Chapter 1
Adrienne Norton arrived at her husband’s birthday banquet,
panting, only to be told that it was over.
“Ms. Norton, what are you doing here? The birthday party is
already over.”
The person at the door clearly hadn’t expected her to show up,
their tone full of surprise.
It was her husband’s birthday dinner, yet he had forgotten to
bring his wife in name. Nobody had informed her.
She smiled politely at the guard and was just about to push open
the villa door when she heard voices from inside.
“Beth, what gift did you bring? Garry’s been staring at your gift
bag for ages. He’s been looking forward to it.”
“Did I?”
“Oh, come on, you’ve been eyeing that bag like it holds your
whole world, Garry. Now that Beth is finally back, time to think
about divorcing Adrienne. No point in keeping everyone
unhappy!”
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“Exactly. Back then, she drugged you and forced her way into
your bed. If you hadn’t gone soft and considered her reputation,
giving her the title of wife, she would’ve been doomed.”
The man seated in the center wore a sharply tailored dark suit.
He looked chic with two buttons of his shirt undone. He had
deep–set eyes, a high–bridged nose, and thin lips. He was
handsome yet distant and arrogant.
“No rush.”
“Seriously, Garry? It’s been three years. She turned Beth’s sister
into a vegetable. If your grandmother hadn’t protected her, we
would’ve gotten rid of her long ago.”
Garrett Melendez toyed with a lighter between his slender
fingers. From the corner of his eye, he noticed a shadow at the
doorway.
Only then did the others realize Adrienne was already standing
there.
Someone whispered, “Who told her about this?”
No one responded. Clearly, she had come uninvited.
Adrienne lowered her eyes. Her palm–sized face, framed by
bangs tucked neatly behind one ear, gave her an air of
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innocence. No one would think she could do shameless things,
but she had.
She was holding a gift, eyes fixed on Garrett at the center of the
room. A tight ache pressed against her chest, and she gripped
the gift even tighter.
She walked toward him, but before she could offer the gift she
had prepared with care, he frowned slightly and gave a casual
sneer. “Who told you to come?”
Laughter rippled around them, breaking her pride piece by
piece.
Bethany Pierce rolled her eyes at Garrett and tugged Adrienne
to sit down. “She’s your wife, after all. It’s only right she brings
you a gift. Come, Adrienne, sit down. Garrett just has a bad
temper.”
Adrienne pressed her lips together, saying nothing. She was his
wife, yet it was his ex–fiancee who had to smooth things over.
No one here wanted her around, but she still came. She did
simply because when he was eighteen, he had once said he
wanted to spend his twenty–eighth birthday with her.
She sat down next to Garrett, squeezing Bethany aside.
Bethany froze a moment before her face turned grim. Then she
Chapter 1
asked, “So, what did you get for Garry?”
A curious guest opened the gift without asking. It was a scarf,
with no tags, clearly handmade.
Bethany spoke up again, “Oh wow, we’re really on the same
wavelength. Look! I got Garry a scarf, too!”
The two scarves were placed side by side, both hand–knit. It was
hard to tell which one was better.
Suddenly, someone bumped the table by accident. An open
bottle of wine tipped over, spilling across both scarves.
Garrett reached over and picked up one of them. The other was
soaked, reeking of alcohol.
