At breakfast the next day…
Vanessa stepped down the stairs, her eyes immediately moving toward the dining table where everyone was eating breakfast.
They were eating as if nothing had happened.
Her eyes widened slightly when she spotted Tristan.
He was sitting right beside Noelle, both of them acting all lovey-dovey.
It hadn’t even been twelve hours since Vanessa caught him cheating, and now they were both acting as if they had been lovers for years.
“Sister,” Noelle called in a mocking tone.
“Come join us.” She sang the words as she pulled out a seat for her.
“I’m not hungry.”
Vanessa attempted to leave, but her father called her back.
“Take a seat, Vanessa.
We have to talk,” he said flatly.
Against her will, Vanessa took the seat furthest away from everyone, as if they were all contagious diseases.
“Since Noelle and Tristan will be getting married, you’ll be the one getting married to Matteo.”
Vanessa froze.
Her father had mentioned the same thing last night, but she had thought he was joking.
There was no way she was actually getting married to Matteo, the same man everyone in the city feared.
“You can’t be serious, Father,” she said through gritted teeth.
“This must be a joke.”
She hoped it was.
That was the only explanation she could come up with for his words.
Mr.
Voss glared at her as if she were a bane to his existence.
In his eyes, Vanessa wasn’t even supposed to be alive.
Vanessa wasn’t his biological daughter.
This was the truth he had kept hidden from everyone except his wife, who had been his partner in crime when they stole Vanessa from her real family.
She was only a means to an end, a pawn in his revenge for what her biological family had done to him and his wife.
“It’s been decided.
Matteo called yesterday to confirm it.”
Tristan was stunned for a second.
Matteo hadn’t called him to discuss anything.
Worse, Vanessa hadn’t called or sent him a text like he had expected.
He was finally getting married to the woman he truly loved, but the fact that Vanessa was getting married to his older brother didn’t sit well with him at all.
He wanted her to beg to have him back.
“Matteo is a single father,” her mother added.
“He needs a mother for his son.
That’s the main reason for this arrangement.”
She finished with a shrug before putting another spoonful of food into her mouth.
‘I didn’t escape teenage pregnancy just to become some kid’s stepmother,’ Vanessa thought.
Her teeth clenched hard as she tried to calm herself.
Her blood began to boil, and somehow, she could see Noelle grinning from the corner of her eye like a clown who had just won a prize.
All her life, Vanessa had allowed her parents to dictate how she lived her life.
They decided who she could have around and who she couldn’t.
They hadn’t even asked her if she loved Tristan before arranging their marriage.
She had only fallen for him after spending a few months with him.
But none of it had been real because Tristan didn’t love her.
He had only been using her.
Vanessa stood up from her seat and slammed her hands against the table.
“I’ve told you, Father,” she said firmly.
“I’m not getting married to Matteo.
You can arrange his marriage with anyone else, but not me.
I’m no longer getting married.”
There was silence for a moment before the man threw his head back and laughed.
“Do you really think you have a say in any of this?” he asked after laughing.
“We have a business alliance with the Devereaux family, and marriage is the only way to seal the deal.”
He glared at her, his eyes filled with contempt.
“I’m not requesting that you marry Matteo.
That is an order, whether you like it or not.”
Vanessa mirrored her father’s expression, her fists clenched tightly beneath the table.
She would rather die than marry someone like Matteo.
“Dad, you don’t have to worry,” Noelle cooed in her baby voice, which only fueled Vanessa’s rage even more.
“Vanessa will do exactly what you asked of her.
She has no choice.”
Vanessa hated to admit that Noelle was right.
She had no choice.
When she had disobeyed her father years ago, he had locked her up in the house for months, cancelled all her credit cards, and beaten her almost to death.
He hadn’t laid a finger on her since the arranged marriage had been finalized, only because he wanted her to remain presentable.
Out of anger, Vanessa stormed out of the house.
Tristan immediately turned to Noelle.
“Let me talk to her.
I’m sure I’ll be able to convince her.”
He didn’t wait for Noelle to answer before getting out of his chair and running after Vanessa.
Noelle’s expression instantly changed when she saw him chase after Vanessa.
“Vanessa,” she growled through clenched fists.
Outside…
Tristan caught up with Vanessa just as she was about to hail a cab.
Unlike Noelle, she didn’t have a luxurious car or a chauffeur of her own to make transportation easier.
“Vanessa,” he called, grabbing her arm.
Vanessa quickly yanked her hand free from his grip.
“Don’t touch me,” she warned with a stern look.
“You lost the right to touch me when you cheated on me.”
Tristan scoffed.
“I never cheated on you.
Maybe I did, but I was compelled to.
Noelle seduced me.”
Vanessa stared at him in disbelief.
He had actually managed to make himself the victim.
“But that’s not what I’m here for,” he continued.
Vanessa’s eyes narrowed as she stared at him.
She had so much to say to him.
She wanted to yell.
She wanted to hit him as many times as possible for hurting her, but he didn’t deserve even that.
He didn’t think he had done anything wrong.
“You can’t get married to my brother,” he said.
Vanessa stared at him as if he had lost his mind.
“If you want, I can cut all ties with Noelle and come back to you.
We can have the dream wedding we’ve been planning for months.
We’ll both act like none of this happened, and things will go back to normal.”
He stepped closer, his expression filled with desperation.
“I’ll explain everything to Noelle and talk to your father.
We can still get married, Vanessa.
Don’t give up on us over a small mistake.”