When I got back, I grabbed his hand and slipped one onto his finger.
Liam couldn’t see it, but he could feel it.
His ears turned red, though he still tried to keep up his usual attitude.
“What is this?” he muttered.
I teased, “Some couple
was fighting on the street and threw their rings away. I waited around for a while and picked one up. Don’t be too picky, Mr. Hughes.”
“Don’t call me that.”
His throat bobbed as he swallowed, his fingers curling carefully around the cheap little band.
“Even if you picked it up, I still like it because it’s from you‘
And he kept his word.
In the days that followed, no matter how intimate our moments became, he always wore that ring.
Even in the heat of passion, his voice would turn hoarse as he murmured, “Can you feel it? This is the love you gave me.”
“Relax, you’ll hurt yourself.”
It was only in those moments that he let his guard down, revealing the unrestrained arrogance and reckless indulgence that had once belonged to the privileged heir he used to be.
Snapping out of the memory, I found Liam closing the distance between us, step by step.
1/2
Chapter 8
“Say something, Chloe.”
+25 BONUS
“There’s nothing to say,” I whispered, gripping the fabric of my dress. “You’ve got the wrong person, Mr. Hughes. Isn’t that ring a token of love from your fiancée, Miss Dawson?”
He let out a low, mocking laugh.
“I never said where this ring came from. So, tell me how do you know so much about it?”
By the time he finished speaking, he was already standing right in front of me.
He was too close, impossible to avoid.
A hushed murmur spread through the audience.
“Wait, what does that mean? Is Mr. Hughes saying the person who stood by him during his lowest point was actually that reporter?”
“Then what about Linda Dawson?”
“Now that you mention it… they do look alike.”
Linda’s glare burned into me, her eyes filled with hatred.
But Linda had no choice but to soften her tone, coaxing Liam gently.
“Liam, don’t let her fool you. She’s a habitual liar–she’s done this before…”
I shut my eyes for a moment, forcing down the storm of emotions rising inside me.
When I opened them again, I was calm enough to look at him.
“Yes, I gave it to you. Back then, I needed the money, so I pretended to be Linda and deceived you for two years.
“Then I took the money and left. I’ve already forgotten everything that happened.
“You always believed it was her. You’re engaged to her now. What’s the point of correcting the past?”
I couldn’t say any more.
I swallowed the lump in my throat, took a slow breath, and lowered the microphone, preparing to leave. But the moment I turned, a firm grip caught my wrist.
His warmth was familiar and searing.
His palm burned against my skin.
Then, in a low voice, he spoke.
“Of course, it matters. You once told me that as long as I wore the ring you gave me, no matter where I went, you’d recognize me at a glance. Does that still count?”
My lashes trembled violently.
