He attempted to mount a defense, but Elissa cut him off before he could continue.
“Ah!”
His confession hit Elissa with the devastating force of a physical blow. Her vision dissolved into chaos as the room began spinning wildly around her, nearly sending her crashing to the floor.
“Elissa!”
Ernest lunged forward and caught her just before she collapsed, deep lines of concern etching across his forehead. “You need to sit down immediately.”
With his support, Elissa sank onto the sofa as if her strength had completely abandoned her.
“Your hands are like ice.” Ernest enveloped her frigid hands within his own. “You’re shivering—let me raise the temperature.”
He rose quickly, located the climate control, and increased the heat setting. When he returned to her side, concern filled his voice. “Can I get you something? Perhaps some water?”
Elissa sealed her eyes shut as moisture gathered on her lashes, her voice dropping to barely above a whisper. “I require you to depart immediately. I never wish to lay eyes on you again.”
“Elissa.” Ernest dropped to one knee before her, cradling her frozen hands in an attempt to restore their warmth. “Please don’t react this way… You witnessed the circumstances. Surely you understand the impossible position I found myself in when I gave my word.”
“Huh…” Elissa lifted her shoulders in a gesture of bitter resignation before nodding slowly. “I’m fully aware of the circumstances. But what does that change? Are you suggesting that your agreement to marry her somehow isn’t legitimate? Is that your argument?”
Ernest found himself completely at a loss for words or solutions.
“Ha, ha.” Elissa released a soft laugh that dripped with bitter sarcasm. “Aren’t you utterly exhausted from this deception? Manipulating both sides of this equation—allowing me to plan our wedding like some pathetic, lovesick fool while you secretly pledge yourself to another woman?”
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Her eyes widened with disbelief, as if her mind refused to process such betrayal. “Does wealth grant unlimited license for any behavior? Are the wealthy permitted to betray their partners without consequence?”
Ernest had reached the absolute limit of his mental resources. His sanity was unraveling completely. “It was my fault entirely. She became hysterical, and I needed to calm her down.”
His words died abruptly in his throat. Watching the color drain from Elissa’s features, he understood that his justification had only deepened her wounds.
“Please, continue with your fascinating explanation.” Elissa’s stare burned into him as a horrifying realization crystallized in her mind. “You expect me to… what exactly? Stand by graciously while you marry her to calm her down?”
Ernest studied her face, allowing several agonizing moments to pass in silence. His voice emerged as barely a whisper. “Would you… would you wait for me then?”
“Smack!”
The slap reverberated off the walls. Her hand had moved before her brain could process the action, the sting traveling up her arm like lightning. The force of that single blow seemed to sap every ounce of energy from her body. Violent shudders coursed through her as she stared at him in disbelief. Some stranger had stolen her beloved’s appearance.
.
.
.