He took a deep breath, straightened his back, and continued with feigned courage.
“If you’re still not satisfied, then come at me alone.”
“If you want to beat or kill me, I’ll accept it—but don’t make things hard for her.”
His pitiful self-sacrifice stirred even more sympathy from the onlookers.
People murmured in admiration of his so-called bravery, and others sighed in pity for Selena’s supposed suffering.
And all their anger turned to me—the Cole family’s heir, a cold and domineering man who trampled on love and used power to destroy others’ happiness.
Selena wept and clung to Lucas. “Lucas, stop! Don’t do this for me! If we die, then we die together!”
What a touching performance—so moving that even though I almost believed it.
If I weren’t the betrayed fiancé standing in their shadow, I might have applauded their grand, star-crossed romance.
Instead, I laughed.
The sound was sharp, echoing through the suffocating air. Everyone turned toward me, uneasy and silent.
“Coming after you?”
I repeated his words slowly, my tone even, yet colder than ice.
“Lucas,” I said, meeting his eyes, “who do you think you are? Do you really believe you’re worth my attention?”
"Lucas, who do you think you are? Are you worthy of my dedicated attention?"
I took two steps forward, my gaze sliding past him and fixing directly on Selena.
“Selena,” I said evenly, “three days ago, you swore before me that you’d cut ties with this man and begged for my forgiveness. You cried then, too.”
I tilted my head slightly. “Tell me, are your tears more sincere now? Or do they just look better in front of an audience?”
Her face blanched, her eyes darting nervously.
Then, as if finding courage, she clutched Lucas tighter and screamed, “Ethan! That’s enough!”
“You forced me back then! I was scared you’d hurt Lucas!”
“Now I finally understand—running away won’t solve anything. You’ll never let him go!”
“You just can’t stand that he and I truly love each other!”
“True love?” I echoed with a cold smile. “So your version of ‘true love’ is to parade your lover in a wheelchair, begging for sympathy?”
“Is this what you call protecting him?”
I gave a short, humorless laugh. “Seems your love comes pretty cheap.”
“You—!” Selena trembled with fury.
Lucas caught her hand and murmured gently, trying to calm her before looking up at me again.
“Mr. Cole,” he said, his voice soft but trembling, “I know you despise me.”