The Wedding House He Built for Her, Not for Me Chapter 02

The Wedding House He Built for Her, Not for Me Chapter 02

[Replication of Valerie Hayes’s Former Residence.]

The words burned into my brain as I stepped into the elevator.

Garrett rushed out just as the doors were about to slide shut, jamming his hand between them to force them open, his voice tight with suppressed anger.

“Clara Lennox, are you seriously throwing a fit over a project title?”

I looked at his silver cufflinks and asked, “So you saw it?”

“What if I did?” He stepped inside and slammed the button for the first floor. “Valerie’s old place had great aesthetics, so it’s completely normal for the designer to use it as a reference.”

“It’s our wedding house,” I said softly. “Why are we replicating her old home?”

Garrett rubbed the bridge of his nose, exhaling sharply.

“Do you have to be so exhausting? I bought the place, and I paid for the renovations. Is it a crime for me to choose a style I find comfortable?”

The reflective metal doors of the elevator mirrored my pale face as I replied, “No, it’s not a crime.”

My lack of a reaction only seemed to infuriate him more. “Clara, every time you do this silent treatment routine, it’s a hundred times more annoying than a real fight.”

The elevator dinged as it reached the lobby, and Valerie’s voice floated in from right behind us. “Garrett, don’t yell at her. It’s all my fault.”

She held out the porcelain fawn figurine, offering it to me like a peace offering.

“You can have this as an apology. I used to love it, and Garrett mentioned it would look beautiful right by the master bedroom window.”

Garrett looked at the figurine, his eyes softening for a fleeting second.

It suddenly reminded me of my birthday three years ago, when he had given me a magnolia brooch.

He told me it reminded him of me—quiet, elegant, and never demanding.

But the moment Valerie returned to the country, that brooch vanished, never to be seen again.

I didn’t reach for the toy. “Since you like it so much, you should keep it.”

Valerie’s hand froze mid-air.

Garrett snatched the figurine from her, his voice turning icy. “She’s giving you a gift, so take it. Stop making a scene and embarrassing everyone.”

I looked directly at him and said, “I don’t want anyone else’s leftover garbage.”

Valerie turned deathly pale.

The look in Garrett’s eyes changed instantly. “Clara Lennox, apologize right now.”

There were contractors moving in and out of the lobby, and the designer hadn’t walked far either; several pairs of eyes shifted toward us.

“Why should I?” I asked.

“Because you’re being vicious,” Garrett said, his grip tightening on my shoulder, pinning me in place so I couldn’t walk away. “Valerie went out of her way to help you, and you’re treating her with pure malice.”

Valerie murmured, “Let it go, Garrett. I don’t want to make things harder for Clara.”

Garrett refused to let go of my shoulder. “I’ve clearly spoiled her too much, to the point where she doesn’t even have basic manners anymore.”

I looked down at the little fawn.

One of its ears was chipped, repaired with a careless coat of glaze that left a visible seam.

Valerie suddenly let out a soft gasp, as if realization had just hit her. “Actually, Garrett was the one who bought this fawn for me originally. I just thought it would fit nicely in your new home.”

Garrett’s brows knit together. “Valerie.”

Realizing she had said too much, she quickly lowered her eyes. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

I let out a soft laugh.

So it wasn’t even her old junk she was trying to give me.

It was a piece of junk Garrett had given her years ago, and now they wanted to plant it right in the middle of my life.

Terrified that I would press the issue, Garrett forced the figurine into my hands.

“Just take it. It’s a stupid piece of porcelain. Stop throwing a tantrum over nothing.”

The sharp ceramic edge dug painfully into my palm.

My grip slipped, and the fawn crashed onto the marble floor, shattering clean in half.

Valerie drew in a sharp breath.

Garrett’s face contorted with pure fury. “Clara Lennox!”

I knelt down to pick up the broken shards, and a sharp edge sliced into my index finger, a bead of bright red blood welling up immediately.

Garrett saw it, his hand twitching instinctively to reach for me, but he pivoted at the last second to shield Valerie instead. “Don’t look, look away before you get hurt.”

Valerie hid behind his back, her voice trembling. “Clara, I know you don’t like me, but you didn’t have to do that.”

I gathered the shards in my palm and asked, “How much was it? I’ll write you a check.”

Garrett stared at my bleeding hand, his voice dropping an octave. “This isn’t about money.”

“Then what is it about?” I asked.

He had no answer.

The designer carefully offered me a tissue from his pocket, saying, “Miss Lennox, maybe you should wrap that up first.”

Garrett snatched the tissue from him, but before he could hand it to me, his phone rang.

He glanced at the screen and answered it immediately, “Hi, Mrs. Taylor. Yes, Valerie is right here with me. Don’t worry.”

Valerie leaned in close to listen, her expression softening into something incredibly sweet.

The voice on the other end was loud enough to bleed through the speaker.

“Garrett, dear! How are the renovations coming along for you and Valerie’s new place? I just got back into town, and I want to be the very first to see it!”

I clutched the broken ceramic pieces, looking up at Garrett.

He went completely silent for a second before answering smoothly, “It’s almost done. I’ll bring her over to see it soon.”

So it was their new house after all.