All Chapters of Of Fractured Vows and Broken Hearts: Chapter 1 - Chapter 8

Shane Galingston froze, the tissue in his hand still suspended in midair.The next second, Fleur Renault burst out from behind the counter and pointed at me, shouting, "You and your brother wouldn't even dare take a paternity test. You got yourself pregnant messing around and then found an honest man to take responsibility. Now, you're married and still sleeping around, hooking up everywhere—and now that you've found your next target, you want a divorce!"As soon as she finished, a large bottle of water came out of nowhere and was dumped over my head and face.A draft swept through the hall. I shivered from the cold.I looked at Shane again. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but in the end, he said nothing.Disgust spread across the faces of the onlookers."Even her own husband won't defend her. Looks like what that clerk said is true! No wonder she has AIDS!""Look at her makeup and the way she sways when she walks—obviously someone from that kind of dirty business!"This wa

Shane reacted like a drunk cat whose tail had been stepped on—startled and guilty, he toppled backward onto the floor.Fleur kept her face tight as she hauled him up and dragged him away. When she saw that I didn't stop them this time, her smile finally bloomed, as if she had claimed total victory."I told you long ago—without my permission, no one gets to marry Shane.""Oh, but I should still thank you for playing along in today's little act. Mom already said that once I'm officially promoted, she'll kick you out of the house!"My mother-in-law had always favored Fleur, suppressing me at every turn. She even put the family heirloom bracelet on Fleur's wrist.Only in work matters had she ever been dissatisfied—because Fleur had never managed to become a permanent employee."Ugh—"The cloying scent of perfume made me gag uncontrollably.Alarm bells rang in my head.Fleur seemed to realize something too. Her body swayed for a moment, then she quickly forced out a smile."Stop p

Shane's mind rang with a dull buzz, and he stood frozen in place.His thoughts clashed violently.That scream… it sounded like Lily's.But how could Lily be beaten? He had already paid twenty thousand to calm those families down. For an unborn fetus, twenty thousand should have been more than enough!He must have been imagining it—too anxious, too on edge.Even as he tried to convince himself, his hands shook uncontrollably, and his feet refused to move.He closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he pulled out a bank card and shoved it roughly into Fleur's hand."Fleur, go to my mother-in-law's hospital and pay the surgery fees first. I'll wait here for Lily to come out—"Before he could finish, the mediation room door burst open with a loud bang.Two uniformed staff members, pale-faced, rushed out carrying an unconscious woman."Call an ambulance! There's so much blood!"Shane's gaze locked onto the blood soaking Lily's legs. It was as if a hammer struck his head.He f

"My mother spent her whole life upright and principled, working steadily in the public sector for twenty years. But to help you through your crisis, she didn't hesitate for a second—she resigned her post and lowered herself to become a highly paid civil service exam instructor."Do you know how her old rivals mocked her behind her back? They said someone from a scholarly family had fallen into the trap of money. But for the sake of giving us a better life, she swallowed every bit of that humiliation!"My voice began to shake uncontrollably."And what did she get in return? On New Year's Eve, in front of all my relatives back home, you let Fleur use the filthiest words to smear her daughter…"My mother… she's always been so proud. In her entire life, no one had ever pointed at her spine and cursed her like that. How was she supposed to endure such humiliation? How could she possibly bear it?"The past replayed itself vividly.All the grievances I had buried for so long—my anger, m