Chapter 05

The situation at home would become unbearable once Antony learned what I had done to Regina. Aaron would embellish the story, twisting it into a dramatic performance just to turn my father against me.

My father often let his brother manipulate him. If he didn’t free himself from the guilt he carried, he would spend his life fulfilling the whims of that tyrant.

I walked into my room, trying to keep control of myself. I tossed the shopping bags onto the bed just as my phone rang again. Before answering, I blocked out all the ugly feelings Regina had tried to dump on me.

“There’s a charity party tonight, and I don’t want to go alone, Amy.”

Sara’s whiny voice came through the line. I laughed at how insistent and persuasive she could be. In the past, I never would have accepted an invitation like that. I had always been reserved, shy, and introverted. Warren used to tell me I needed to rest, all while destroying my friendships and cutting off my social life.

I closed my eyes, remembering my naivety. Pain burned in my chest at the thought of the years I wasted beside that man. I gave up living a normal life for him—for loving him blindly.

“I’ll go,” I said, and the silence on the other end startled me.

“Are you serious?” I could imagine her eyes wide in shock. “What the hell is going on with you?”

“You invited me, and I accepted,” I emphasized, a playful smile tugging at my lips. “Just tell me the time, and I’ll be there.”

“The Amy I know would never accept something like this,” she said, her words honest and piercing, reminding me no one knew me better than Sara. “You must have done something, and now you’re trying to get away with it.”

Her intuition was sharp. I didn’t know how she had guessed, but her conclusion wasn’t entirely wrong.

“My uncle Aaron came here with Regina,” I said, flopping onto the bed, eager to tell Sara what had happened. “I poured hot coffee on her hand. Soon my father will know about it.”

“Finally, you fought back against Regina’s provocations.” She choked on her laughter. “I’d give anything to have seen her defeated.”

“I need to escape tonight.” Sara had gone quiet, just listening to me now. “I would rather not be here when my father comes home and hears everything I did.”

“I’ll pick you up early,” she said after a pause, and I could almost picture the thoughts spinning in her head.

“I can’t believe how much you’ve changed in such a short time. But I like this strange version of you. Something tells me we’re going to have fun tonight.”

If Sara knew the truth, she wouldn’t be amused. She would cry, aching with regret for not being there to protect me when everything happened. But I had made my decision—I would keep it secret. We talked for a while longer, and when we finally hung up, I began to get ready for the evening.

I took a long, lingering bath and started dressing. Dozens of messages from Warren filled my inbox, but I didn’t open a single one. I remembered the anxiety that used to consume me every time my phone buzzed and I saw it was him. I used to reply so quickly—it made sense how easily he had dominated me all those years.

God, how blind and infatuated I had been. This time, I would rather not hear his excuses or his fantasy stories about whom he pretended to be.

I slipped into the glittering dress I had bought that morning with Simon’s money.

I looked at my slender figure reflected in the mirror. My hair was tied up in a bun. My lips, painted blood-red, looked perfect. The woman staring back at me was nothing like the naive girl I once was.

I put on my high heels just as Sara’s voice echoed downstairs, snapping me out of the trance I had been in all day. When I came down, she stood in front of me, staring in shock. Her wide-eyed gaze reminded me that I couldn’t hide the woman I had become.

“I’ve never seen you so beautiful in my entire life.” Her lips parted in awe, and heat rushed to my cheeks.

“You’re exaggerating,” I said, stepping closer and holding her arms. “We need to hurry. Remember, I’m running away from my father’s lecture about how wrong I was to hurt Regina.”

That comment made Sara laugh. She knew I was using it as an excuse to cover up the truth—I had changed. I no longer feared facing my father. On the contrary, I was going to that party to enjoy myself.

We got in the car, and Sara drove us to the venue. I knew the event would be filled with high-society figures, and since I was Antony’s daughter, a famous businessman, everyone would recognize me. When the car stopped and I saw the lights glittering outside, nerves suddenly shot through me. I rarely went to parties; I had no idea how to behave.

Sweat pricked my forehead when my eyes landed on Warren, standing right in front of me. I inhaled sharply as I noticed the woman beside him—Nora, his secretary.

Both of them looked at me with a mix of expressions, and the smile that had lit up Warren’s face moments earlier vanished like smoke. His expression turned to pure rage. He hadn’t expected to see me tonight because he always coerced me into staying home while he flaunted himself with his mistress.

For a moment, dressed in that sparkling gown, I felt insecure beside her. She looked effortlessly elegant in a modest dress, wearing little to no makeup.

“Amy? I told you not to come tonight.” His voice carried a note of dissatisfaction, his forced smile unable to hide the unease in his eyes.

Nora immediately pulled her arm away when she noticed my eyes locked on hers. I was so stunned by his audacity that I scoffed. He dared to belittle me like that? In public? In front of his mistress?

“Sorry, darling, I didn’t see your messages.”

I pressed my tongue against the roof of my mouth to hold back the words surging in my mind, threatening to spill out.

I walked away, but Warren followed. Not only that, but I tried to step aside to avoid Nora, but she stuck out her foot, making me stumble and nearly fall.

Warren glanced at me with thinly veiled irritation, lowering his voice as if trying not to make a scene. My chest tightened when I realized how effortlessly he dismissed me, masking his discontent with a faint pretense of concern.

I hadn’t been ready to face him tonight. So this was what he did while I sat at home, planning our wedding? He paraded around in public with his mistress, betraying me?

How foolish I had been not to see they had been together all along.