ze

's lap , panic surged through me. It felt like the walls were closing in on me, and I was suffocating because I couldn't b

nation on his face. Caught between the two men who meant so much to me in vastly different ways, I strugg

, each syllable laced with ange

d, each flimsier than the last. "I... we..." M

et about what ensued between us in the morni

ve. "It's my fault, William. Hazel and I are...involved...I mean it was a moment of weakness

between us and I watched as he looked momentarily deflated. He blinked, confusion flitting across his hardened features, then deter

ke what is mine" Then he turned to me and dragged m

e I'll come home with you"

e unflinching. "I love you Hazel, this man does not deserve you." He tried

hands off my wi

le, a sacrifice he was offering at the altar of my well-being? But somehow, I knew that he meant every wor

lodge a stubborn thought. "Love? Are you se

in name only, William. This marriage was based

lity?" William's voice rose, not botheri

. "You are not the one to preach because you are not a saint...talk about double standards!!! He sneere

dle my business, Adam"? William advanced towards hi

I have an obligation to fulfill to William. My voice, though shaky, held a newfound resolve. "I have been bound by my words from two months

rely above a whisper. I adjusted my skirt and left the room knowing at the back of my mi

ll

rson I called friend, and a flicker of anger and hurt danced in my chest, but I swallowed it down, allo

as parked. My driver opened the door for me and as I entered the car, I noticed she was slumped against the back seat

lowed her, my long strides closing the distance between us. She w

. She halted but didn't turn to face me. Her shoulders

xed on the back of her head.

th a mix of regret and sadness. "You own me,

he helpless look in her eyes and the st

was determined to see this marriage through. We still had one year and eight months to endure, and I was determined to help her pay the debts for her fam

re for