His 181St Second Novel – Lavern Ross was cheating on Marina Finley. Marina stood outside the fitting room in the bridal shop, witnessing her future husband Lavern fooling around with another woman. “Lavern… does this wedding dress look better on me, or on your fiancée?” the woman asked. “Of course on you.
I’m dying to be all over you; doesn’t that prove how irresistible you are?” he said. Thrilled with his answer, the woman let out a flirtatious giggle. “I want you to remember me forever. On your wedding day, on your anniversaries, you’ll always think back to today, to me.” Marina listened to the soft moans from inside, feeling like she’d been plunged into an icy abyss. On the eve of their wedding, Lavern, who’d always seemed so devoted to family, had been taking frequent business trips. Turned out, he had a side piece.
Fighting back the nausea churning in her stomach, Marina turned and walked away, heading to her car. They’d been together for seven years, building a business from scratch, hustling side by side to turn Ross Group into the success it was today. Her sister Elnora Finley had warned her that Lavern wasn’t a good match, and there was still a message from her on the phone.
Elnora: [The Finley family won’t be attending your wedding to Lavern. You’re on your own.] With red-rimmed eyes, Marina opened her phone and typed a reply. Marina: [I’m calling off the wedding.] It took a while for the response to come through. Elnora: [Come back to Vrufield in a month, and I’ll believe you. Otherwise, we’re through as sisters.] Marina sent back a simple [Okay] and pocketed her phone.
She started the car and drove off. Meanwhile, Lavern stepped out of the bridal shop with his arm around the woman. Spotting the familiar license plate, he froze for a moment. In that brief hesitation, the car vanished into the distance. He shrugged off her hand from his arm, straightened his clothes, and slipped back into his polished, dignified facade. “I’ll have my assistant drop you off.” The woman whined, clinging to him. “Nooo, you promised we’d go shopping.” Lavern lifted a hand, ruffling her hair, his eyes flashing with an unyielding chill.
“Behave.” She didn’t dare push it, sulkily letting go and following his assistant away. Once she was gone, Lavern headed to his own car. Catching his reflection in the glossy paint, he saw no trace of debauchery in his sharp features; no hint of wine, women, or excess. Back at home, he spotted Marina’s car in the garage. She was still in the driver’s seat, staring at her phone. “You went out?” He opened the door, casually tossing his suit jacket onto the passenger seat before leaning in close.
His black shirt was unbuttoned at the top, revealing glimpses of his toned muscles. No lingering signs of another woman on him. When she stayed silent, he leaned in for a kiss. Marina switched off her phone and held up a hand to stop him, her tone icy. “Are you scared of me going out?” He paused for a beat. “Of course not. You can head out whenever you want. I just worry you’ll get bored without company.” With that, he smiled, sliding an arm around her waist and cooing softly. “Tell me, who’s got my darling all worked up?” Marina didn’t respond, just staring at his strikingly handsome face, her eyes cold as frost.
He was the same as ever, always quick to pick up on her mood swings, pinpoint the issue, fix it, and shower her with emotional reassurance. She shook her head, looking away, her voice flat and distant. “Lavern, you’ve been swamped lately. I don’t see the point in going through with the wedding. I’m worried you won’t have the bandwidth for it.” Lavern thought Marina was being downright ungrateful at that moment. After all, he was a somebody now, a well-known figure. “Say that again!” His voice was laced with fury. Marina held his gaze without flinching.
“There’s no point in going through with our wedding. I’m worried you won’t have the bandwidth for it.” As she turned to leave, Lavern grabbed her arm, his anger flashing unmistakably in his eyes. He said, “I’m killing myself with work for our company, for our future. Do you want our kid to start off already behind the eight ball? “I just got back from a business trip, and instead of showing even a hint of concern, you’re throwing a tantrum and being completely unreasonable. When did you become like this?” Marina stared at him, taking in his groundless accusations, and found the whole thing almost comical.
Lavern standing before her felt like a total stranger, as if she’d never really known him at all. He was full of lies, just like so many other guys, cheating and then pinning all the blame on the other person, as if his betrayal had been unavoidable, like she’d forced him at knifepoint to sleep with someone else. The wedding was still two months away, and Elnora had given her a month to tie up loose ends here. In that time, she’d erase Lavern from her life completely. She marched straight upstairs to the bedroom and int