"Julian, aren’t we not supposed to... do this right now?"
Julian Donovan released her lips, his voice raspy in the darkness as he corrected her,
"It’s best that we don’t, but it’s not completely out of the question!"
"Young Master Donovan, you’re a man who’s about to be married. Do you really think going out to find another woman right now is a good idea?"
Naomi Shaw pushed against his chest,
"But... I’m scared..."
"Tell if you start to feel uncomfortable..."
"Good girl."
The sounds of him getting dressed, opening the door, and going downstairs followed. Then, a car engine started outside. She lay there, stiff as a board, her hands clutching the blanket tightly, staring wide-eyed into the darkness and forcing her tears not to fall.
After driving away, Julian Donovan pulled over to the side of the road. He took out a cigarette and lit it, his handso profile looking agitated in the flickering glow. ’He’s been acting so strangely lately,’ he thought. When dealing with all sorts of matters, he’d inevitably consider Naomi Shaw’s feelings—like that night with Juliet Jennings, for example.
Flicking the ash from his cigarette, he took another harsh drag. ’Perhaps,’ he mused, ’these strange feelings for her are just a habit, ford simply because she’s been a constant presence for the last two years.’
Fortunately, he was leaving for ridia soon. Perhaps once they were apart, these feelings would vanish. Comforting himself with this thought, he extinguished his cigarette, started the car, and drove away.
「The next day, in Julian Donovan’s office.」
He was leaning back in his chair, his eyes lowered as he focused on the docunts Ken had handed him. Dressed in an exquisite black silk shirt and a silver-gray tie, his perfect face was placid and expressionless.
Ken stood with his hands clasped in front of him. After a mont’s hesitation, he finally spoke, testing the waters.
"Young Master Donovan, would it be possible to reschedule your trip to ridia?"
Julian Donovan picked up a pen to make annotations, replying without even looking up,
"Impossible!"
Ken, who had followed him for two years, was not a talkative man, but this ti, he couldn’t hold it in any longer.
"But this isn’t fair to Miss Shaw!"
Julian Donovan’s hand, in the middle of signing, paused. A flash of impatience crossed his brow.
"What’s fair or unfair got to do with it?"
Ken was completely unintimidated by the cold fury in his master’s expression, his tone remaining blunt.
"The groom is jetting off to ridia on his wedding night, leaving his new bride all alone. How is that fair to her?"
Julian Donovan signed his na with a flourish and tossed the docunt in front of Ken. He looked up, his eyes glacial.
"I told her long ago. This is what she gets for being so stubbornly obsessed!"
If this were ancient tis, with Julian Donovan as the king, Ken would surely be the loyal minister risking death to offer blunt counsel. What followed was a pri example of such a minister provoking his king:
"But didn’t she want to go to the hospital, have an abortion, and settle things with you once and for all? Why did you stop her?"
"The blood of the Donovan Family is not sothing she can dispose of as she pleases!" ca the irritated voice.
"Then you could have just had her give birth to the child and brought it back to be raised here. Why was it necessary to marry her?"
"It’s because Ian Shaw pressured , using the favor I owe him!" he roared, glaring darkly at the unfazed "loyal minister."
"Even if you are indebted to him, you could have politely declined! You could have compensated them with a fortune equal to half of The Shaw Dominion. Why was it necessary to marry her?"
"Get out!" The roar echoed throughout the office.
"Yes, sir." The "loyal minister" calmly took the signed docunt and turned to leave. ’Sigh,’ he thought. ’I risked my neck saying all that, just to force him to face the truth.’
That afternoon, Naomi Shaw was preparing to go to a bookstore to buy so books on caregiving. With nothing else to do, she figured she might as well settle down and study sothing she’d always had an interest in. Perhaps it was only natural for a kind-hearted person like her to want to learn a skill that would allow her to help and care for others, to bring them a sense of warmth.
She had just stepped out the door when she received a call from Ken. As he beat around the bush, never quite getting to the purpose of his call, she interrupted him with a faint smile.
"Ken, is this about his trip to ridia? What day is he leaving? I’ll pack his luggage for him."
Ken sighed, his heart aching for how perceptive she was.
"The night of... your wedding!"
Naomi Shaw froze for a mont. Then, her lips curved into a faint smile as she spoke softly,
"Okay, I understand."
She hung up. ’Could anything be more ironic, more cruel than this?’
Her enthusiasm for the bookstore completely gone, she turned back, went ho, and pulled out his suitcases to start packing. He hadn’t returned since that night. She folded his clothes neatly, one piece at a ti, and placed them in the luggage, along with all his personal effects from the house. In the end, she had packed two large suitcases. She knew he probably didn’t need any of these things, but she thought, ’It’s better if he takes it all. If I don’t have to see it, it won’t weigh on my mind.’
Julian Donovan and Naomi Shaw’s wedding took place at the seaside. The uniquely tropical azure sea and sky, red-tiled roofs among lush green trees, soft white sand, flowing gauze canopies, a brilliant red carpet... a gentle breeze, fine wine, exquisite food, a perfect mont with a gorgeous view, a handso groom and a beautiful bride—everything was so perfect it felt like a dream.
Perhaps it was the beautiful atmosphere or the enchanting scenery, but all the unpleasantness seed to fade away. Julian Donovan’s mood wasn’t as gloomy as he’d anticipated, and Naomi Shaw even forgot about the fact that he was leaving tonight.
Julian Donovan stood at one end of the red carpet, watching her approach calmly on Ian Shaw’s arm. Her gown and hair fluttered in the wind. As the breeze lifted her white veil, it revealed her delicate features, accentuated by exquisite makeup. For an instant, his heart skipped a beat.
While he was still lost in his thoughts, she and Ian Shaw arrived before him. He instinctively reached out his hand, and Ian Shaw gently placed her soft, warm hand in his palm. The gentle touch seed to soften his heart. Many years later, on a day he found himself at another’s wedding, the mory of this mont would feel like his heart being ground to dust by sothing sharp, an excruciating pain.
After all the dayti festivities had died down, the two returned to their new ho in utter silence. Naomi Shaw, still dressed in her crimson wedding gown, stood silently in the living room, watching as Julian Donovan picked up his luggage and walked toward the door without a backward glance.
Just as he reached the door, Julian Donovan stopped. After a long mont, he turned to face her, a flicker of anguish in his eyes.
"Naomi Shaw, this is the consequence of ignoring all advice and insisting on loving . Let the two of us be trapped in this marriage. You can’t get out, and I can’t get in!"
With that, he picked up his luggage and left. Naomi Shaw stood frozen on the spot, staggering slightly.
’So, it was all my fault. My mistake was falling in love with him, loving him with such blind devotion.’ A bitter ache surged in her chest and stung her eyes, wave after wave, but they remained painfully dry, refusing to shed a single tear.
’Perhaps this was heaven’s punishnt for being so willful and stubborn?’
She turned and slowly made her way upstairs. ’I can’t love him anymore. I won’t love him. I really must stop,’ she told herself. This punishnt was cruel enough; it was enough to turn her heart to cinders. She would just have to hold on until Ian Shaw passed away, allowing him to depart without any regrets. After that, she would be the one to file for divorce.
’But... is it truly a mistake to love soone who doesn’t love you back?’
When Lara Nash heard what Julian Donovan had done, she was so furious she almost shattered her teeth. Clenching her fists, she seethed, forcing the words out one by one.
"Ju... lian... Do... no... van... You absolute scumbag!"
Naomi Shaw couldn’t help but be amused by her friend’s fury. It was a classic case of the onlookers being more anxious than the person involved. She, the one at the center of it all, wasn’t nearly as enraged. Or perhaps, she had already reached that state where the greatest sorrow is a dead heart. Once one’s heart is cold, anger becos irrelevant.
Seeing Naomi not only fail to be angry but actually laugh, Lara Nash grew even more exasperated.
"Naomi, how can you laugh when he’s treated you so horribly? Hmph! He’d better pray that one day he doesn’t regret hurting you this badly. And when that day cos, Naomi, you can’t forgive him, even if he gets on his knees and begs!"
Reviews
All reviews (0)