Chapter 1267
Chapter 1267:
“Thank you. I didn’t expect to see you today. Didn’t you say you had an assignment?” Annabel replied, acknowledging him politely.
“How could I miss this?” Rory took a slow breath, wearing a mask of calm. “It’s your engagement ceremony. You look stunning today p>
He stared at Annabel as if he wanted to carve the sight of her into his memory forever.
Annabel blinked, and in the next second, she seemed to catch sight of someone. Her smile bloomed instantly, bright as a daisy greeting the morning.
Rory, caught by that smile, drifted into a brief trance. Then his thoughts shattered as Rupert stepped in, slipping an arm around Annabel’s waist and pulling her close.
Pain stabbed through Rory, sharp and cold. He tightened his grip on his glass until his knuckles whitened and his fingers trembled faintly.
Rupert’s gaze swept over Rory with detached indifference, barely acknowledging him before turning to lead Annabel away.
Annabel nodded goodbye, then left with her fiancé. After a moment, Rory lowered his eyes, his expression twisting into bitter amusement.
He wanted to escape the scene, but his feet felt rooted to the ground, his chest heavy with a sadness he couldn’t deny.
Three years.
Three years of loving Annabel, of treasuring every laugh, every smile.
And now, she was engaged to someone else.
He was about to lose her completely.
With a quiet sigh, Rory lifted his glass and drained it in one swift gulp.
Rupert led Annabel to the dance floor. The music curled around them, and Annabel rested her hands lightly on his shoulders as they swayed to the rhythm.
“Mr. Benton, you didn’t think to invite me to dance?” Annabel teased, a mischievous gleam in her eyes.
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Rupert answered only by gently squeezing her waist, and Annabel’s smile brightened.
Then her gaze fell to their intertwined fingers—and the rings on them. A strange calm settled over her.
She remembered a time when an engagement had felt like something distant, almost unreal.
Her thoughts drifted back to their first meeting.
In the beginning, she and Rupert had been like oil and water.
But life had a way of reshaping people and relationships. Through every high and low, they had grown closer, and somewhere along the way, love had bloomed. Now they had stepped into a new chapter—engaged, with marriage ahead.
Annabel looked up at Rupert, and warmth swelled in her chest, something she couldn’t quite put into words.
His affection soothed her like a balm, a comfort she hadn’t realized she needed. They moved in perfect rhythm on the dance floor, a quiet harmony that needed no explanation.
Then, suddenly, the sky erupted—fireworks blossomed overhead.