He Left Me at the Altar for His First Love, I Ruined Him Chapter 08

He Left Me at the Altar for His First Love, I Ruined Him Chapter 08

The morning we were supposed to go to City Hall, the sky was a perfect blue.

I showed up at City Hall on time, wearing a simple white shirt and slacks.

Elias had already arrived.

He’d dressed up. Suit, tie, a bouquet of red roses in his arms.

“Does your shoulder still hurt?”

He walked over and handed the flowers to me.

“Much better.”

I didn’t take the flowers.

He pulled them back without missing a beat.

“Let’s go in.”

He looked at his watch.

“Right on time.”

We were halfway up the steps when his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen. His whole face shifted.

“Stella. Stella, listen to me!”

“Don’t do anything stupid!”

He was almost shouting. People on the sidewalk turned and stared.

Sweat broke across his forehead.

“I’m coming. Don’t move, you hear me? Stay right there!”

He hung up. When he turned to me, his eyes were wild, panic and apology fighting for room.

“Clara, Stella’s threatening to jump. She’s on the roof right now.”

The words tumbled out of him.

“I have to go. Right now.”

I said nothing.

“Just give me one hour.”

“I’ll calm her down and come right back. We’ll still do this.”

“Today was supposed to be our day.”

My voice was even.

“I know!”

“But she could die!”

“Clara, this isn’t the time to be petty.”

He dropped my hand and ran for the car.

“Elias.”

He stopped. Turned.

“Go.”

I said it like it cost me nothing.

He hesitated, like he’d braced himself for a fight and didn’t know what to do with permission.

“One hour. I promise.”

He was in the car and gone before the words had even landed.

I watched his taillights disappear around the corner.

I turned and walked to the coffee shop across the street.

I ordered an Americano and took out my phone.

The Sterling family group chat was already blowing up.

Stella had posted a photo of herself standing at the edge of the roof.

Captioned:

[You only find out who really loves you when you’re standing on the edge.]

The angle was too perfect.

Her skirt caught the wind beautifully.

She didn’t look like someone about to jump.

It looked more like a staged photoshoot.

The replies underneath flooded in with concern from the Sterling relatives.

Mrs. Sterling even tagged me in the group.

[Clara, Elias is out there saving a life. Don’t give him a hard time over this.]

The minutes crawled.

Nine fifty-five.

Stella sent another picture.

Elias, arms wrapped around her, shot from behind.

The group chat lit up again.

Everyone was saying what a loyal, devoted man he was. The kind you’d be lucky to have.

Ten o’clock exactly.

The scheduled email went out.

I picked up the coffee and took a sip.