Chapter: Epilogue The memory was bittersweet. White gowns, wide halls, stained-glass windows glowing with colored light—those pieces of the past hovered in my mind as I stood in the present. They were echoes of another time, another version of myself. But the similarities ended there. Because this moment was different. Entirely different. I was walking down the aisle to my husband. Simon stood waiting, and when I saw the tears in his eyes, my smile widened, real and unrestrained. I leaned into the arm of Mr. Wright, who had graciously agreed to walk me down since I had no one else. The quiet strength of his presence was a gift, and together we moved through the cathedral’s small, sunlit aisle. We had chosen a modest church. Not the lavish halls where the Valero name had once been flaunted, not the grand stages of media attention. We had waited until the noise faded, until the world turned its gaze elsewhere. Only then, with the buzz gone, could this day belong solely to us. Simon’s tears glistened
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
Chapter: Safety When I saw Tina again, she was bouncing on her heels like a child, her laughter spilling out before I had even said a word. Her smile stretched so wide that for a second, I almost forgot how heavy the past days had been. “What—?” I started, not understanding the unfiltered joy in her face. She looked like someone who had just been given good news, but I hadn’t told her anything yet. “You resolved it, right?” she asked the second I came close enough, still bouncing, her eyes shining like she already knew the answer. “Ye—” I didn’t even finish before she launched herself into my arms, squealing, the sound filling the air around us. “I knew it!” She buried her head against my neck, holding on tight before pulling back just enough to search my face. “I’m so happy for you,” she whispered, her hands resting firm on my shoulders, her gaze steady. Then she reached up, caressing my cheek with her palm. “You look like a weight just dropped from your shoulders.” “Really?” I asked, but the s
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
Chapter: Gaining closureI couldn’t care less about the polished array of Chinese delicacies spread before me. The steaming dumplings, the lacquered duck, the bowls of fragrant soup—none of it mattered. The drinks, perfectly chilled, sat untouched by my hand, their condensation sliding across the white tablecloth as if mocking me. The more they gleamed in the sunlight, the more irritated I felt, as though they too were part of some performance I wanted no part in. My eyes stayed fixed on the woman sitting across from me—my mother. During Ajax’s kidnapping, I had felt disoriented, bewildered by her sudden change in attitude. She had softened overnight, like a stranger had slipped into her skin. But now that the danger was gone, confusion had curdled into indifference, and beneath that indifference lay something darker, sharper, more familiar. Hatred. A hatred I had carried for so long it had become second nature. Still, what surprised me most wasn’t the bitterness—it was the nothingness. The quiet void I so
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
Chapter: Promise and fulfillment The morning had dawned bright and soft, the kind of morning that seemed to carry new beginnings in its light. Ajax’s excitement was infectious from the moment we picked up Lisa. He chattered without pause, his laughter filling the car like sunlight spilling into a quiet room. Simon and I exchanged small smiles over his enthusiasm, but I had something else weighing on me—a plan Alicia had urged me toward, one I had finally decided to see through. After we dropped the children at school, Simon turned to me, ready to head to work. But I typed a different destination into the GPS. “Aren’t we going to work?” he asked, confusion lining his voice as his brows knitted together. “Work can wait a few hours,” I replied, settling back in my seat, clipping my belt in place. I closed my eyes, needing a moment of calm before the storm I was sure was coming. “Where’s this?” His eyes flicked between me and the GPS, hesitation creeping into his tone. “Just drive,” I told him firmly, opening my eyes
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
Chapter: Battle attireI shook my head almost violently, overwhelmed, until Simon pulled me down to sit beside him. His touch was firm, steady—like he had already anticipated the storm brewing inside me. “I know exactly what you’re going to say,” he began calmly, eyes holding mine. “You’re going to say we’re not.” I blinked at him, my lips parting to argue, but the words caught when he continued. “But Tina—we were never really divorced.” His voice was steady, unflinching. “I never signed the papers.” The breath whooshed out of me. “What?” My mouth dropped open, the word slipping out as little more than a gasp. “I said,” he repeated, softer this time, “you’re Valentina Valero. You’ve always been.” My mind spun. The revelation sat between us, heavy and impossible to ignore. I could barely process it when Simon’s voice rang out—calm, unaffected, as though he hadn’t just shaken the foundations of my world. “Come in.” The door opened, and a man stepped inside, pushing a cart with a large package b
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
Chapter: Diamond ring I drew in a breath, steadying myself, my heart still running faster than I could control. “I don’t like the thought of people treating me differently just because I’m with you,” I said at last, my voice small but firm. “If the only reason a person will smile at me is because I’m Mrs. Valero, then I don’t want it.” Simon’s expression softened, but his words were steady. “Tina, people will always treat you differently based on your status. They treated you terribly before, but they won’t dare to now.” His eyes darkened, his jaw set. “I mean—I was subtle about it before. But now, if they so much as look at you wrongly, they’ll find themselves out of a job. They know that. They’ll act accordingly.” I groaned, half exasperated, half moved by the way he spoke. “Simon…” “What?” His brows lifted in mock innocence. “You’re supposed to console me, not make matters worse. And don’t you dare fire anybody.” His lips twitched, and he tilted his head slightly, that rare, boyish smile peeking th
Last Updated: 2025-08-06
LOGIN
