Betrayal's Embrace: Frozen in Love

ear the back, my tuxedo feeling like a straitjacket. On the stage, the auctioneer was presenting the final i

celebration of the foundation I' d started in

dollars from Mr. Mark Thompso

ront table. He gave a small, confident nod. Next to him, my fiancée, Olivia, glowed under the

he third time. The third cha

, a moment of weakness. I loved her, the seven years we' d built together felt heavier than the one night of betrayal, so I forgave her. She promise

und screen. Her excuse was a torrent of tears. She claimed Mark was just a friend, supporting her through a difficult time, that she was scared. She pleaded for a second chance, promising s

s. The t

illion," I called

es widened, a flicker of shock

She looked at the auctioneer, her hand now gripping Mark' s. She was bidding against m

that followed was short and brutal. I pushed it to

" Olivia said

wn. "Sold! To Ms

t the car window. As soon as we stepped into our pent

as that,

y eyes. "Don' t be angry, Ethan. I' m p

ed to me twice, and tonight, you publicly humilia

e my chest was being hollowed out with a spo

I said, my voice flat.

ncing performances. Instead, she just looked at me,

e. She picked up her phone.

e had the nerve to smile at me as he set his bags down in the foyer. Ol

er. The perfect couple. The happy

our bedroom, pulling my own suitcase from the close

rushed to me, her desperation finally showing.

ging you, just wait. Mark will leave

n a beach in Malibu, slipped off my hand. It clattered on the marble floor. It was a simp

walked into the sunroom and seen Mark standing behind her, his hands wrapped around her, caressing her pregnant belly

sound. Tears streamed down my face, hot and usele

gain, this time rolling across the floor until it stopped at Mark' s feet

on tighter. "No! Tell me what I have to

ched his chest, his face twisting in pain.

to his side, all her attention focused on

sharp corner of the staircase with a sickening crack. Pain exploded behind my eyes

managed to say

oice filled with panic, her hands fluttering over Mark as she helped him to

ing on the floor of my o