6

Eloise and Sasha were at a coffee shop. By the time they arrived, Sasha had already ordered her favorite coffee and cake.

Even though they had talked about Cosmo over the phone the night before, it was clear that Sasha was still full of curiosity about him.

Eloise and Cosmo hadn’t announced their marriage to the public. Only the Lopez and Dominguez families knew about it, and Sasha was the only friend Eloise had told.

Sasha didn’t agree with Eloise’s decision to marry Cosmo—especially since she believed he was now completely useless.

“They’re the ones who raised you, and yet they turned out that harsh? If they really want you to repay their kindness, why not let you marry a man who’s actually in a decent state?” Sasha said angrily.

But Eloise remained calm, shaped by everything she had gone through in life. “If love isn’t part of it, it doesn’t matter who I marry. It’s all the same. I’m just doing what they asked of me.”

Sasha was partly amused but mostly frustrated. “You’re just trying to convince yourself! You know it hurts deep down, especially since this is your first marriage! Do you even realize how hard it is to break ties with a family like the Dominguez family? Even if you divorce him, people will still call you ‘Cosmo Dominguez’s ex-wife.’”

Eloise hadn’t told Sasha about the agreement she and Cosmo had made, so she had no clue what was really going on.

“Don’t worry. What’s done is done. I’ll just go with the flow,” Eloise said calmly, trying to ease her friend’s temper. Then she changed the topic. “What about you and Theo? Anything new?”

Sasha’s expression immediately changed. She had been chasing after Theo for a long time—gifts, surprises, all sorts of efforts—but he always turned her down. Still, she never gave up. She was determined to win him over.

Theo was a hardworking, smart man from a poor family. But no matter how much Sasha tried, he never gave her any attention.

“Still the same. He ignores me. I think I even annoy him whenever he sees me,” Sasha said sadly.

Eloise shook her head. “That means he’s just not into you. Come on, Sasha. You’re rich, beautiful, and popular. You don’t need to run after a man.”

Sasha looked down and stirred her coffee with a spoon. “Eloi, do you think I’m being stupid for feeling this way? I don’t know. I really do like him.”

Eloise looked at her. “What exactly do you like about him?”

“He’s hardworking, responsible, and he’s not like those other guys who only come near me because I have money,” Sasha answered.

Eloise smiled. “There are a lot of men like that out there. Why is it only him that you’re drawn to? Are you sure it’s love and not just admiration?”

Sasha paused. “What do you mean?”

“Maybe what you’re feeling isn’t really love—just admiration. Maybe you just appreciate who he is, and it’s making you think you like him,” Eloise explained.

Sasha fell silent for a moment, then sighed. “I don’t know. But I really do like him.”

Eloise didn’t say anything more. Deep inside, she just knew Theo wasn’t the right person for Sasha to end up with. So she reminded her again, “Sasha, you’re still young, beautiful, and rich. There are plenty of guys out there who would really fight to win you over. Don’t pour all of yourself into just one guy. Enjoy your life first.”

Sasha looked at her friend in surprise. “Eloi, since when did you start thinking that way?”

Eloise calmly replied, “Life is short. Make the most of it. Don’t let yourself end up full of regrets someday.”

Sasha’s mouth fell slightly open, as if she was deeply thinking.

After about an hour at the coffee shop, the two of them headed to the boutique to pick up a dress Sasha had ordered two months ago.

The clerk already knew Sasha was coming, so the dress had been prepared ahead of time. But unexpectedly, it had suddenly gone missing. After looking around the shop, they discovered that Lilian Viernes was already wearing it.

Lilian was Sasha’s stepsister. They weren’t blood-related. She became part of the Viernes family after her mother married Sasha’s father, and she changed her last name to Viernes.

Since the beginning, Sasha had always been annoyed with Lilian. They often argued, but Sasha always ended up losing their verbal spats. Because of this, her father would scold her and say she was being disrespectful and not getting along with the family.

So when Sasha saw Lilian wearing her dress, she didn’t hesitate. She walked straight up to her and gave her a hard slap.

Lilian stumbled back, holding her cheek, tears in her eyes, and asked in confusion, “Sasha, I didn’t do anything wrong to you. Why did you slap me?”

Even though Lilian wasn’t as strikingly pretty as Sasha, she had a gentle, simple beauty—innocent and demure. And more than anything, she had a gift for looking pitiful, like she could break into tears at any moment.

Sasha knew exactly what she was doing—that's why she didn’t feel the slightest bit of sympathy. “You’re wearing my dress. Take it off. Now,” she said sharply.

A red handprint was visible on Lilian’s cheek, and her eyes shimmered with tears. She looked scared and confused. “Sasha, you’re saying this dress is yours? I didn’t know! And even if it is, couldn’t you have just asked me nicely? If you told me, I would’ve given it back.”

Sasha scoffed. “You didn’t know it was mine? Come on. Of course you did—that’s exactly why you’re wearing it, right? But look at yourself. Do you really think that suits you?”

Lilian always preferred soft, plain colors that matched her innocent image. Sasha, on the other hand, carried herself with a natural charm and confidence—whatever she wore, she made it shine.

Since Lilian joined the Viernes family, she secretly tried copying Sasha’s style. But when she got caught, Sasha never let her forget it. Eventually, Lilian learned to embrace her own taste.

Sasha tilted her chin up arrogantly. “That dress is custom-made. Only one was made. The clerk wouldn’t just hand it over to anyone—unless you were the one who asked for it yourself.”

Lilian’s expression changed. She looked flustered under Sasha’s accusations. “Sasha, please don’t accuse me like that. I didn’t mean to—”

“Enough with the innocent act!” Sasha snapped. “It’s getting old. Take that dress off and leave!”

Eloise didn’t have time to stop what happened next—it was too late.

A hand suddenly grabbed Sasha’s arm and pulled her back. She stumbled a few steps, but thankfully, Eloise caught her before she fell.

The man who intervened was Aries Villamor. His face was stern as he said, “Sasha, there’s no need to blame Lilian. I was the one who told her to try on the dress.”

Lilian lightly held on to the hem of Aries’ shirt, looking small and fragile. “Aries, don’t be mad at her. It’s my fault too. I didn’t get the chance to explain properly, so Ate misunderstood.”

Aries noticed the red mark on Lilian’s cheek, and his expression shifted to anger.

“She slapped you, didn’t she?”

Lilian quickly covered her face, but Aries gently took her hand and moved it to see her cheek. She panicked, almost in tears. “No... it wasn’t... she didn’t do this…”

But instead of helping, her denial only made things worse. Everyone around could see who the real culprit was. With the tension in the room and the way things unfolded, it was obvious Sasha was the only one who had any reason to lash out.

Aries turned to Sasha, and in his eyes wasn’t just anger—but deep resentment.

His voice was firm and cold when he said, “Sasha, apologize.”