جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 10

Hotel Ballroom, Borevia City"This wedding's nuts. You hear? Alden's childhood sweetheart is about to throw herself off the roof."Meredith Martinez froze in the waiting room, those words outside the door slicing straight through her.Vicky Beech. Suicide attempt #99.Meredith should've felt nothing.But it was her wedding day.And once again, Vicky was pulling another stunt, Meredith already knew—she'd be the one stepping aside.Five years with Alden, and every damn time Vicky so much as hiccupped, he dropped everything.Sometimes Meredith felt like she might as well have been the side chick.Last time he ditched her for Vicky, he swore it was the last.That promise? The only reason she was in this damn dress."If she wants to die, let her. Why are you calling me?" Alden's voice drifted through the crack of balcony doors—cold. "Jump? She won't. She's all drama. Has she ever even drawn blood?"He said something else, too quiet to catch.Then he hung up and turned—eyes meet

Alden froze.He never thought she'd say something that cold. Meredith, who always followed his lead, always soft, always gave in.He remembered how she hated needles—how she'd shake, how long it took her to calm down... And still, she gave Vicky blood. Over and over. For him.Alden looked up at her, uncertain. "Then... maybe—""Meredith..." Vicky cut in, tears already spilling. "What do you mean? Are you wishing me dead?"Meredith stared her down, ice-cold. The fake tears, the twisted possessiveness, the nonstop drama—Vicky was a pro. And Alden fell for it every single time. Or maybe... he wanted to.Meredith gave a cold smile. "Whoever wants to donate can. I'm out."Vicky clung to Alden's arm, voice shaking like she'd just been stabbed. "Alden, look at her. She wants me dead. Does she want me in the ICU next to my mom—would that make her happy?"Rowena, her mom, had been in a coma five years now—ever since she shoved Alden out of the way of a speeding truck. She'd never woken

"Ms. Martinez?"The nurse's voice snapped her back.Meredith blinked, forced her hand steady, and signed.Moments later, they were rolling her into surgery.As the anesthesia kicked in, everything went black.Somewhere in the haze, someone called her name.The voice cut through the fog, sharp and sterile, laced with blood and antiseptic.She saw the young Alden pinned to the ground, eyes wild, locked on hers.Then herself, beaming, diving into his arms the day Alderith and Partners launched.Then Vicky—white dress, cradled in Alden's arms—while she just stood there, deadpan and numb.When she woke up, the monitor's beeping slammed into her ears.Moonlight poured through the blinds, silver and sharp.She stared at the jagged vitals line.The wound throbbed as the numbing meds began to wear off, like a saw ripping through her gut.She fumbled under her pillow. 3:17 a.m.The pain was brutal. She slammed the pain pump button, again and again—barely helped.Curled up, she ju

Silence dropped like a hammer the second Alden stopped talking.He stared her down, waiting for that moment she'd fold like always.Five years—she'd always caved. Always.No way she'd actually walk.Other people left. Not Meredith.She wouldn't. She couldn't.But that crash of panic he expected? Never showed.Meredith just stood there—cool, steady, with this tiny smirk playing on her lips."I already have." She slid the letter onto his desk. Voice like ice. "If that's all, I'm out."She didn't look back. Just turned and headed for the door.Clean. Sharp. No flinch, no pause.Alden froze.He'd run through every scenario—except this.She was supposed to beg.Tell him it was a dumb fight, an impulse.Do what she always did: melt when he snapped, pull him back with that soft voice."Meredith!"Her hand was already on the knob when he called—voice tight, edged with something unfamiliar. Panic.He thought she'd pause. Glance back.Anything.She didn't.She opened the doo

'Why's there a guy here? In an apron? Acting like he lives here?'The thought slammed into him—she had someone else?She walked away that clean because another guy was already in the picture?Rage—raw and blinding—erased the last of his logic.So much for composure."Where's Meredith?!" He grabbed the guy's collar, voice like gravel.The guy flinched, yanking back. "Hey—who ARE you? What the hell?! Let go!""I said—where's Meredith?!" Alden lost it. Threw a punch.He wasn't just swinging wild—he'd trained. That hit landed hard.The man slammed into the doorframe. Blood streaked his lip. The spatula hit the floor with a loud clatter."Are you insane?! You just PUNCHED me!" He wiped the blood, fist rising.Then—someone else burst out of the kitchen.A woman. Same apron. Eyes wide as she screamed and rushed to shield him."Who are you?! Why are you hitting my HUSBAND?! I—I already called the cops!"Alden's fist froze midair.'Husband?'His bloodshot eyes locked on the coup