#Chapter 18 - Second Guesses


    Adrian


    So this is why Ste has been so cold and distanttely. Her time with Sebastian has changed her, cementing her into what I knew she was from the beginning a gold digger.


    Sebastian is vastly wealthier than me; hispany does triple what mine does and he is wildly more sessful than I am. With his materialistic ways, there is no doubt that Ste has sunken deeper into her materialism at his side. The Ste I once knew has abandoned her warmth and kind spirit.


    How can she be so heartless? So cutthroat and cruel? She had been faking her love for me this whole time and her tantrum in the hospital was definitely nned on her part,


    It worries me that Ste''s sudden change is so drastic. Sebastian is clearly enabling her bad behavior.


    Who she is now is someone I can barely recognize.


    1 step forward and weave through the crowd with ra close behind me. She remains at my side as the room''s attention moves away from Sebastian and Ste. I clear my throat once I''m close enough, catching their attention.


    "I misunderstood your identity, Sebastian," my voicees off as calm with hostility as a prominent undertone."


    I''m sure that I have offended you in many ways and for that, I am sorry. Thank you for taking care of Ste."


    I reach out and grab Ste''s wrist. With one pull, I try to bring her to my side but she doesn''t move. Her wrist slips from grip and sticks by Sebastian''s side, linking her ann with his,


    "I''m Sebastian''spanion tonight," Ste states, her gaze as fierce as her words.


    I take a step towards her, closing the small distance between us, and lean in, our faces inches away from each other.


    "Why have you been ignoring my calls, Ste? You were supposed toe here with me instead of him," I nod my head to gesture to Sebastian while my eyes remain on hers. "I deserve an exnation."


    "Ste" Sebastian cooly begins. He gently pulls Ste around his body, moving her to the other side and away from me."—helped me and mypany with a major issue it faced. As a thank you, I invited her as my date to the g tonight."


    "Ste helped you?" I scoff, peeling my gaze away from her and onto him.


    It''sughable! Ste does not have many skills, especially ones that can be of help to a financial mogul like Sebastian. Shecks the capability to help him and his obscenely wealthypany.


    This revtion from Sebastian only makes me more suspicious of Ste''s motives with him. If she is not with him to provoke me, then she has to be having an affair with him. It is the only reason why they have been glued at the hip together recently.


    "You know," ra speaks up and steps to the side of Sebastian and 1, "Ste is his wife. Her being your date may cause some controversy and wild rumors can form. Why don''t I take her ce at your side so she can be Adrian''s proper date?"


    "No


    You aren''t qualified to stand at my side," Sebastian''s words are ice cold just like the expression on his face. ra gasps. She looks to me with her mouth hanging open, no words or quick retort leaving her lips. She looks away, her cheeks now a bright pink color, and crosses her as over her chest.


    Sebastian raises his hand and snaps his fingers. Him and Ste turn away, going back to their own conversation. I scoff and step forward to retaliate and to fight back against their cold demeanors but I am quickly grabbed by his


    employees and am escorted away alongside ra.


    "Who do they think they are?" I stare at them from across the room, a scowl written all over my face.


    "He is bound to leave Ste sooner orter. Once he sees how materialistic she is and that she is only with him for his money, he''ll kick her to the curb and abandon her," ra ces her hand on my shoulder.


    Irritation flows through my veins. ra''s voice is now reminiscent of nails being dragged down a chalkboard, only pushing me further into my blossoming fury.


    "ra?" I ask. She hums in response. "Stop talking"


    My eyes never leave Ste for the rest of the night. She wears the same disinterested smile on her face like she did when she attended events with me in the past. She has always been bored whenever we went to an event like this together, always fading into the background while I spoke for us.


    Now? Ste is radiant. She captures the room''s attention and is the one who is being pursued, not me.


    Watching this throws me off my rhythm. The power bnce between us has changed and I fear that Ste now has the reigns in her hands. I have never seen this side of Ste before, the side of her that no longer seeks out the world''s approval


    To make things worse, Ste doesn''t even look my way once. Not once does she even meet mu gaze, always making sure to look in the opposite direction or to turn away just as our eyes are about to meet.


    Her attention remains on Sebastian, who keeps his arm draped around her back, hand resting on her waist. Theyugh and lean in, whispering ament or two about what they just spoke about.


    Sebastian''s eyes meet mine for a brief second. My heart rate spikes. The man''s lips twitch into a smug smirk, slowly leaning his head down to meet Ste''s.


    My grip on the whiskey ss in my hand tightens. My skin feels like it''s on fire.


    Is he about to kiss her?! Right in front of me?!


    The ss shatters under my hand. I can feel the vein in my neck bulging from anger. My hand now feels wet, pieces of ss poking into the palm of my hand.


    Sebastian pulls away, his hand resting against Ste''s shoulder as he pulls up a piece of fabric back onto her shoulder.


    I release my hand, a shudder overtaking my body. ncing down at my hand, the sight of dark red blood fills my vision. Fully opening my fist, I notice the ss shards that are tucked into my skin and muscles.


    Searing pain floods my hand, creeping its way up my arm. Thiss and tun away, quietly exiting the ballroom to go find medical attention from the building. As I walk, I can''t help but think about the way Sebastian and Ste are so casual with each other.


    How can he act so nonchntly with her? If she helped him and hispany out, shouldn''t there be a level of decorum between them? Like a dynamic between a boss and employee instead of lovers?


    Ste no longer clings to me like she used to. She has reced me with Sebastian, a man well above my current status in society, and has iced me out of her life.


    I should be happy about this, right? From the beginning, our marriage was set through a contract. We both had provisions to fill as legal husband and wife.


    Even from the beginning, my heart has belonged to ra and ra only. I should be happy that Ste has moved on so quickly, that she is able to find some happiness with another man.


    KChapter 18 - Second Gu


    Now that I have ra back, everything has fallen into ce. Everyone has what they desire.


    This is what I wanted from the beginning. So why do I feel so much dread instead of happiness?