Chapter 7: The Wedding Invitations Were Still Waiting
The next morning, hundreds of wedding invitations sat inside the Caldwell estate.
Cream-colored paper.
Gold lettering.
Perfect handwriting.
A celebration of a future that no longer felt real.
Victoria Haynes stood in the ballroom staring at them.
The wedding was supposed to happen in six weeks.
Six weeks until she became Victoria Caldwell.
Six weeks until everyone called her one of the most powerful women in Connecticut.
But now?
Nobody was talking about flowers.
Nobody was talking about dresses.
Everyone was talking about the maid's daughter.
And Victoria hated that.
Not because Lily existed.
Because Lily changed everything.
Before Lily, Victoria was the woman who would save Ethan from his loneliness.
Now she was the woman standing between a father and his child.
And she knew it.
Her phone rang.
"Hello?"
A man's voice answered.
"Miss Haynes."
Victoria's expression changed.
"Who is this?"
"You know exactly who I am."
She looked toward the empty hallway.
"What do you want?"
A pause.
Then:
"To remind you that if Ethan discovers everything, you won't be the only person who loses everything."
Victoria went silent.
"What are you talking about?"
The man laughed softly.
"Ask yourself why Richard Caldwell chose you."
The call ended.
Victoria stared at the phone.
Because suddenly she remembered something.
Something strange.
The first time she met Ethan's father.
The first words he said to her.
"You understand the importance of family reputation."
At the time, she thought it was a compliment.
Now...
She wasn't sure.
That evening, Ethan received another envelope.
No name.
No address.
Inside was a single piece of paper.
One sentence.
"Ask Rosa why she never told you about the second child."
Ethan stared.
His heart stopped.
Second child?
Impossible.
He looked toward the living room.
Rosa was sitting with Lily.
Laughing quietly as Lily showed her a drawing.
A family.
Three people holding hands.
Ethan felt a chill.
Because if this was true...
May you like
Then the secret was much bigger than he imagined.
And someone was still trying to control the story.
