Chapter 3
1080 Words
Owen's expression instantly stiffened.
He stood rooted to the spot as if struck by lightning.
"You... what did you say?"
"Don't be ridiculous, Avery. Is this some kind of joke?"
Avery scoffed, a composed look on his face as he pulled an envelope out of his pocket and stuffed it into Owen's hand.
He smiled gracefully and spoke in an unhurried tone, "Don't forget to come to the wedding."
I took a closer look and realized that it was a beautifully made wedding invitation. Owen stared blankly at the small print on the invitation. The hand hanging by his side was already veined.
"Avery, are you serious?"
Avery shrugged, his smile colder. "Do you think I am that idle?"
Owen's last line of defense was abruptly torn apart.
He cursed and grabbed Avery's collar.
"Avery, are you crazy? Why Eleanor? You know she's my fiancée!" He raised his hand, about to punch Avery in the face.
The next second, he was kicked to the ground by the man.
Avery leaned down, his tone mocking. "You're in such bad shape, and you expect Eleanor to marry you?"
Owen clenched his jaw, his face flushed red. "Did you two sleep together?"
"Or did we play poker all night?" Avery's words were provocative, his lips curled up slightly.
Owen scrambled to his feet, wanting to get to the bottom of it, but was shoved hard by the man. Before I could react, Avery gently took my wrist.
Owen was still cursing behind us.
Avery ignored him, silent throughout the whole ordeal. He pulled me all the way to the underground parking lot.
My mind was a mess.
It wasn't until I got into Avery's car and he buckled my seat belt for me that he slowly explained, "I left in a hurry this morning. I didn't expect Owen to come looking."
I nodded absently, not pressing further.
"Let's go."
"Where?"
"To get married, of course. Why else would I give him an invitation?"
At that moment, all I felt was a loud bang in my ears. My mind went blank. I thought what he said yesterday was just casual talk.
I didn't expect him to take it seriously. "Avery, I was just kidding. How could you take it seriously?"
Avery froze for a moment, his hand naturally resting on my waist. "Eleanor, who taught you that?"
I blinked in confusion.
"Who taught you that you can just walk away after sleeping with someone?" He stared at me, his voice low and husky, a flicker of hurt flashing through his dark eyes, though it quickly disappeared.
I was lost in his gaze, my heart skipping a beat involuntarily. "That's not what I meant."
Faced with Avery's questioning, I instantly wilted.
I didn't know how to explain myself for a moment.
Actually... it wasn't that I didn't want to take responsibility.
I was just afraid that Avery would get into trouble because of me. He shouldn't have been dragged into this.
I shifted in my seat, dodging his hand. I thought for a long time before tentatively venturing, "Or... maybe we should wait a little longer for the wedding. After all, I only just..."
"Okay." Before I could finish my sentence, Avery interrupted me. "Whatever you want."
He turned away from me, his expression so unreadable that it was impossible to decipher.
*****
Since I got home, I had been feeling drowsy. I even found myself instinctively resisting the food I used to love.
A bad feeling welled up inside me. That one time... could I really be...?
Before I could go to the hospital for further examination, Owen came knocking on my door like a haunting ghost.
But I never expected him to take this matter to my father, Samuel.
He came to my house with Ella.
She stuck to Owen like glue, occasionally throwing in a few words to fan the flames.
Samuel sat on the sofa with a sullen face. Seeing me enter, he immediately snapped, "Eleanor! I heard you cheated on Owen?"
I changed my slippers as if nothing had happened and walked straight to my room.
Seeing this, Ella put on an understanding look and sat down next to Samuel. "Samuel, don't be angry. Eleanor acted impulsively."
I stopped and turned to look at her. "Thanks to you, otherwise, Owen wouldn't be cheated."
"Eleanor!" Samuel slammed his hand on the table in anger. He frowned, his eyes wide with rage.
I didn't hesitate to retort, "What? Are you unhappy that you've lost Owen, your cash cow?"
"Enough, Eleanor." Owen strode over and grabbed my wrist.
He leaned into my ear and said in a low voice, "As long as you break up with Avery, I can pretend that nothing happened."
Excuse me? How dare he say such a thing!
"Don't be disgusting, Owen."
He didn't get angry, instead, he chuckled, his tone mocking. "If your father knew you were having an affair with my uncle, guess what his reaction would be?"
A flicker of anger flashed through my eyes, and my voice became urgent. "Don't you dare?"
In this relationship, it was clearly Owen who had wronged me first.
If it wasn't for him repeatedly dumping me for Ella, we might have already been married.
"What am I afraid of?" The grip on my wrist tightened, and I was pulled into his arms. He stroked my hair and taunted, "You don't really think Avery will marry you, do you? He's just playing with you. You rejected me for him, and when you become a used woman, no one will want you."
I clenched my fists, wanting to push him away, but he held me tightly in place.
Damn it, I already had no appetite.
Hearing this, I felt a wave of nausea and couldn't help but dry heave.
Seeing this, Owen froze for a moment, his expression hardening. He gritted his teeth and asked coldly, "Are you... pregnant?"
I fought back the discomfort and let out a cold laugh. "Indeed."
Owen released my hand, his expression stiff, as if he was trying to suppress his anger. "Go to the hospital and get rid of it!"
I shook my head and quickly distanced myself from him, a playful smile curling up on my lips. "Owen, be reasonable, okay? That's your uncle. Do you want to see him lose his heir?"
I deliberately raised my voice as I said these last few words.
The living room fell silent.
Even Ella was stunned.
- Writer
