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Chapter 15
Martin stood outside the door, waiting. Since Debbie hadn’t come out yet, it was one of those rare moments when he allowed his true emotions to show.
Ever since Debbie’s father sent word about the marriage alliance, he had felt as if he were living
in a dream.
How could it be? How could she have chosen to be engaged to him?
Back when Debbie was leaving for abroad, he had begged to see her one last time, but she refused. He never understood why the girl he loved suddenly shut him out of her world. The only thing he could do was knock on the Sinclair family’s gates again and again, hoping she might
appear.
But Easton and Connor had stood guard like rabid dogs, blocking his every attempt to meet me.
The memory of that time cast a long, dark shadow across his heart.
Yet through all these years, he had never forgotten me.
The image of me smiling, crying, pouting, laughing–he had stored them all away, replaying them endlessly in his mind.
Those memories had been the only medicine that kept him alive.
So when he heard that Easton and the others had let go–that she had escaped in despair–his heart ached for her suffering, but at the same time, he also couldn’t suppress a flicker of secret
joy.
Because finally, fate had given him another chance.
This time, he swore, he would never let go.
The thought made his pupils tremble with excitement.
At last, the heavy doors opened. I stepped out slowly.
The moment our eyes met, I froze.
There was a flash of astonishment in Martin’s gaze–followed by something unreadable, deep and raw, like the hungry eyes of a predator.
If it weren’t for the way he treated me yesterday, I might have mistaken it for love. But I knew better. It had to be an illusion.
Still, he reached for my hand and held it. His expression didn’t change, but perhaps because of our conversation the night before, I thought I saw something else in his face–satisfaction.
My parents noticed it too. They had met countless people in their lives; what I only vaguely sensed, they saw clearly. And when they realized that Martin might truly care for me, their smiles became all the more genuine.
At the engagement ceremony, Martin treated me with extraordinary respect. Every movement was careful, deliberate, as though I were a treasure he had finally managed to claim.
The guests looked at us with warm blessings in their eyes.
When the officiant stepped forward, Martin’s lips curved into a rare smile.
“Welcome, everyone, to the engagement ceremony of Mr. Martin Addams and Miss Debbie
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Sinclair. A match made in heaven, united through the will of their families. Let us congratulate them on becoming betrothed!”
As the words fell, Martin tightened his grip on my hand.
“The ceremony has begun,” he whispered. “From this moment, you are my fiancée. Even if you wanted to change your mind… it’s already too late.”
A genuine smile lit his face, and I could tell it came from his heart.
But I was puzzled. I had never noticed any feelings from him before. Could it be that I had simply failed to see them?
hadn’t yet found my answer when a sudden crash thundered at the entrance.
‘Debbie! We will never let you marry him!”
Startled, I looked up and saw Easton and the others storm into the hall.
When their eyes fell on me–dressed in my red gown, smiling with serenity–they froze.
Hadn’t they convinced themselves this engagement was just to provoke them?
Then why… why did I look so genuinely happy? So unforced?
The light in their eyes dimmed instantly. Their gazes locked like knives onto Martin standing ›efore me.
At last, Easton exploded with rage. “Martin! It was you!”
Connor and Kenji’s faces turned equally grim.
“hey had expected me to find a stranger.
But they never imagined that I would choose Martin.
