I Was Never the Choice

On the day I was supposed to try on wedding dresses with Charles Jaspier, the mafia leader I had loved for seven years, I walked into the boutique carrying a pregnancy test report—my heart full of hope.

Instead, I overheard a conversation that shattered everything.

"Registering the marriage with Ellis Olsen was a temporary measure," he said calmly to his closest confidant. "My brother died in a shootout. She's carrying the Jaspier family's only heir. Without a legal status, neither she nor the child would survive in this family."

"Everyone would bully them."

A cigar rested between his fingers. His voice was cold, edged with resignation.

"Zoey Qandor can't have a title—but I can give her everything else. My love. My money. This must never reach her ears."

I clenched the pregnancy report, my heart turning to ash.

With my best friend's help, I created a new identity—one that ensured Charles would never find me again—and disappeared from his world.

If he could not give me and my child a complete family, then this love—built on responsibility and lies—was better cut cleanly, once and for all.

I dug my nails into my palm, holding back the tears with everything I had.

The joy I had felt when I first held the pregnancy test report had been washed away.

If he had already given the title of 'Donna' to someone else, then why was he still planning a wedding with me?

Was I meant to become a shadow Donna, a woman who existed only in the dark?

I could endure it for myself, even if I loved him enough to swallow the pain. However, the child growing inside me should never live in the shadows.

I could never bear the thought of my child being mocked one day–laughed at by other children, told that his mother was a mistress.

"Ms. Qandor, the wedding dress Mr. Jaspier himself designed for you is ready. These are the matching accessories. Let me help you put them on."

The staff in the boutique looked at me with unconcealed envy.

"Mr. Jaspier treats you so well. He designed the wedding dress himself and even designed this jewelry set just for you."

"I heard the ruby alone cost one hundred million at a Christie's auction."

"And your names are engraved on the jewelry too."

"If only I could have a fiance as devoted as Mr. Jaspier."

One voice after another praised our 'love,' admiration spilling freely from their lips.

None of them knew that the man they called devoted was preparing to turn me into a shadow: a woman who would never be made public, never acknowledged by the family, whose child would carry the label of 'illegitimate' from the moment they were born.

I forced a smile, took the wedding dress, and walked toward the fitting room.

"These crystal heels would go perfectly with the dress."

Ellis Olsen appeared behind me, holding a pair of shoes.

She smiled as she held them up against the gown, measuring them casually as if nothing had ever happened.

She was still as close to me as ever, warm and familiar, like a best friend.

In the past, Charles Jaspier used to take us out together: meals, camping trips, surfing by the sea, rock climbing, and target practice.

We had gotten along so well.

If I had not accidentally overheard those words, I would never have imagined that Charles would betray me for her.

Thinking of what I had heard, my gaze drifted unconsciously to her flat stomach.

That smooth, empty curve–yet it felt like a mountain pressing heavily against my chest.

No matter how brutal the power struggles within the mafia family became in the future, someone would support her and her child.

What about me? What about my child? No one.

"The shoes do match the dress," I said softly, bitterness tugging at the corners of my lips.

"The dress is beautiful. I've never worn a wedding dress before."

Ellis's subtle hint did not go unnoticed.

"Why don't you try it on?"

The moment the words left my mouth, a figure rushed over.

"Zoey, what are you saying?"

"That's the wedding dress I designed for you!"

"No one else can wear it!"

Charles's face was filled with resistance.

"When Ellis married your brother, she never had a wedding," I said with a gentle smile, pretending to be understanding. "Letting her try it on could make up for the regret of never wearing one back then."