The Engagement Ring He Forgot, the Fortune He’ll Never Touch cahpter 03

The Engagement Ring He Forgot, the Fortune He’ll Never Touch cahpter 03

I sat amid the wreckage, watching Bennett’s taillights disappear into the night.

Blood still seeped from the cuts on my face, dripping onto the shattered remains of the handmade clay figurine.

He’d made it for me the year I was battling severe depression.

Piece by piece, he had shaped it with his own hands.

Back then, he’d smiled and told me, “Adelaide, even if you’re broken, I’ll put you back together.”

And now, the person who had shattered me was him.

I didn’t call an ambulance. I just found some gauze and pressed it against my face.

Ignoring the stabbing pain, I knelt on the floor and carefully gathered the fragments of the figurine.

Broken glass pierced my fingertips. The pain should have been unbearable.

But it wasn’t even a fraction of the agony in my chest.

At three o’clock in the morning, Bennett called.

For one stupid second, I actually thought he might ask if I was okay.

The moment I answered, his voice came crashing through—sharp with irritation.

“Are you done throwing tantrums?”

“Sierra was so terrified by the way you acted tonight that her heart condition flared up!”

“You need to move out first thing tomorrow morning and clear out the master bedroom. I’m bringing her here so she can recover.”

I gripped the phone so tightly my knuckles turned white.

—

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“Bennett, that’s our home.”

“It’s just a place to live.” His tone grew even colder.

“I stayed by your side through every moment you wanted to end it all. And now you can’t even give up a single room?”

“Adelaide, how can you be this heartless?”

The line went dead. He had already hung up.

—

The next morning, I was still running a fever when the front door unlocked.

Bennett strode into the villa as if he owned the place. Sierra followed beside him.

My eyes locked onto her in an instant. She was still wearing my custom wedding gown.

Around her neck hung the pearl heirloom necklace Grandma Evelyn had left me.

My blood ran cold.

“What are you still doing here?” Bennett frowned as he directed a group of movers.

Without hesitation, they tossed my suitcases out the front door.

“Sierra can’t stand the smell of your perfume. I had them throw all your things out.”

I rose to my feet. My gaze never left the necklace around Sierra’s neck.

“Take it off. Now.”

On instinct, Sierra covered the necklace with one hand. Tears immediately welled in her eyes.

“Bennett gave it to me last night to help me relax. I…”

“Adelaide!” Bennett stepped in front of her, his voice a warning. “Don’t push it.”

His eyes were filled with disgust. “It’s just a necklace, for God’s sake.”

“I went through hell with you. What’s the big deal if I use one necklace to cheer Sierra up?”

“That was my grandmother’s heirloom!”

The words tore from my throat. My eyes burned red with rage.

In two quick strides, I reached Sierra and grabbed her collar.

I raised my hand and slapped her. The sound echoed through the living room.

Sierra screamed and collapsed onto the floor, clutching her cheek.

My own palm stung from the force of it.

If they wouldn’t listen to reason, then I’d handle this the direct way.

But before I could lower my hand, Bennett’s eyes turned red with fury.

He lunged at me and struck me even harder than I had hit her. The slap echoed through the room.

“How dare you hit her, Adelaide!”

I was already feverish and weak.

The impact threw me off balance. I slammed into the doorframe.

The wounds that had barely begun to heal from the night before split open again.

Fresh blood trickled down my chin and stained my sweater. I went still.

In all the years we’d been together… this was the first time he had ever laid a hand on me.

It felt like my chest had been torn apart from the inside.

The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. A sharp ringing sounded in my ears.

Bennett stared at the blood on my face. For a brief moment, his fingers stiffened.

Then he released me and wiped his hand with visible disgust, as if he’d touched something filthy.

Without another glance my way, he turned and pulled Sierra into his arms. His expression softened instantly.

“Get out.” His voice was icy.

“And stay the hell away from Sierra until you learn how to act like a decent human being.”

The security door slammed shut right in front of me.

A cold rain poured from the sky.

Within seconds, I was drenched.

Rainwater mixed with the blood running down my face and streamed off my chin.

I stared at the closed door for several long moments.

Then I calmly pulled out my phone.

A junk removal service picked up after just a couple of rings.

I told them the location right away.

My voice was flat. “I want every piece of luxury furniture, every appliance, and all that designer menswear in the walk-in closet gone.”

The person on the other end hesitated. “Everything?”

A cold smile crossed my lips. “Yeah. Anything I paid for gets smashed and hauled away. Leave nothing behind.”

I hung up, turned, and walked into the rain without looking back.