Fifty shades of Betrayal

—SAMANTHA POV—

The world around me felt like it had collapsed, crumbling into nothing but ashes of betrayal. I could barely breathe, barely stand, as I watched the man I had once believed in.

“How could you do this, Zeke?” My voice wavered, tight and trembling, but I forced the words out. I needed answers. I needed him to tell me any of this wasn’t real.

Zeke pulled away from Ophelia and walked leisurely around his mahogany desk, his movements slow, almost casual, as though this was nothing.

“What does it matter, Samantha?” His voice was eerily calm, dismissive, as if I had walked in on something trivial.

My fists tightened. My entire body shook with rage and disbelief. But nothing could have prepared me for what came next.

Zeke took a step closer, and my stomach turned as he stood in front of me, his flimsy prick smeared with precum hung limp in between his zippers, the son of a bitch was still half-hard, and the sight of him—so unapologetic, so shameless—burned my insides. I wanted to scream, but I held it in. He looked at me, his face twisting into something cold and distant.

He scoffed. “Think about it, Samantha. Do you really think I would have married you if my grandfather hadn’t forced me to keep the marriage arrangement after the media got ahold of the scandal?” He tilted his head, mocking. “You were just a cover-up for your dead sister, Samantha. That’s all.”

The words hit like a brutal punch to the gut.

Son of a bitch!

I couldn't breathe, his harsh words breaking something deep inside. A breath caught in my throat, and I could barely make sense of the pain rushing through me. I had known it on some level—knowing that our marriage wasn't built on love. But hearing him say it, out loud, was like a sharp blade being twisted in my chest.

“You…” My throat tightened. The words wouldn’t come.

Because the truth was staring me in the face, suffocating me.

Zeke was right.

I was nothing more than a replacement.

A stand-in for my twin sister, Gina—the woman he was supposed to marry.

But everything had fallen apart.

Three years ago, on their wedding day, Gina had been caught in bed with another man, and soon after, she became pregnant. No one believed her when she cried and swore about having no knowledge of ‘that gigolo.’

Nine months later, Gina overwhelmed with shame ended her own life because the endless mockery and torment were too much for her to bear.

After her tragic death, the Frost family came to me. They needed to salvage their reputation, to bury the disgrace, and I was the perfect solution. Gina and I was identical, after all.

The Frosts were the fourth most influential family among the four major families in Skyline City. Their influence was unmatched, their name untouchable. Zeke, the scion of their empire, was the man every woman in the city dreamed of.

When I was introduced as Zeke’s wife, many women looked at me with envy and disdain. They saw me as nothing more than a lowborn, beneath them in every way, and they made sure I knew it.

I hadn’t cared about the Frosts' wealth, their reputation. I had dreams of my own, ambitions I had wanted to pursue.

But in the end, I gave it all up and embraced motherhood.

Not for them.

For Gina.

Because before she died, she told me her last wish:

‘Promise me, Sammy…” Her frail fingers clutched mine as she lay in that hospital bed, her green eyes—mirrors of my own—begging. “…please promise me you’ll take care of my little girl, Amore… Give her a complete family I could never give her. And Zeke, the love of my life, take care of him too. Believe me Sammy, he is a good man.’

I had promised. How could I not? She was my twin. My other half. I couldn’t let her go without keeping that promise.

‘I promise, Gina,’ I whispered, my voice trembling as I held her weakening hand. ‘I will raise Amore as my own, love her, protect her… She will never feel motherless as long as I live.’ My throat tightened, but I forced the words out. ‘And Zeke… I’ll take care of him too, just like you wanted.’

With a shaky breath, I pressed a gentle kiss to her cold cheek.

And then, in my arms, my sister took her last breath.

Gina had believed Zeke was a good man.

Or so she thought.

Still, I had kept my promise to my sister, stepping into her place, raising Amore as my own daughter, and devoting myself to a marriage built on nothing but lies.

But now, staring at the man who had just torn apart every last illusion, I finally saw the truth.

Zeke Frost was never a good man.

“I know,” I choked out, my voice shaking, “I know I was just a substitute for Gina. But what about her? Couldn’t you at least honor her memory? Weren't you both in love? Did you ever think about what she would have felt if she were alive and saw this?”

Before Zeke could speak. A slow, taunting chuckle filled the office.

Ophelia stretched her arms lazily as if this were nothing more than an amusing spectacle. “Oh, Samantha,” she purred, tilting her head to look at me. “Did you really think Zeke loved that slut of a twin sister of yours, Gina?”

The words felt like ice water being poured over me. My body went rigid.

What is Ophelia trying to say?

No.

I quickly turned to Zeke, desperately searching his face. “Tell me she’s lying,” I whispered. “Tell me this isn’t true!"

But he said nothing.

Something flickered in his eyes. Guilt? But it was gone as quickly as it came.

His jaw clenched, his fists tightened, but no denial came.

“Zeke Frost, fucking say something!” My voice cracked, desperation clawing at me.

Then, finally, he let out a hollow laugh, one that broke the tense silence in the office.

"Samantha, Ophelia is right. Gina meant nothing to me."

The cake box slipped from my hands.