Neptune

Chapter 63 | The Darkness

C A S S I E

Seven years ago

The woman and I ended up in a coffee shop down the street. I stared at her as she scanned the menu. She was so beautiful and elegant.

Her hair fell perfectly, honey brown, such a beautiful color. Her skin was flawless. Her expensive clothes hugged her curves perfectly.

She looked like a supermodel.

I stared down at my sweaty hands lying on my big belly. I must have looked ugly next to her. My lips and skin felt dry due to dehydration after a long flight, and my feet were swollen because I was already eight months pregnant.

I must have looked like a disaster too due to lack of sleep—I'd been so excited to meet Luke that I hadn't had enough sleep.

"Are you not ordering something?" she asked after telling the waiter her order.

I just stared at her dumbly. I hadn't even thought about ordering a drink—it wasn't on my mind. Besides...

"Don't worry. I'll pay for it," she offered.

I felt embarrassed because I indeed had no money left after buying the plane ticket and paying the cab fares.

I was crazy. Luke was my only hope, and now that he wasn't even here, I didn't know what I would do.

In the end, I ordered a cup of tea.

"I'm Josephine," she started the conversation, studying me. "Who are you? How do you know Luke?"

I was silent for a while before I could find my voice. "I'm Cassandra. I..."

I didn't know how to tell her my story with Luke. I didn't think that I would tell her, because it was too personal. "I'm Luke's friend. We met at the beginning of the year."

Right. That was better. Telling her that I was Luke's friend and not a lover was a better way to open this discussion.

I sipped my tea to calm myself down and took a deep breath, and that was when Josephine's gaze fell on the ring on my finger again.

I wondered if she'd seen the same ring on Luke's finger and if that was why she couldn't stop staring at it. If she figured it out, I had to tell her the truth.

"How did you get that ring?" she asked.

"Someone important gave it to me," I said, gauging her reaction.

To my surprise, she scoffed.

"I'm sorry." She shook her head in disbelief. "It's funny that I found the same ring inside the trash can in Luke's bedroom."

I felt like I was being struck with thunder in the middle of bright daylight. Everything around me seemed to stop.

"What?" I stuttered.

Josephine's stare turned into a murderous glare. "You're playing innocent here, bitch?"

My mouth dropped open, no sound leaving my throat.

"You're one of those girls who can't just leave Luke alone," she said with an annoyed expression. "Gosh, I'm so tired of this. When will these girls learn that he's not available?"

I was still trying to comprehend what she said when her next words shocked me to the core.

"I'm his fiancée," Josephine stated.

My mind was spinning. "No," I whispered. "No, it's impossible. Luke didn't tell me—"

"I knew that the trip to Hallstatt had something to do with this," Josephine cut me off. Her eyes were now filled with angry tears, and that made my breath catch in my throat. "He had too much fun playing around. But in the end, it's me who he keeps coming back to. He can't live without me. We've been in love since we were children."