My Cheating Ex Faked His Death, So I Married a Billionaire

I kicked the cabin door wide open. The room was packed with champagne roses. Right in the middle hung a giant banner reading, "Happy Fifth Anniversary!" The room buzzed with noise as Daniel Bradford's childhood friends raised their glasses and laughed loudly. "Daniel, that fake death of yours was pure genius. That ice queen actually waited for you like a faithful widow for five years, all alone." "Five years without a single guy touching her. Everyone knows how hard she threw herself at you back then. What a pathetic joke." "If you hadn't set that fire and faked your death, there's no way you could've shaken that psycho off. Sophia's been waiting forever. Now her patience has finally paid off." "So what if we lied to her? It's her honor to help make this happen for you two." Everyone burst out laughing. I fixed my eyes on the man in the middle of the crowd. He wore a perfectly tailored suit and held a glass of champagne, relaxed and carefree. Then he heard the noise and turned his head. Our eyes met. The smile on Daniel's face froze solid. His champagne glass hit the deck; shards of glass flew everywhere. His face went pale. Even his lips started trembling. The blonde woman next to him let out a scream and pressed herself against him. It was Sophia Alden, the intern who'd tried to drug Daniel five years ago, the one he'd slapped in public and kicked out of the company. Now, Daniel spread his arms and shielded her like he was protecting his life. I clenched my jaw, taking one step at a time. Five years, one thousand eight hundred nights. Every single night, I'd downed sleeping pills just to survive. Every time I closed my eyes, all I saw was his burned, blackened body. I'd wake up crying until I gagged. I turned down every guy who came near me. I'd turned myself into a walking corpse with no feelings left. And now, he stood right in front of me, alive. I reached out. My fingertips moved toward his face. Is this real? Or did I skip my meds and start hallucinating? Before I could touch him, Daniel jumped back like I was poison. Did I really disgust him that much? On the wall hung a giant anniversary photo. It covered half the cabin. The two of them in the picture smiled happily. I ripped the frame off the wall and smashed it at their feet. The frame shattered into pieces. My voice came out hoarse. "Happy fifth anniversary? Daniel, how ridiculous! So for five years, you, a 'dead' man who didn't even leave ashes behind, have been alive throughout?" The panic in Daniel's eyes faded. What came next was pure disgust. His face turned red. Veins bulged on his forehead. He glared at me. "Are you done yet? You were suffocating me back then. You made it impossible for me to breathe. You watched my every move. You were always asking me what time I got home and whom I met. You drove me crazy. I faked my own death just to get away from you. Why can't you just leave me alone?" Every word stabbed through me. Each sentence hit my heart like a poison-coated blade. Five years of agony, and it had all been one big joke. Back then, he'd stayed behind in that abandoned warehouse to hold off the kidnappers so I could get away. I watched him get swallowed by the flames with my own eyes. I thought that was love. But no, it was just an act. He'd rather fake his death and plunge me into endless guilt and pain, just so he could be with another woman. Sophia peeked out from behind him. Tears rolled down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Victoria. Please. Just let us be together. We've earned this love, and Daniel's been through so much." Victoria Adams was my name. Sophia's face was wet with tears, but her hand went straight to her flat stomach. "I know you're angry. If it'll make you feel better, I'm willing to abort the twins I'm carrying. I just found out... The timing is all wrong. We owe you that much." Daniel's face twisted, half joy, half pain. "Sophia. You're pregnant! Those are my kids. I'd like to see anyone try to hurt them!" He bent down and scooped her up in his arms. My sanity completely collapsed. I grabbed a bottle off the table and smashed it on the floor. "You're protecting her like she's some treasure. What about me? What about the baby I lost back then?" For five years, his five years of playing dead, I'd spent every single day punishing myself for losing that child. His friends cursed and scrambled out of the way. "You crazy b***h! Have you lost your mind?" "Daniel doesn't want you, so you come here and throw a tantrum? Pathetic." "Daniel was sick of you back then. And you still have the nerve to kick up a fuss?" Daniel was furious. He backed away, still holding Sophia close. He turned and screamed at the security guards by the door. "Drag this crazy woman out of here! Throw her into the ocean. Right now."