BILLIONAIRE'S UNINTENDED BRIDE

Chapter 56: The Breaking Point

Chapter 56: The Breaking Point

The silence of my hotel room has become my refuge, a shield from the storm that is Luke. My phone lies dormant, its silence a deliberate barrier against his ceaseless attempts to reach me. Each day that passes, five now in total, is a testament to my determination to stay hidden, to avoid Luke's desperate pursuit.

Today, I brace myself for a necessary but painful task: retrieving my belongings from Luke's penthouse. It's time to reclaim fragments of my life, to prepare for my inevitable return to work.

I had informed Max of my need for a few days off, his voice heavy with unspoken concern and curiosity. Knowing his close ties with Luke, I couldn't help but wonder if Luke had shared our troubles with him, perhaps even enlisted him to track me down. Max's questions seemed like veiled probes, searching for clues about my whereabouts. I gave him nothing, my answers meticulously neutral, revealing no hint of my location or emotional state.

The taxi journey to Luke's penthouse felt like a return to a life now tainted with deception. With each step I took in the lobby, every second I spent in the elevator, memories of laughter, of loving whispers, and tender touches, all played like a haunting melody, a painful reminder of what I'd lost.

In what used to be our shared bedroom, I moved almost robotically, packing my essentials into a duffel bag. The room, once our sanctuary of intimacy and love, now felt like a theater where our tragic story had played out.

As I reached for a book in the living room, an almost imperceptible change in the atmosphere stopped me. I turned to find Luke standing there, a mere shadow of the vibrant, confident man he once was. His appearance was disheveled, his eyes bloodshot, and the vodka bottle in his hand spoke volumes of his descent into despair.

We stood in silence, the space between us charged with unspoken pain and regret. His once bright blue eyes were now dimmed with sorrow. In that moment, I glimpsed the man I had fallen so deeply in love with, and my heart ached to reach out to him. But the hurt and betrayal were too fresh, too deep. I couldn't bridge the gap his deception had created.

As I turned to leave, his voice, raw and broken, halted me. "Please, Emily, don't go."

His words tugged at my heart, but the wound his lies had inflicted was too deep to ignore. "How can I stay, Luke? Everything between us now feels tainted, like part of your scheme."

He looked at me, a storm of regret and pain in his eyes. "I know I've hurt you. But my feelings for you, Emily... they've always been real."

Those words, once a source of comfort, now stung with betrayal. "You turned our love into a strategy. How can I trust you now?"

He looked at me, his eyes begging for forgiveness, for a chance to mend what seemed unfixable. "You said you loved me, Emily. Please, just say it once more."

I swallowed hard, the plea from the man I once knew now a painful reminder of our shattered trust. "I said that before I knew the truth about our marriage."

With a heavy heart, I pulled away from him, feeling the final strands of our connection unraveling. "I can't do this anymore, Luke."

His eyes begged for understanding, for a chance to mend the unrepairable. But the scars of betrayal ran deep, creating a rift that words could not heal.

Dragging myself towards the elevator, each step felt like wading through the wreckage of our once sacred love. Then, a raw, pained confession broke from Luke, a whisper of his inner torment, "I'm just damaged goods... just like him. A fucking echo of my father."

Those words, drenched in agony, rooted me to the spot. As I turned, my gaze fell upon Luke, a portrait of desolation. His hand was white-knuckled around the vodka bottle, every muscle in his arm tensed in a moment of unbridled fury. With a sudden, violent motion, he pressed the bottle against the wall. Then, with his free hand, he swung fiercely, his fist crashing through the bottle with unrestrained force.