Chapter 48
I couldn’t breathe. The screen in front of me played the same scene over and over again–a video clip from the Covey Banquet, live–streamed to the world. It showed her.
Katherine. No–Covey. She’s a Covey?
She walked into the grand hall, elegance wrapped around her like a second skin. Gone was the quiet, fragile woman who clung to me for support. The woman I had once pitied, used, and convinced myself I could discard.
Instead, she was glowing. A regal posture, a confident smile, a presence that demanded attention.
And on her arm? Jeron Kavinsky.
The name alone made my blood boil. My rival. The man I had spent years trying to surpass. The one person I hated with every fiber of my being.
And now? He had my wife. I gripped the edge of my desk, my knuckles turning white. The realization sent ice through my veins.
She could walk. She could hear. She had left me.
And she was going to marry him.
I barely registered my secretary standing in front of me, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Papers were still scattered across my desk from where I had knocked them over in shock.§
“What are we supposed to do, sir?” he asked cautiously.
What are we supposed to do? Damn it! I didn’t know what to do! My entire world was crumbling before my eyes.
For years, I had pity–kept Katherine, believing she would never leave. She had been nothing more than a convenient, obedient wife. Weak. Helpless. Dependent.
Or so I thought. I was wrong. The Katherine I saw in that ballroom wasn’t weak. She wasn’t the quiet, fragile woman who stayed home waiting for me to return. She was powerful. Untouchable. And she was supposed to be mine but she was with someone else now.
I let out a bitter laugh. She played me. And Jeron–that bastard–he was in on it. I didn’t know what happened–how this happened, but there was no way in hell I would allow this.
The sound of heels clicking against the marble floor pulled me out of my thoughts.
Sasha. She strutted inside, arms crossed, lips pursed in disapproval. “You saw it too?“>
I didn’t answer.
She let out a breath, rolling her eyes. “Keith, this is good. She’s finally gone. Now, we can get married–“>
“No.”
Sasha froze. “What?”
I stood, grabbing my coat, my movements sharp, precise. My mind was already made up.
“We’re not getting married.“}
Her face twisted in confusion. “Keith, this is what we talked about. This is what we wanted. Katherine is gone. You’re finally free.”
I turned to her, my expression cold, my voice even colder.
“I don’t want you, Sasha.”}
Her breath hitched.
She took a step back, shaking her head in disbelief. “No, you-”
I stepped forward. “I was never going to marry you.”}
I saw the exact moment my words shattered her. But I didn’t care. Not anymore.
Because Katherine was mine. She had been mine from the moment I chose her.
From the moment I made her believe I saved her life. The night of the accident. The night that changed everything.”
I had been drunk. Careless. Reckless. I lost control of the car. I crashed into her. And in a panic, I lied. I let her believe I had saved her, carried her to the hospital, loved her enough to never leave her side. And she had believed me.”
Stupid, foolish Katherine. She had worshipped me after that, desperate to prove her love. And I had used that love to make her mine. So, how dare she walk away? How dare she stand beside him–Jeron Kavinsky–as if she was never mine to begin with?
No. No, she belonged to me.”
I clenched my fists, breathing heavily. My entire life was built around this. Around keeping her where she belonged. My secretary cleared her throat. “Sir, should I-”
“Get out.”
She nodded quickly and rushed out the door.”
Sasha was still standing there, arms crossed, glaring at me. “You’re going after her, aren’t you?“}
I didn’t answer.
Sasha’s hands clenched into fists. “You can’t have her back. She’s Jeron’s now. I’m here now. What’s happening?”
Jeron. The name alone made my stomach twist in rage.
