The Weight of His Favor

After three years of marriage, I finally got pregnant—my mafia husband treated me like his queen.

Every day felt like heaven, until she came back—his first love, Eloise Rosenveil.

On his birthday, after answering Eloise’s usual call, he turned to me and said softly,

“Darling, you’ve been working so hard carrying our child. There’ll be too many people at the party—I don’t want you to get hurt.”

But that day wasn’t just his birthday.

It was our one-thousandth day of marriage.

So I decided to surprise him anyway. I baked a mango cake and went to the party.

Only to find him playing a kissing game with Eloise, surrounded by laughter and cheers.

When he rushed to explain himself, Eloise, consumed by jealousy, pushed me—and I lost the baby.

With the child gone, my heart died too.

Since he had always loved his first love, I decided to grant his wish and walk away.

But why… why did Lawrence lose his mind searching for me everywhere after I left?

……

On the 28th birthday of my mafia husband, Lawrence Ardent, I personally baked his favorite mango cake. However, when I brought it to the banquet hall, I was met with the sight of his childhood sweetheart flirtatiously lifting a glass of wine to his lips.

Everyone around them was cheering, "Kiss her! Kiss her!"

"This is your chance, Don Ardent! You've always regretted not marrying Eloise, no? Now is your time to get all lovey-dovey with her!"

Laughter erupted as the crowd closed in on them. Lawrence braced his arms against the wall, shielding Eloise Rosenveil in his arms.

Eloise's cheeks flushed crimson as she brushed her face with her wineglass and murmured, "Stop it. Sylvie will get jealous if she sees us. She's Lawrence's wife, not me."

Everyone said that if Eloise Rosenveil hadn’t left three years ago, Lawrence Ardent’s wife would never have been me.

But I didn’t believe it. For the past three years, Lawrence had treated me like the most precious jewel in his world.

No matter how busy he was, he would always remember to bring me my favorite hazelnut chocolates on his way home—even if he had just walked out of a long meeting without dinner.

Whenever the seasons changed, he would have the maids prepare everything in advance, worried that I might catch a cold.

And on every holiday, he would send me flowers—never the same kind twice, sometimes even the ones I had only mentioned casually in passing.

But now? Lawrence lowered his head. The way he looked at her was tender in a way I'd never seen before.

"Eloise, you're the one Don Ardent has always loved. That woman is just your stand-in. Now that you're back, there's no place for her anymore. Say the word, and he'll send her packing in a few days!"

"Exactly! How could that woman ever compare to you? The only reason Don Ardent married her was because she looked similar to you. She's nothing but your replacement."

"No matter how much she tries to act like you, she'll never be you. There's no way Don Ardent would actually fall for her!"

My grip on the cake box gradually tightened as I stared blankly at the two of them pressed so closely together.

In response to everyone's teasing, Lawrence merely smiled and told them to stop messing around. His gaze never left Eloise, and he held her close as if she were something precious he needed to protect.

That gentle demeanor of his was something I'd never seen before. The lively and intimate atmosphere surrounding them felt like a world I would never belong to.

From the moment he didn't push her away, I knew our marriage had already reached its end. Clutching the cake, I silently took a step back and turned to leave.

Unfortunately, Eloise noticed me standing at the door and called out, "Where are you going, Sylvie?"