It was a necklace that Ashton’s mother gave me when she accepted me as her daughter-in-law. It was a relic passed down generations and given to the new bride.
“Isabella, right? Don’t mind Ashton, he really likes to spoil me with gifts. He accidently gave this to me. Well, you can keep it though.”
Her tone was sarcastic almost as if she was giving me charity. I didn’t speak a word and took the necklace clutching it tightly.
At this moment, Ashton looked at me as if watching me here for the first time and I had a small glimmer of hope. The man I loved, my mate would never hurt me like this, to make me suffer this kind of humiliation as a substitute bride.
“How dare you try to take Bella’s necklace?!”
As if someone had poured cold water over me, my mate held my arm in a painful grasp as he cruelly tried to snatch the pendant from my hand glaring fiercely.
“Ashton, you are hurting her.” A mutual friend tried to stop him but was pushed away.
“How dare you accept the necklace? Give it back to Arabella!”
“No.” I mumbled incoherently. It took me a lot to make my mother-in-law to like me.
At first, she didn’t like me, and to make her happy, I had to get up early to take care of the entire household’s cleaning and cooking, sometimes even going as far as to drop my studies to take out time for their family.
After all that suffering, I was finally accepted and given the pendant.
Ashton's pupils turned dark as his claws pried my fist open making scratches and cuts cover my palm as he caught hold of the necklace and took it furiously.
His feet without any fail moved towards Arabella and he held both her shoulders gently.
“Bella, I have been waiting for you all this time, not once I have ever loved anyone else. Please be my mate, marry me, Bella.”
The people looked at the duo momentarily stunned while tears dribbled down my eyes.
This scene made me deeply heartbroken and even angry. I have been in love with him for so many years, but I never expected that just when we were about to hold our wedding, the truth would be revealed to me--I was just a substitute and he definitely didn't love me.
I gritted my teeth and turned around, wishing to leave the place right this instance but before I could do so my so-called mate lost his senses and fell.
People waited for me to go and get him up, but I stood and watched him lying on the ground without moving an inch.