Take Him

The ceremony had reached the exchanging of the rings when my husband suddenly announced he needed to pause for five minutes. Then, he turned, walked over to his unforgettable first love, and dropped to one knee. “Lily,” he said, his voice ringing through the silent hall, “I once promised you that I would propose in front of everyone. So, in another life, would you marry me?” Lily covered her mouth, nodding through her tears as she threw herself into my husband’s arms. Then she looked over at me. “Grace, even though I won’t get the chance to marry Julian in this lifetime, I hope you’ll take good care of him for me.” Whispers and stares pricked at me from all sides. Across from me, the groom was locked in a passionate kiss with another woman. Everyone was waiting, watching, ready to see the bride become a laughingstock. Instead, I smiled and walked toward Lily. I shoved my bridal bouquet into her hands. “What do you mean, no chance? If you can’t let go of this piece of trash, then by all means, you can have him.” 1. For ten years, I humbled myself, bending over backwards to please Julian’s family, desperate for their approval. In the end, it was only the baby in my belly that earned me this long-overdue wedding. I thought that once we were married, once the child was born, Julian would finally settle down. But now, I was watching the man who was supposed to be vowing his life to me, kissing someone else as if I didn’t exist. I dug my nails so deep into my palms that they drew blood, but my heart still ached with a pain so sharp it felt like I couldn't breathe. And in that moment, something inside me snapped. My words made Lily clutch her chest and collapse into Julian’s arms. Without a moment’s hesitation, he swept her up and rushed toward the exit, shouting over his shoulder that I was a “vicious, petty bitch.” He yelled that it was a simple five-minute gesture, but I had to make it into a humiliating spectacle for everyone. Neither his parents nor mine could stop him. And so, I was left to face the fallout alone. The officiant stood awkwardly, holding his script. My mother, ashamed of me, started hitting my arm, sobbing that I had to go chase after Julian and bring him back. My father just snorted, told me to sort out my own mess, and dragged my mother away. My mother-in-law, who had never thought I was good enough, now sneered that I was a classless country bumpkin. She lectured me that to marry into a family like theirs, I had to learn to swallow my pride and not embarrass my husband in public. For the first time in ten years, I realized that devotion doesn't always earn devotion in return. And I no longer wanted to be a part of the Thorne family. They left with the remaining guests, telling me to walk home and think about what I’d done. I stood at the entrance, holding the white satin of my wedding dress, and watched them drive away. Behind me, the hotel was silent and empty. In front of me, the sky opened up and a torrential downpour began. After the Thornes and their guests were gone, a car pulled up. It was my parents. My mother rolled down the window. The sight of them made all the grief and humiliation I’d been holding back surge forward. My voice was a raw whisper as I choked out, “Mom.” I reached for the door handle, but I heard the click of the locks engaging. I stared at them, stunned. My mother’s voice was sharp with disappointment. “I told you this would happen. Now you listen to your in-laws, go home and reflect. Figure out a way to win Julian back. You’re carrying their grandchild. No matter what, that Lily girl can’t take your place.” “Mom, how can you say that…” She ignored me, rolling up the window as the car sped away, leaving me standing in the rain. I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood, watching the taillights disappear into the storm. The tears I’d been holding back finally broke free. 2. The wedding venue was a resort hotel built halfway up a mountain. There was no cell signal to call a cab. A kind server took pity on me and handed me an umbrella. I thanked her, then, holding the umbrella with one hand and the heavy train of my dress with the other, I started the long, difficult walk down the mountain. The slanted rain soaked through my dress, a bitter cold seeping into my bones. The back of my heels were rubbed raw, a bloody mess. When my phone finally buzzed with a signal, a dozen messages flooded in. All from Julian. Every single one was an accusation. He’d already explained that Lily was just like a sister to him, so why did I have to keep targeting her? I ignored him. A second later, a video came through from an unknown number. It showed Julian at the hospital, holding Lily’s hand tightly as she went through some tests, periodically kissing her fingertips, his eyes red as he begged her to be okay. I thought back to when I first found out I was pregnant. I had fainted in the bathroom from low blood sugar. I broke my leg in the fall, and a sharp pain radiated from my stomach. Terrified, my first instinct was to call him, to seek his comfort. He had just barked at me over the phone, “I’m not a doctor, what good is calling me?” I was in the hospital for two weeks. He never showed up once. I found out later that on the same day I fell, Lily had cut her hand while cooking. The doctor told her it might leave a scar, and she cried hysterically. So Julian had vented all his worry and frustration on me. I stopped walking and laughed, a hollow, bitter sound. It had taken me far too long to wake up. That’s why I was in this humiliating mess. As I was trying to hail a cab, Julian called. After a barrage of insults, he was breathing heavily. He told me I’d scared Lily so badly she was having heart palpitations, and that I needed to get my ass over to the hospital and apologize. I struggled to keep the flimsy umbrella steady. “I’m still at the hotel,” I said calmly. Just then, a bolt of lightning split the dark sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. Julian’s tone shifted. “It’s pouring out there. They didn’t take you home? I’ll come get…” He was cut off by Lily’s sobbing in the background. “Is Grace angry? It’s all my fault. Maybe I should have just died when I was abroad…” Julian’s voice immediately softened as he soothed her. Then he turned his anger back on me. “You brought this on yourself. What do you have to be upset about? It was five minutes, Grace. If you had just been a little more gracious, I wouldn’t have left you…” The last thread of hope inside me snapped. I cut him off, a ghost of a smile on my lips. “Let’s get a divorce. I’m not apologizing to Lily. I was never the one in the wrong. You two were.” If they couldn’t let each other go, why did he ever come into my life in the first place? He was the one who confessed his feelings first. He was the one who promised me forever. That’s why I chose him without hesitation. Ten years. Were their feelings and their history so precious, while mine were worthless? After hanging up, I finally got a cab. As I sat in the back seat, another text from Julian arrived: 【Grace, when you do something wrong, you admit it. You've been mine for ten years. You're used goods. Who else would want you? Especially now that you’ve schemed your way into getting pregnant with my child.】 I stared at the screen, numb. I thought nothing could possibly hurt more than what had already happened today. I was wrong. I rolled down the window, letting the cold wind whip against my face, the sting slowly clearing my chaotic mind. I told the driver to turn around. We were going to the hospital. 3. I walked into the hospital lobby in my mud-stained wedding dress. A nurse immediately asked if I needed help. I told her calmly that I was there for an abortion. She stared at me for a moment, her eyes filling with sympathy, then led me to the third floor. Lying on the operating table, listening to the strong, steady heartbeat of my child on the ultrasound monitor, I made one last call to Julian. Lily answered, crying and apologizing profusely. Then Julian snatched the phone. He sneered, “Grace, it’s too late to be sorry now. You caused Lily so much pain. Unless you get over here right now and get on your knees to beg for her forgiveness, I will never forgive you.” The words I was about to say died in my throat. I looked at the doctor. “Please, you can begin.” “The baby is very healthy. Are you sure you don’t want to discuss this with the father?” “There’s no need.” … When I returned to our apartment, nothing had changed. It seemed Julian had been with Lily this whole time. I opened Lily’s social media. She’d posted several new updates. The high-and-mighty Julian Thorne, cooking for the woman he loved. It drew a chorus of envious comments. I saved every single picture, then turned off my phone. I packed a small bag and checked into a hotel. After a long, hot bath, the chill finally started to leave my body. I took a few days off work. As my body started to recover, my mother called incessantly, asking if I had made up with Julian yet. I told her it was over between us. Her histrionics were more than I could handle, so I just stopped answering her calls. When I returned to the office, everyone looked at me strangely. My colleague, Sarah, pulled me over to my desk. I finally noticed that my story was all over the news sites. “I can’t believe I’ve been working next to a secret millionaire!” she said, grabbing my hand, her eyes wide with a mixture of shock and envy. “I always thought Lily was the future Mrs. Thorne. I had no idea it was you, Grace.” I managed a weak smile and scanned the articles. Someone had filmed the scene at the wedding and posted it online, spinning a lurid tale of a wealthy heir choosing his mistress over his wife. Julian’s bizarre behavior had even started to affect the Thorne Corporation’s reputation. Before, I would have been frantic to help him manage the scandal. But now that I was leaving him, I couldn’t be bothered. At the end of the workday, Julian was waiting for me at the company entrance, something he’d never done before. I tried to slip away, but he caught up to me in a few long strides and forced me into his car. “Still angry? A wedding or a person’s life, Grace, which is more important?” “You’re a grown woman. Running away from home and talking about divorce… aren’t you being childish?” “Alright, enough. You’ve always wanted to go to that planetarium restaurant downtown, right? I’ll take you now.” He opened the glove compartment, took out a gift box, and tossed it into my lap. A diamond ring rolled out. It looked significantly more expensive than the one from the wedding. Julian looked at me with a self-satisfied smirk, as if to say, There, you should be happy now. “Lily’s heart is weak. Since that ring is already on her finger, she can keep it. This one cost a lot more, so stop being so petty.” I toyed with the ring. The $99,999 price tag was still attached. He must have bought it on his way here. It used to be that when I was upset, he would cook for me, patiently watch movies with me, or spend a whole day shopping to find the perfect gift. Now he was just like his family, putting a price tag on my feelings and expecting me to be grateful. I put the ring back in its box and shook my head. “This is too much. You should save it for Lily.” “And I’m not throwing a tantrum. Since you and Lily can’t let each other go, I’ll give her my spot as Mrs. Thorne. We should find some time to finalize the divorce.” We had already gotten the marriage license before the ceremony. Now we had to legally undo it. I once overheard him at a dinner with Lily and their friends. Someone had asked why a man like him would fall for a plain woman like me. He popped a peeled grape into Lily’s mouth and laughed. “It’s not love. But Grace was with me for ten years, and now she’s pregnant. It would be cruel not to marry her. It’s just a title. It’s nothing to give her.” To him, our marriage was charity. To me, it was everything. But now that I didn’t love him anymore, I didn’t want the title either. I thought he would be happy that I was setting him free. Instead, his eyes turned red with fury. He slammed his hand on the steering wheel. “Grace! What’s the point of saying all this? You spent years acting like a dog trying to please my parents, and you schemed to get pregnant. It was all to become Mrs. Thorne! Don’t tell me you’re doing this for my sake. How ridiculous can you be?” “So the wedding didn’t happen. We’ll have another one! And whose fault was that anyway? I agreed to marry you, and all I did was propose to Lily. You’re the one who acted like a shrew!” He always said I schemed to get pregnant. But he was the one who said he wanted his parents to accept me, that he wanted us to have a child of our own. He only started regretting it after Lily came back, and then he blamed it all on me. He laid on the horn, a long, piercing blast. The old me would have been crying, apologizing, trying to explain. Now, I didn’t have the energy to argue. I just turned and looked out the window. After a long silence, when he didn’t get the tearful apology he was expecting, he turned to me. “Grace,” he said, his voice softer. I closed my eyes and didn’t answer. The GPS occasionally announced our route. When we were just a block from the restaurant, his phone rang. It was Lily, crying that her heart was acting up again, asking if she was going to die. Frankly, I was sick of hearing it. Ever since she returned, her heart conveniently acted up on every holiday, every special occasion. Anyone could see she was faking it. Anyone but Julian. I spoke first. “You can drop me off at the next corner.” Julian looked at me, surprised. “You’re not angry? You’re not going to insist on coming with me?” I shook my head. I used to hate him being alone with her, so I’d offer to go with him to help take care of her. He would explode, calling me disgusting and petty, telling me to learn to be as pure and kind as Lily. His lips tightened. His phone was still vibrating. He pulled over at the intersection. I grabbed my bag, but as I went to get out, he grabbed my wrist. His expression was complicated. “I’ll just go check on her. I’ll come back and take you to dinner later. Don’t worry, the position of Mrs. Thorne is yours. Don’t be angry.” “Mhm, I’m not angry,” I said, trying to pull my arm away. He held on tighter. “Grace, you’re different. Why aren’t you…” “Jealous?” I finished for him, a small, cold smile on my face. “Why would I be jealous? The poor girl sees you as a big brother. It’s only natural she’d call you first when she’s in trouble. You should go.” I pried his fingers off my wrist and got out of the car. I hailed another cab, went back to the hotel, ate at the buffet, and went straight to bed. Sometime in the middle of the night, Julian called. He explained that Lily couldn’t be left alone, so he couldn’t take me to dinner and that I shouldn’t wait up. I just said, “I already ate.” There was a long silence on his end, then he asked through gritted teeth, “Are you really going to be like this?” I just said, “Yes,” and hung up, rolling over and falling back asleep. The next morning, I saw a text from him, warning me not to play with fire. 4. When I got to work, I understood what he meant. All the projects I had been managing were now under Lily’s name. She was my new team lead. She would smile sweetly as she assigned me an endless list of menial tasks. Julian came every day to take her to lunch. He would look at me with eyes as cold as stone. The scandal online was only getting worse. He told me I had to attend a press conference with him on Monday. I was to explain that Lily wasn't a homewrecker. The story would be that I had taken advantage of her being abroad to get between them, and then used my pregnancy to force him into marriage. He made it sound so simple. I would still be the enviable Mrs. Thorne; I would just have to endure a little public scorn. This way, the company’s reputation would be saved, and Lily wouldn’t be affected. He said this was all my fault for being so difficult at the wedding, so it was only right that I fix it. Of course, I refused. I blocked his number. Then his parents came to see me, warning me to do as I was told and not to think that being pregnant with their grandchild gave me a free pass. I gave them the same treatment as Julian. And then I resigned from my job. I was good at what I did, and I’d had offers from other companies before. But now, when I reached out, they were all strangely hesitant. I knew it was the Thornes’ doing. They were trying to force my hand. But this time, I wouldn’t give in. After another failed job application, a former client contacted me. He said his company was expanding their overseas operations and needed someone with my skills. The pay was comparable to what I was making at the Thorne Corporation, but the job was abroad. He asked if I was interested. I was an only child. Thinking of my parents, I told him I’d consider it. When I got back to the hotel, my dad called. He said my mom’s headaches were back. I rushed home. When I opened the door, Julian was there. My mother took my bag, looking perfectly healthy. I stared at her, my heart sinking. I knew, once again, I had been sold out by my own parents. 5. At the dinner table, Julian sat beside me, constantly putting food on my plate. The three of them were a picture of harmony, as if they were the real family. My mother couldn’t stop praising him. “Julian is such a wonderful son-in-law. Not only is his family prominent, but he’s so considerate of Grace.” My father, despite being the elder, had a sycophantic smile on his face as he poured Julian wine, telling him that I was the one who had been too impulsive at the wedding, and that they were grateful for Julian’s tolerance. Their groveling made my resolve crumble. My eyes burned. I clutched the glass of milk my mother had placed in front of me. “It’s fine,” Julian said, his eyes fixed on me with a look of smug contempt. “We’re going to be husband and wife. Even if Grace makes a mistake, I’ll be patient. But about the press conference…” My grip tightened. Milk spilled over the rim of the glass, dripping onto the floor. I couldn’t take it anymore. I looked at my parents. “Am I your daughter or not? Why is it that my entire life, whenever there’s a problem, you never, ever stand by my side? I told you, I’m done with Julian Thorne!” Julian’s brow furrowed. He couldn’t understand why, after giving in so many times, I was being so stubborn now. My mother paused, then threw the milky rag she was using to clean the table at my head. Sticky, gray-streaked milk ran down my face. She turned to Julian with an apologetic smile. “Julian, it’s my fault. I didn’t raise her right, to make such a fuss over something so small.” Then she slapped me across the face, her voice sharp. “Grace, do you think you’re still a twenty-year-old girl? You’re thirty! A woman on the wrong side of thirty is damaged goods. Julian is willing to overlook that, to overlook your tantrums. You should be grateful! And you want a divorce? Do you have any decency?” “It was a tiny incident at a wedding! How long are you going to drag this out? If you won’t think about yourself, at least think about your baby and your parents!” My face stung, the print of her hand burning my cheek. Julian seemed surprised that my mother would actually hit me. He shot to his feet and steadied me, taking her next blow on his own shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice full of concern. “Let me take you to the hospital.” Then he turned to my mother. “Ma’am, she is my wife, and she is carrying my child. If this ever happens again, I don’t care if you’re her mother, I will not be so understanding.” My mother froze. I let out a bitter laugh, my eyes full of disgust. “Julian, stop pretending to be the good guy. Isn’t this exactly what you wanted to see?” My look seemed to unnerve him. For the first time, the ever-confident Julian Thorne looked lost. “Grace, you…” “So, this is how badly you want me to take the fall for Lily, isn't it? Fine. I’ll go to your press conference. But you’ll all regret it.” With that, I slammed the door behind me.

? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "386584", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel