When He Kneels Begging My Forgiveness, I've Already Fled Far Away

Rosamond Henson was the most renowned defense attorney in Astoria, boasting a win rate of ninety-nine percent.

No one expected that intimate photos of her and a client would flood the internet overnight.

An anonymous source claiming to be a firm insider alleged that she had no real legal talent at all, that every case she'd ever landed came from sleeping with her clients.

She denied it immediately, insisting the photos were doctored and the accusations fabricated.

No one believed her.

Especially after reporters caught her husband, Bryce Delgado, on camera. The sorrow in his eyes and his careful refusal to comment convinced the public it was all true.

Within hours, the internet was drowning in vitriol aimed at Rosamond.

When she watched the interview clip, her expression remained as composed as ever. But in a corner where no one could see, her hands trembled.

Every one of those intimate photos had been edited from her private pictures. Pictures only Bryce had access to.

She drove straight to Delgado Group headquarters. She needed to hear from Bryce himself why those photos had been leaked.

And why he hadn't cleared her name in front of the cameras.

She had just reached the office door when a familiar voice stopped her cold:

"Mr. Delgado, are we really going to keep paying people to attack Attorney Henson online?"

"The hate is everywhere already. If she finds out we're behind this, won't she be furious?"

It was his assistant, Brian Finch.

Bryce's tone was clipped with impatience:

"She has no one to blame but herself. She hoards every resource and refuses to give younger lawyers a chance."

"Olympia's been at the firm for ages, and Rosamond hasn't handed her a single case. A little lesson was overdue."

"If Rosamond finds out Olympia was behind this, you know how she is. She never lets anything go. She'd destroy Olympia."

"Besides, Rosamond is obsessed with her work. The only way to get her to stay home where she belongs, by my side, is to take her career away from her. I can't give up either of them..."

"Start planting more stories about Rosamond. Keep her too busy putting out fires to trace any of this back to Olympia. If she does figure it out, tell her someone beneath me acted without my knowledge."

Brian nodded:

"You really do care deeply for Miss Galloway, going to such lengths against your own wife for her sake."

"Then again, if Attorney Henson hadn't forced her way in and pressured you into marrying her, you and Miss Galloway could have been together openly this whole time."

Bryce said nothing. His silence was confirmation enough.

Rosamond's hand, raised to knock, shook so violently she couldn't control it. The shock tore through her like a physical blow.

So it had been Olympia all along. And Bryce had approved every bit of it.

He must have given Olympia her private photos. Let her doctor them. Let her frame her.

All because Rosamond hadn't handed over the Pinnacle Corp case the way Olympia wanted.

What Brian said. Bryce's heart belonged to Olympia?

But he had told her, to her face, that Olympia was just the girl next door. Like a little sister.

He had been lying to her all along.

The color drained from Rosamond's face. In that instant, it was as if ice water had been poured over her from head to toe, soaking through to the bone. Her heart went cold with it.

——

She clenched her jaw, forcing the tears back by sheer will.

She had just turned to leave when the door swung open. Brian stared at her, wide-eyed:

"Attorney Henson, what are you doing here?"

Bryce heard the commotion and stepped forward, reaching for her hand:

"Rosa, how long have you been standing there?"

Guilt flickered across both their faces, terrified she had overheard.

Rosamond forced the faintest trace of a smile:

"Just got here."

Bryce exhaled, the tension leaving his shoulders almost imperceptibly. He shot Brian a look. Brian caught it, nodded, and slipped out of the room.

Rosamond pretended she hadn't noticed the exchange. She let Bryce lead her by the hand into his office.

She looked at him, swallowing the storm raging inside her, and said quietly:

"I saw your interview this morning."

A flash of panic crossed Bryce's eyes, but he recovered quickly:

"I'm sorry, Rosa. I know you want to ask why I didn't speak up for you."

"The interview this morning was supposed to promote a company product. The whole thing caught me off guard. I didn't know how to respond without making it worse."

Rosamond cut him off. Her voice wavered:

"So you chose to say nothing at all?"

"Because of your silence, the whole world thinks it's true now. You're the one who wanted those photos taken. Why won't you admit it?"

Bryce's voice dropped:

"Rosa, I'm the CEO of this company. If people found out I have that kind of... preference, what would they think of me?"

"Stop making a scene. I know you're innocent. Isn't that enough? Why do you care what strangers think?"

Rosamond almost laughed:

"What they'd think of you? Do you have any idea what they're saying about me right now?"

She held on to her last shred of hope, locked her eyes on his, and spoke each word with deliberate weight:

"Bryce. I'm asking you. Please. Hold a press conference and clear my name."

"If this isn't dealt with now, my career is over."

Bryce glanced at her, something conflicted stirring behind his gaze.

After a few seconds of silence, he took her hand. His voice turned soft, almost tender:

"Rosa, why don't you just... resign?"

Rosamond stared at him in disbelief as he continued:

"My business is big enough now. You don't need to work. Use this as your exit. Come home. Be my partner behind the scenes."

"Mom's been asking when we're going to have kids. You could focus on that."

"As for the firm and all the clients you've built up, you can hand everything over to Olympia. She's smart and capable. She'll do a great job."

Rosamond's heart shattered into countless pieces, each one sharp enough to steal her breath.

This was the man she had defied her parents to marry.

His childhood sweetheart had smeared her name and destroyed her reputation, and his answer was to give that woman everything Rosamond had built.

Her mother had been right. Bryce Delgado was not a man worth trusting with a lifetime.

She thought of the immigration documents her mother had sent her the night before. And finally, the decision settled into place.

She would leave the country with her parents.

As for Bryce Delgado, she was done.