The next few days passed in a blur. I barely ate, barely slept and most of the time I just stared out the window feeling numb, looking at my twins album while Anna cried behind my back because she thought I couldn’t hear her.
By the fourth day, she finally forced me out of bed.
“You can’t keep rotting in this room, Mrs. Moretti,” she whispered gently while helping me walk. “Please... just get some fresh air.”
As if air could fix any of this. Still, I let her guide me outside into the private gardens behind the estate.
The Golden Lion estate was massive. Bigger than some luxury resorts. Artificial waterfalls. Imported flowers. Private roads. Everything built by Xander for me once upon a time.
Now it felt like a prison.
As we walked behind one of the stone walls near the lower gardens, I suddenly heard several maids gossiping nearby.
“I swear Mr. Moretti’s completely obsessed with Miss Claudia.”
“Obviously. Did you see the new Ducati motorcycles he bought for her? Over twenty custom bikes just because she said she wanted to learn riding.”
“That’s nothing. Mr. Moretti personally taught her himself yesterday. They were riding together all night.”
“The last woman he treated like that was Mrs. Moretti.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“I still can’t believe he let Miss Claudia burn Kyle and Cora’s ashes into fireworks. That’s actually insane.”
I gripped my sleeve tightly. So everyone was talking about it now. Everyone knew how pathetic I was. Before I could move, the loud roar of a motorcycle echoed through the garden.
My head lifted automatically… And there they were. Xander and Claudia.
She was sitting in front of him on a black Ducati, laughing loudly while the wind blew through her hair. She wore some tiny off shoulder crop top and ripped shorts that barely covered anything. The second Xander noticed it, his face darkened immediately.
“Baby,” he muttered irritably, “can you stop wearing shit like this outside?”
Claudia laughed. “Why? You jealous?”
“Damn right I am.”
She grinned teasingly. “In my hometown girls wear this all the time.”
Xander looked around coldly at the nearby staff then his voice turned deadly.
“All of you. Eyes down. Now.” Everyone instantly lowered their heads. “If I catch anyone staring at her tits again,” he said calmly, “I’ll fucking blind you.”
The maids trembled in fear.
Claudia burst out laughing. “You’re fucking insane.”
Xander pulled her closer against him and kissed her temple. “Only with you.”
My chest hurt so badly I thought I might collapse again. Because years ago, a bodyguard once looked at me for too long during a party.
Xander broke the man’s jaw with his bare hands.
Back then he told me, “Nobody looks at what belongs to me.”
Now all that possessiveness belonged to Claudia instead.
Anna squeezed my hand sadly. “Mrs. Moretti... let’s go.”
I nodded weakly and turned away.
But suddenly Claudia shouted excitedly, “Wait! I wanna try riding by myself!”
Xander sighed. “You sure?”
“Yes!”
He finally got off the Ducati reluctantly while still holding onto the handlebars.
“Fine. Slow down on the turns and don’t panic.”
Claudia rolled her eyes playfully. “I’m not a baby.”
The next second, the motorcycle suddenly jerked violently. Her hand twisted the throttle too hard. Everything happened too fast. The Ducati shot forward out of control straight toward me.
“Mrs. Moretti!”
Anna screamed and tried pulling me away but my body was still too weak. The motorcycle slammed into me hard and pain exploded through my stomach as I crashed onto the pavement.
I heard Anna screaming. Heard brakes screeching then another crushing pain hit my abdomen.
And everything went black.
…
I don’t know how long I was unconscious.
Everything felt blurry and far away, like I was trapped underwater while voices echoed around me. I heard Anna crying somewhere near me.
“Please do something! She’s bleeding so much and nobody’s helping her!” she sobbed desperately. “Call another doctor! Please!”
Another nurse answered nervously, “I’m sorry, but Mr. Moretti already called all the specialists upstairs for Miss Claudia’s checkup. There’s nobody available right now.”
My heart shattered quietly inside my chest. Even after I got hit by a motorcycle. Even after I was bleeding on the ground, he still chose her first.
Tears slid silently down my face into the pillow.
Part of me wished I’d never wake up again.
Maybe dying would hurt less than loving Xander now.
When I finally opened my eyes again, I found myself inside a small hospital room at Golden Lion Hospital. Not the luxury VIP floors owned by the Moretti family. Just an ordinary room with white walls, cheap curtains, and basic machines beside the bed.
My stomach hurt so badly I could barely breathe. Every tiny movement felt like something was tearing inside me but honestly, my heart hurt worse. Before I could even sit up properly, the hospital room door suddenly slammed open so hard it hit the wall.
Xander walked straight to my bed and ripped the blanket off me roughly.
“Get the hell up,” he ordered coldly. “You’re coming with me.”
I stared at him weakly, confused. “Xander...?”
His jaw tightened impatiently. “Go apologize to Claudia.”
I actually thought I misheard him.
“What...?”
He grabbed my arm harshly and forced me upright. Pain exploded through my stomach instantly and I cried out, almost collapsing right there.
“Xander, stop...” Tears filled my eyes immediately. “Please, it hurts... I can’t walk properly...”
But he didn’t loosen his grip. Not even a little.
His face stayed completely emotionless.
“She got scared because of you,” he said sharply. “Do you even realize what kind of panic attack she had after the accident? She’s still shaking upstairs.”
I looked at him in disbelief.
“She hit me with the motorcycle...”
“She lost control because you suddenly appeared there!” he snapped back. “Fuck, Lorraine, do you have to make everything about yourself?”
Something inside me went silent after hearing that.
I stared at the man I once loved more than my own life and suddenly started laughing softly. Not because anything was funny. Because I think my heart finally broke completely.
Xander frowned. “What the hell are you laughing at?”
Tears rolled down my cheeks while I looked at him.
“What if I don’t apologize?” I whispered painfully. “What then? Are you gonna kill me too?”
His expression changed slightly. “Stop talking crazy,” he muttered. “You know damn well I still care about you.”
Care?
What a cruel word.
He sighed and rubbed his forehead like I was exhausting him. “My feelings for you never changed, alright? Claudia’s just something new. Something exciting. Don’t force me to keep explaining the same shit over and over!” Then he grabbed my wrist again and dragged me off the bed.
