I Was the Mistress at My Own Wedding Chapter 07

I Was the Mistress at My Own Wedding Chapter 07

The Sterling family and the Whitmore family completely cut ties.

The Whitmore family beat Ethan so badly that they broke his leg, then sent him to the Sterling family to

apologize.

Everything Claire had done was eventually exposed.

In the end, the Sterling family personally sent her to prison.

Adrian seemed to age overnight.

A few strands of gray appeared in his once-black hair.

After searching relentlessly, they finally found me.

Fortunately, the woman in the news who had jumped into the river wasn’t me.

Even so, the Sterling family didn’t let the man who had nearly assaulted me walk away.

He was sent to prison and sentenced to ten years.

After my flight landed that day, I ignored every missed call.

I changed my number and started over.

The tide of public opinion finally began to turn.

Once people online learned the truth, their anger shifted toward Ethan, Claire, and everyone else who had

hurt me.

Even my adoptive parents got dragged into it.

But I wasn’t grateful to any of them.

If I hadn’t made it through everything on my own, no one would’ve believed me.

No one would’ve cleared my name.

Three months after moving to a city where I knew no one, my life finally settled down.

The pain from the past slowly faded with time.

What I didn’t expect was that the first person to find me wasn’t Ethan.

It was Adrian.

He showed up outside my new company’s building in a black suit, holding the lisianthus flowers I liked.

When he saw me alive and well, his fingers tightened around the bouquet.

Then he lowered his head.

“Lily, I’m sorry.”

“I was wrong about you.”

“I know my guilt probably doesn’t mean anything to you.”

He continued, “Even if you don’t want to come back to the Sterling family, the shares that belong to you are

still yours.”

“You own fifteen percent of the family company’s shares. I’ll transfer the dividends from those shares to you

every month.”

“It’s what you’re entitled to.”

I didn’t stop.

I kept walking.

Adrian followed me.

“I know I hurt you.”

“But Mom and Dad didn’t actually hurt you.”

“If you ever have the time… could you go see them?”

“They’re almost sixty.”

1 stopped for a moment.

Adrian noticed and kept talking.

“Claire’s already been sent to prison.”

“Everyone who hurt you has paid for what they did.”

I turned around and looked at him calmly.

“All I remember is you calling me a whore.”

“And a bitch.”

“If I weren’t your biological sister, would that make it okay for you to insult an innocent woman however you

wanted?”

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know I was a victim too.”

“In my opinion, you and Claire are perfect for each other.”

“You’re the same kind of person.”

With that, I turned and left.

I didn’t want to hear another explanation.

When I got home, I found a familiar man standing outside my door.

Ethan.

But compared to the man I remembered, he looked far more worn down.

The moment I saw him, I pulled out my phone and called security.

At the sound of my voice, Ethan slowly looked up.

His dull eyes lit up for a second when he saw me.

Then the light disappeared again.

His voice was hoarse.

“Lily.”

“I’m sorry.”

He instinctively shifted his bad leg behind him.

Once, he’d been the proud heir to the Whitmore family.

Now he looked more like a prisoner.

He asked carefully, “Can we talk?”

My voice was cold.

“We have nothing to talk about.”

“I’m not a saint.”

“After everything you’ve done to me, I’m not going to pretend none of it happened.”

“Honestly, if I had the power to do it, I’d want you in hell right now.”

Ethan gave a bitter smile.

“Not yet.”

“Lily… wait for me.”

Hearing him call me that made me sick.

I had security throw him out.

Ethan watched until my figure disappeared from view.

It looked like every bit of strength had left his body.

He thought about the baby who had never been born.

He thought about the seven years he and Lily had spent together.

He really had loved Lily.

But somewhere along the way, he had started making one mistake after another.

Maybe Claire’s constant vulnerability and dependence had pulled him off course.

Or maybe he had simply always been selfish.

Again and again, he had told himself that Lily already belonged to him.

So what did it matter if Claire kept the position of the Sterling family’s daughter?

That was how he kept hurting Lily.

Again and again.

Until, in the end, he pushed her farther and farther away with his own hands.

Once, he had imagined a future with her.

He wanted to marry Lily.

To build a life and grow alongside her.

To have a little girl together and give their daughter the last name Bennett.

He had thought he could spend the rest of his life making up for everything he owed her.

But none of that would ever happen now.

Ethan finally understood.

Lily had never been unable to live without him.

He had taken her love for granted and hurt her again and again because he believed she would never leave.

And now, he had finally used up every last bit of that love.