Tabitha paused and turned her head away, attempting to dodge the subject.

However, Christian was unusually persistent in getting an answer.

“Why aren’t you saying anything, Tabitha? Just tell me—Yes or no?”

The secretary emerged, holding a stack of papers.

“Mr. Loader, we’ve identified the assailant from yesterday and established his motive. Here are the details.”

Christian straightened his back, ruthlessness flickering across his eyes. He quietly took and read the papers.

As his eyes scanned the pages, Christian grimaced, and his breathing became shallow.

His voice shook.

“Hurry! Rally the security team now!”

Christian burst out an order before ripping out his IV once again. Not even taking a glance at Tabitha, he scrambled out of the hospital.

Tabitha stared at the dumped file on the floor in confusion before leaning over to pick it up.

She flipped through the pages, her hands trembling.

Everything made sense the moment Tabitha saw the name on the papers.

It explained the panic Christian was in.

Once more, it all came back to Kelsey.

Tabitha wasn’t meant to be the attacker’s target. Kelsey was the intended mark.

Kelsey, taking the role of Christian’s assistant, was responsible for external communications, but her incompetence had led to the downfall of multiple projects.

The assailant was a victim of one of those failed business ventures.

Upon arriving at the office building, the attacker mistook Tabitha, standing next to Christian, for Kelsey.

Christian was thrown into a panic, fearing the assailant would turn on Kelsey once he realized his mistake.

Surely, Tabitha would be in Christian’s thoughts too since her safety was compromised as well.

Maybe he simply didn’t care about her.

For the coming week, Christian didn’t even come home.

It dawned on Tabitha that Christian had reassigned his security detail, including the office’s security team, to protect Kelsey.

He even spared no expense to hire private investigators to track the attacker’s whereabouts.

It never occurred to Tabitha that Christian, a man defined by logic and composure, would get carried away over another woman’s well-being.

Due to Christian’s blatant favoritism, those in their friend circle were eager to see what Tabitha, the fiancée, would do.

Another week passed, and Tabitha read about the assailant’s arrest in the papers.

That night, Christian returned home all worn out.

He gave Tabitha a hug from behind.

“Stay still for me, Tabitha. Let me hold you.”

Catching a whiff of another woman’s perfume on Christian, Tabitha felt sick to her stomach.

She asked in a dry, hollow voice, “Do you still love me, Christian?”

Christian froze as a wave of fluster washed over him.

He nuzzled against her neck and pulled her closer into his embrace.

“Don’t be silly. Why would I marry you if I didn’t love you?

“In less than ten days, I’ll get to tell the world that you’re mine.”

With the wedding around the corner, Christian scaled back on his workload.

When he wasn’t overseeing the wedding arrangements at the venue, Christian stayed close to Tabitha.

One night, Christian left his phone on the nightstand to take a shower.

While rummaging through her things for her passport, Tabitha looked up and saw his phone lighting up. She happened to catch a glimpse of the notification.

It was a text message from Kelsey.

“I’m standing right outside your house, Christian. I must see you today, come rain or shine.”

Tabitha furrowed her brows.

She unlocked Christian’s phone and scrolled through their chat history. Christian hadn’t been responsive to Kelsey’s messages lately.

Christian had been keeping by Tabitha’s side in the last couple of days, and Kelsey was starting to get desperate.

Tabitha put down the phone and made sure the message was marked as unread.

Christian stepped out of the bathroom, drying his hair while discussing details of the venue layout with Tabitha.

He grabbed his phone for a look, and his words trailed off.

Tabitha asked, “Why did you stop?”

Christian put away his phone in a hurry. Keeping his cool, he kept the topic on the wedding venue.

However, his gaze kept wandering outside the window.

“It’s late. We should get some rest.”

Tabitha turned off the lights, and a bolt of lightning split the sky outside.

Without warning, heavy rain poured down.

Seeking comfort, Tabitha shuffled closer toward Christian.

She wasn’t one to be meek, but thunder was her kryptonite.

Understanding her fear, Christian once promised to never let her face a storm alone.

However, Christian’s heart and mind were elsewhere.

The last thing on his mind was Tabitha’s need for reassurance and her fear of thunder.

All it took was five seconds of the rain, and he rolled out of bed. Without a word, he bolted out of the house.

Curled into a ball, Tabitha pressed her hands over her ears.

At that moment, her heart felt as if it had been split apart by the thunder and washed away by the pounding rain.

Christian didn’t come home the entire night.

Waking up to her alarm first thing in the morning, Tabitha dragged her weary body out of bed.

Her visa appointment was today.

Given Christian’s resources, Tabitha knew the harassment was bound to follow, even when she left him at the altar.

She was better off planning ahead for the post-wedding escape.

Her plan was to travel overseas for a change of pace. She could even attend seminars and conferences she had missed many times before.

Tabitha came home after the visa appointment, only to find that something in the air was off.

She sneezed repeatedly, her throat itchy and dry.

Then came the sound of a cat meowing.

Tabitha glanced down and saw a cat sitting right under the coffee table.

Terrified, Tabitha recoiled.

Her allergy to cat hair was severe enough to trigger respiratory failure.

Tabitha struggled to breathe. However, the cat, seemingly taking a shine to her, drew closer.

Whipping her hands to the hand, Tabitha tried to shoo the cat away, but it had little effect.

Despite her heaving chest, Tabitha couldn’t get oxygen into her airway.

Amid her disorientation, Tabitha smashed the glass to scare the cat away.

The approach somewhat worked.

The cat let out a sharp hiss before scurrying to a corner in shivers.

Slumped against the wall, Tabitha fought for air.

Meanwhile, Christian burst through the door in a panic.

His priority was not Tabitha’s well-being, though. He simply rushed over to scoop the cat up with the utmost attention.

“What did you do?

“It’s just a tiny kitten. You shouldn’t frighten the little thing even if you don’t like it.”

Everything went dark before her eyes, and even Christian’s voice seemed faint and far away.

Tabitha crawled to the doorway, desperate to fill her lungs with fresh air. The suffocating pain in her chest just wouldn’t let up.

Moments later, Tabitha fought back the agony in her throat and asked Christian, “I’m allergic to cat hair, Christian, and it can be fatal. Have you forgotten?”

The revelation hit Christian like a ton of bricks, and his mind went blank.

Christian’s expression turned to one of terror.

He had witnessed one of Tabitha’s allergic episodes, and it was serious.

Not only would Tabitha break out in hives, but she would also suffer respiratory failure and risk of asphyxiation.

He could not believe that such important information slipped his mind.

Christian had once been so worried over Tabitha. Yet now, regret overtook his every being.

With the cat feeling heavy in his arms, Christian put the ball of fur down and frantically searched for Tabitha’s medication.

Color only returned to Tabitha’s complexion once she had her inhaler.

Christian carefully helped her to the bed for some rest.

“I’m sorry, Tabitha. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.

“The cat belongs to Kelsey. She freaked out when she couldn’t find her cat, so I got a little worked up earlier.”

Keeping to herself, Tabitha simply stared blankly at Christian.

Christian felt exposed under her piercing gaze.

He excused himself to make a call and stepped out of the room.

Moments later, Tabitha picked up on his muffled voice outside the door.

“Save me the talking. Just get over here and pick your cat up.”

For the days to come, Christian became Tabitha’s shadow, attending to her every need with utmost care.

Her occasional cough would heighten the anxiety within Christian.

He suggested postponing the wedding until Tabitha was all better.

Tabitha was completely against the idea.

“I’m fine. The wedding should go ahead as planned.”

The fact that Tabitha cared so much about the wedding assured Christian.

A couple of days passed, and Kelsey showed up outside their home with a basket of fruit.

“I’m sorry, Tabitha. It’s all my fault for not keeping an eye on the cat. I didn’t mean to trigger your allergy.”

Kelsey seemed apologetic. Her eyes were swollen from crying.

However, Christian didn’t buy her story.

His voice was indifferent.

“Your carelessness nearly cost Tabitha her life, Kelsey.”

Kelsey choked with sobs. “I’m sorry. I never meant for things to turn out the way they had. I—”

“That’s enough. Tabitha’s well-being is where I draw the line. Her safety means more than anything.”

Kelsey’s body language went stiff. She stared at Christian in a daze, the words failing her.

Less than two seconds later, tears rolled down her cheeks.

She shook violently and bolted out in tears.

“You!”

Christian rose to his feet, shocked by Kelsey’s outburst.

Without hesitation, Christian went after Kelsey.

The whole thing unfolded in mere seconds.

The drama was all too familiar to Tabitha.

After much contemplation, Tabitha trailed behind Christian.

Kelsey’s weeping and Christian’s whispers of assurances echoed from the back garden.

Tabitha watched as Christian brushed the tears from Kelsey’s face.

He hooked his arm around Kelsey’s waist and pressed his lips against hers.

…

It took half an hour before Christian entered the room.

Sitting against the headboard, Tabitha scribbled away in her notebook with great concentration.

“What are you writing, Tabitha?”

It might have been his eyes playing tricks, but Christian thought he saw what looked like a travel visa.

“Nothing.”

Tabitha put away her notebook and took her time before looking up at him.

Christian asked with a smile, “Our wedding is the day after tomorrow. Are you nervous?”

Tabitha shook her head. Then, she was struck by a thought. “Let’s have dinner together tomorrow.”

The dinner would mark the end of their relationship.

Christian failed to notice the depth in her eyes.

He agreed to the dinner plans without a second thought.

“Sure thing.”