Chapter 2: The Raging Storm
382 Words
Vanna’s breath hitched as Gavin’s words sank like glass shards into her chest. Her back was against the cool wall, but her spine straightened with sudden resolve. She blinked back the tears, forcing herself not to look away from his accusing eyes.
“I’m not his mistress,” she said, her voice low but unwavering.
Gavin laughed again, sharp and disbelieving.
“Really? Because from where the world stands, you look exactly like one.”
“And from where I stand,” she snapped back, stepping out of his shadow, “I look like a woman who was lied to.”
That stopped him for a moment.
“You think I wanted this?” she continued, her voice trembling with anger now. “I trusted him. He told me the truth—or what I thought was the truth. That his marriage was over. That his past was behind him. And I believed him because I don’t go around treating love like a political game.”
Gavin clenched his jaw, watching her closely.
“Do you think I would’ve thrown myself into this if I knew he was still married? If I knew I’d be waking up to the world calling me names I don’t deserve?” She stepped closer now, her eyes shining with pain, but no longer fear. “Do you think I enjoy watching my name dragged through the mud while the man I loved hides like a coward?”
His brows knit together. Something in her voice—so raw, so real—chipped away at his fury.
“So yes,” she said, her voice breaking just enough, “I missed him. Not because I’m clinging to a scandal or trying to play queen. But because I thought he was the one man who finally saw me for more than a name, a fortune, or a headline. Turns out, I was wrong.”
The silence between them thickened. The waves outside crashed like thunder against the shore, but neither moved.
Finally, Gavin stepped back. His face wasn’t as hard now, but something guarded remained.
“You still believe he loved you?”
Vanna exhaled slowly, pain flickering in her eyes.
“I don’t know anymore. But I know I loved him. And I didn’t deserve this.”
- Writer
