small when the words I held back for the longest time slipped through my lips. "Even after I cheated on you?"
Silence crashed over us. The warmth vanished, and a dark look was cast over his face like a storm. He immediately pulled back like I was a plague, and cold air rushed to fill the void between us.
I blinked back tears, shame coiled tightly around me. I could hear my heart drumming in my ears. The events of that night never stopped haunting me.
"Would you believe me if I said I didn’t know what happened that night?" I said, my voice trembling. He was looking at me, his expression unreadable and his jaw clenched tight. "Would you believe me if I said that breaking off our engagement was for the best?"
A muscle tic in his jaw again. "For the best?" He finally said, and I didn’t miss the hurt in his voice. "Why didn’t you tell me about it? You don’t get to decide that for me." His words were harsh, stabbing right into my chest, making my heart bleed.
He was right. I selfishly made the decision for us. I should have talked to him, I should have found a way to make it work instead of cowering and leaving him.
"But I—"
He exhaled sharply, dragging a hand down his face. "I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Can you just...drop it? Please. Not today. I need some time."
A soft sigh escaped my lips as I looked at him, his posture rigid and a strained look etched onto his face. "Sure."
***
When I walked into the office the next day, something felt off. It was almost as if deep down I knew something was wrong, but I couldn’t quite pinpoint it. Dozen pairs of eyes snapped in my direction before darting away, and the whispers, along with the murmurs, began to stir.
A knot twisted tightly in my stomach. I tried to ignore it as I calmly made my way toward my desk, but the whispers followed me like a shadow.
"...that’s definitely her..."
"I swear, I saw it this morning—"
"Do you think it’s true?"
My pulse quickened. I turned instinctively toward Rhys’ office.
Through the narrow gap in the blinds, I could make out his tall frame standing rigidly by his desk. Two men in dark suits stood across from him, their expressions grave as they spoke to him in low voices.
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
I had barely lowered myself into my chair when a sharp voice broke through the thick tension.
"Evelyn."
I looked up to find Sara standing beside my desk, her lips curled into a smug little smile.
It’s her.
She held her phone tightly in her hand, tilting the screen toward me.
"Care to explain this?"
