He Chose a Woman Who Resembled His Late Mother Over Me

"Baby, why are you so small?"

It was after dinner when I was curling up against Louis’s arms and he rested his chin in the crook of my neck and suddenly murmured.

But his words frozed me.

I was 5’3” and he was 6’2”. We had been together for six years, so how could he suddenly be surprised by my size?

I forced a tease, "Really? After six years, you’re only just noticing I’m small?"

Realizing he had slipped, Louis quickly masked it as if nothing had happened. He scooped me up, pressed me against the wall and kissed me hard.

When the kiss broke, his voice turned low and coaxing. "How could I just notice it, baby? I love how cute you are… how perfectly you fit in my arms."

That night, his passion carried a hint of punishment and he didn’t stop until long past midnight. The next morning, when my sister dropped by with a gift from abroad, she teased me with a smirk. "Tsk, Louis really isn’t worried about breaking your little body, is he?"

I only squeezed her hand and whispered softly, "Clarke, I’m calling off the wedding with Louis Altair."

——

"Huh? Claire, maybe there is just a misunderstanding between you two?"

She unpacked the takeout she had brought, laying out the containers neatly on the table. "Think about it. For six years, Louis has taken care of everything for you."

"Even Mom and Dad say he spoils you like a princess. Out there, he’s cold and untouchable, but at home, he’s nothing more than your loyal golden retriever."

I pulled the cartoon blanket tighter around me and stayed silent. Even this blanket… Louis had once waited three hours in line at Disneyland just to buy it for me.

Sometimes I wondered if I had been treated too much like a princess. But whenever I voiced that thought, he would just smile and say, "Claire, to me, you are a gift from God. And aren’t gifts meant to be cherished?"

Just then, his personal ringtone went off. I picked up and his anxious voice came through the line.

"Baby, don’t eat the pasta. The chef used shrimp sauce in it. I just caught it when I looked over the new dish details."

"Either give it to your sister or just toss it out. I’ll take you out for something good tonight, okay?"

That familiar, gentle tone brought a bitter taste to my mouth. My throat tightened like it was stuffed with cotton and I muttered, "Okay."

When the call ended, my sister gave me a teasing grin as she slid the pasta bowl toward herself.

"Your fiancé got such an insane memory. He even double-checked the order after placing it. And you’re telling me this Louis is cheating? I don’t buy it."

I stayed quiet, emotions tangled up inside me. Ever since that mild seafood allergy that left me covered in hives, Louis had been overly cautious. That night, he never left my side, his eyes red with worry as I lay hooked up to an IV.

"Baby, from now on, I’ll make sure to check your food."

And he had kept that promise. But then the last takeout box snapped open. Inside was a scrambled egg, topped with a sprinkle of chopped green onions.

My hand instantly froze.

"Wait—[Scrambled egg with extra green onions. My princess loves it.] Claire, don’t you hate green onions in scrambled eggs?"

My sister picked up the order slip and then glanced at my face. Her expression turned serious. "So… he really has another princess out there?"

As meticulous as Louis always was, he had never once given me scrambled egg with green onions. So, who was it for?

And then there were his words from last night.

Sitting on the sofa, a strange bitterness spread through me.

After a long pause, I finally let out a crooked smile, mocking myself. "Yeah. He must be cheating."

My fiancé not only held other women in his arms. He even ordered food for them with the same care.

Once, all of that had belonged to me alone.