Love Fading

I was held by several servants and could only close my eyes in despair and let them grope me roughly.

In the tense atmosphere, after being thoroughly searched and feeling utterly hopeless, I was on the verge of breaking down.

Only when they had finished searching did Catherine speak up again, her voice filled with a false sense of surprise.

She reached into her handbag and pulled out the engagement ring. "Oh, my, I was so careless. I must have forgotten to put it in my bag before I washed my hands," she said with a dramatic sigh.

Then, turning to me, she added with a forced smile, "Miss Johnson, I'm so sorry... It seems I misunderstood you. Please accept my apologies."

Catherine said her apology, but the next second, she covered her face and ran out, crying.

Ethan only glanced at me, said nothing and immediately followed Catherine, rushing out to comfort her.

I was completely drained, both physically and mentally. I refused the apologies offered by his parents on Ethan’s behalf, left their house and took a taxi straight to the airport.

I sat in the airport, waiting for my rebooked flight. During the wait, Ethan sent me a message:

[You shouldn’t have let Catherine lose face like that in front of everyone. She’s your superior now, so remember to apologize to her later.]

The announcement over the airport speakers signaled that it was time to board the flight.

No one knew about our secret relationship, so there was nothing to even call a breakup.

I replied with a simple "Okay," as a final goodbye to Ethan.

Then I exited the chat and blocked all his contact information. Without looking back, I boarded the flight to Brightvale.

***

A few days later, Ethan arrived on the day of his wedding with Catherine.

Yet, in the wedding hall, he smoked one cigarette after another.

When a friend asked, he frowned slightly, a look of pain in his eyes. "My little girl hasn’t made a sound these past few days. With such a grand wedding today, I’m sure she’s somewhere crying."

One of his friends, startled by his words, pulled out his phone and handed it to Ethan.

"You don’t know yet? This morning, the richest family in Brightvale, the Mitchel Family, announced their son's marriage. The groom is none other than your secretary."