Love Too Late

“Raymond, let me go.”

I looked right at him.

Rage filled his gaze.

“Let go? Cara, our wedding is in five days. You’re my fiancee. Start acting like it.”

“How I act is none of your concern.”

I forcefully pulled my hand free.

“None of my concern?” He scoffed with contempt.

“Everything about you is my concern. You should be at home, preparing for the wedding. I’m offering you a life of luxury that you could never exhaust.”

I met his glare deliberately.

“What I want isn’t to be your trophy wife in a gilded cage.”

When he heard this, he became even more furious.

He leaned in, closing the distance between us.

“What makes you think you have the right to set terms with me?”

I sacrificed so much for him in the past, but he never understood. Why would he get it this time around?

I stopped struggling and simply looked at him coldly.

“I’m tired. I’m going home.”

Raymond stared at me for a long moment. A mix of emotions was churning in his eyes.

Finally, he loosened his grip.

“I’ll drive you.”

I neither refused nor acknowledged his offer. I simply turned and walked toward the exit.

We were silent through the entire drive. Raymond kept his eyes on the road, but I could feel him stealing glances my way.

He was probably trying to understand why the once-obedient Cara was rebelling against him.

Once I returned home, I walked straight into my bedroom and locked the door behind me.

After watching Raymond’s car drive away, I headed to the racetrack on the city’s outskirts.

After I turned eighteen, the racetrack became my go-to place whenever I felt overwhelmed.

There were no shackles of a well-raised, proper young lady there. It was a place where I could briefly savor true freedom.

I took off my helmet and accepted the bottle of ice-cold soda my friend handed me.

After only a couple of sips, a furious voice suddenly rang out from behind me. “Cara!”

It was Raymond.

I placed my helmet on the bike and turned to look at him.

The bodyguards behind him quickly dispersed my fellow riders, forming a circle around us.

Raymond walked up to me. His gaze swept over my leather jacket and cargo pants before settling on the customized motorcycle beside me.

He grabbed my wrist forcefully. His grip was so tight that it made me wince.

“Have you had your fun?” His voice was thick with anger. “As the future Mrs. Wright, do you think it’s appropriate to dress like that and come to a place like this to race?”

I yanked my arm free from his grasp.

“Mr. Wright, what I wear and where I go is my concern. Besides, we’re not married yet. You have no say in what I do.”

“No say?” Rage churned in his eyes as he clamped an arm around my waist, pinning me firmly between him and the bike. “From the moment we got engaged, you were meant to be poised, elegant, and ladylike. You’re supposed to maintain the dignity the Wright family requires. Dangerous places like this are off-limits. Outlandish outfits like that are not to be worn.”

I raised my hands to push him away.

“Raymond, I’m not your property. I deserve the freedom to make my own choices.”

He ignored my resistance completely.

“Property or fiancee, it makes no difference. Your only job is to be the perfect, respectable Mrs. Wright.”

With that, he forcibly pulled me away from the motorcycle.

Ignoring my struggles, he forced me into his car.

The atmosphere in the car was tense. He did not speak for the entire drive.

He stayed silent until I opened the car door to get out.

“You’re attending the banquet with me tomorrow. The Wright family’s business partners will all be there, so I expect you to act accordingly.”

I paused. I did not turn back or acknowledge him. Instead, I pushed the door open and walked straight into my house again.

Early the next morning, Raymond sent over a custom haute couture gown.

It was a simple power play. By keeping me close, he was staking his claim and reinforcing the fact that my sole identity was Mrs. Wright.

I wanted to refuse.

Just then, Raymond called. He said threateningly, “Cara, if you won’t cooperate, my only option is to have a butler accompany you at all times. She’ll ensure that you understand your priorities. Appearing with me at these events is a basic expectation of your position.”

If he assigned a butler to watch me, my plans to travel to Veridia in a few days would be ruined.

I clenched my phone tightly. In the end, I relented.