I Died in the Garden He Made for His LoverChapter 1

Everyone knew the flower seeds in the garden at Hillside Estate were the ones my parents died to protect. They were my lifeline—the only thing left of them.

Years ago, William spent tens of millions importing a climate-control system and specialized soil from overseas, all so I could cultivate those seeds.

An entire villa, not for living in, but for me to grow my flowers. That was how William proposed to me.

People on the outside laughed, called me flower-obsessed like my parents, said I truly had inherited their mission, that even William wasn't as important to me as those flowers.

But William's love for me was the one thing everyone agreed was beyond question.

So I always believed he loved me. That after my parents died, he was the person in this world who loved me most.

Until the night I made a last-minute decision to go back to Hillside Estate, and saw two figures standing in the sea of flowers I'd grown.

"William, this… this is incredible! I'm definitely winning at the International Floral Expo!"

He pulled her into his arms. "Why do you think I went through all of this? To keep her happy, keep her clueless, so she'd grow this whole garden for you without a second thought. You like it—that's all I care about."

So the tens of millions were never spent for me. The marriage was just a tool.

——

"William, but if June finds out, she'll be furious. She was planning to enter the competition too, and you know how things are between us…"

He cut her off. "Don't worry about that. Just bring the flowers to the competition on the fifteenth. All I want is to see you standing where you've always wanted to stand, shining." He kissed the top of her hair, the picture of tenderness. "I'll handle the rest. Trust me, I will never let her become an obstacle for you. She'll never be in your way."

I stood behind a Roman column, watching their silhouettes in the garden. The woman must have been beautiful. The dark green fitted dress made her figure look even better.

It hit me the way it had eight years ago, standing there watching my parents burn alive. Their voices kept trading places in my head, overlapping, doubling back, until nothing I was hearing matched anything I could feel. I stumbled out of the villa and couldn't hold it anymore, crouching on the roadside and throwing up until there was nothing left.