The Bride He Betrayed: He Gave Her the Ring, I Gave Him Goodbye

After ninety-nine punishments under the family rule, Clara Whitmore had finally earned her freedom to choose her own marriage.

Dragging her weakened body, she hurried forward, desperate to share the news with her childhood sweetheart, Adrian Hayes.

But what she saw instead froze her in place. Adrian was down on one knee, proposing-to Sienna Mercer, the girl who had once stolen her identity.

"Sienna, marrying Clara was my responsibility... but loving you is instinct," he said.

So love had been nothing more than a cruel joke. The man who once swore he would marry no one but her had already changed his heart.

With her world collapsing around her, Clara dialed home.

"I'll agree to the marriage alliance in Kingshaven," she said.

......

For the ninety-ninth time she had refused the arranged marriage, Clara was dragged into the family hall and whipped three hundred times. Even as her skin split open and blood soaked through, she never gave in.

Tessa Monroe, Clara's best friend, snapped in frustration, "What's so great about Adrian? He's just some broke guy from the slums, obsessed with his research. He can't even afford one of your necklaces with a year's salary, and all he ever gives you is cheap, defective junk."

Clara only gave a faint smile, offering no explanation.

Adrian had been her childhood companion-the only person who had ever been kind to her back then.

She had been born into wealth, yet switched at birth by a nanny. Growing up, she had known nothing but beatings and scolding. Adrian was the only light in that darkness.

When she had nothing to eat, he spent all his money just to buy her a sandwich. He fought other boys in the slums for her, coming back bruised and bleeding. And in those early, naive days of love, he had sworn he would marry no one but her.

At sixteen, when she was finally found by her biological parents, Sienna set a fire in retaliation. To save Clara, Adrian ran straight into the flames alone, nearly losing the use of one hand.

When he came out, he pinned Sienna to the ground and beat her without mercy. "Touch Clara again, and I'll make you pay with your life. Don't ever let me see you again."

But Sienna clung to Adrian like she would never let go-sending flowers, bringing him breakfast, confessing over and over again.

Adrian would simply take Clara's hand and look at Sienna with cold disgust. "I'll only ever marry Clara. Anyone who hurts her won't get away with it."

From that moment on, Clara swore she would marry him, no matter what. Even when she failed her college entrance exams and was sent overseas, even through all their long-distance fights, that resolve never wavered.

Thinking of Adrian, who had been working overtime at the institute for two months straight, Clara felt a pang of concern. Despite her injuries, she came to find him.

But the moment she reached the institute entrance, she walked straight into a grand proposal.

Petals filled the air, balloons drifted into the sky, and Adrian's close friends gathered around, cheering loudly.

"Congrats, Adrian, six years and you finally made it! Wishing you and Sienna a lifetime of happiness."

Clara stood frozen, convinced she must be hallucinating.

Adrian proposing to Sienna? That was impossible.

Everyone knew the person Adrian hated most was Sienna-the one who had hurt Clara in the past.

"Come on, everyone knows how deeply Adrian loves Sienna. He even spiked Clara's milk with laxatives so she'd fail her exams, couldn't study design at the art academy, and had to be sent overseas, just to make sure nothing would get in the way of him going to college with Sienna."

The air went still. Something felt off.

Someone quickly stepped in to smooth things over. "Hey, drop it, that's old news. But seriously, Adrian... proposing to Sienna like this, aren't you worried Clara will find out?"

Adrian held Sienna's hand, his eyes soft with affection.

"I promised I'd marry Clara, and I won't break that promise. But I won't let Sienna suffer either. So she'll have everything-except a legal marriage. As for Clara, she just went through punishment. She probably can't even get out of bed right now. She won't know about today... and I won't let her."

One of his friends laughed, "Man, Adrian, you've got real charm. Miss Whitmore gave up all those rich guys for you-she'd rather get beaten than leave you. But honestly? Sienna's the one who really matches you."

Cheers and congratulations echoed all around. But Clara felt like an invisible hand had wrapped around her throat, squeezing the air out of her lungs.

Her mind went blank, thunder crashing through her thoughts. With the last bit of strength she had, she turned and fled.

She didn't know how long she ran before her legs gave out and she collapsed.

Her palms and knees were scraped raw, blood seeping out. But she didn't feel a thing. She broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.

After what felt like forever, she slowly pulled out her phone and called home.

The moment the call connected, her mother's cold voice cut through. "You refused the marriage, and you still have the nerve to call me?"

Clara bit down hard on her lip, her voice shaking. "I'll do the marriage."

There was a brief silence on the other end. Her mother's voice remained just as cold. "At least you've come to your senses. One week. I'll personally send you to Kingshaven."

One week...

Clara slowly closed her eyes.

Seven years of her life-and all it would take was seven days to let it go.

After hanging up, Clara felt as if the last bit of strength had been drained from her.

Like a wandering ghost, she made her way back to the small apartment she shared with Adrian. The moment she stepped inside, her eyes fell on a photo of them at eighteen, standing beneath a blooming cherry blossom tree.

"I, Adrian, will only ever marry Clara in this lifetime. I will never break this promise."

The vow beneath the cherry blossoms still echoed in her ears, yet reality struck her across the face like a brutal slap.

Clara wiped away the tears on her face, a bitter smile tugging at her lips as she slipped off the silver ring on her finger.

They had made it together in a small workshop the year they graduated. Back then, knowing he had no money, she had deliberately chosen the cheapest silver ring.

And yet today, she had watched him place a massive diamond ring onto Sienna's finger.

It had never been about money. Only about whether he cared.

Without hesitation, she tossed the ring into the toilet. Just as she was about to flush it away, the front door opened.

Adrian was back.

The moment he saw her, he froze briefly before quickly stepping forward and wrapping his arms around her from behind.

"Clara, when did you get back? Are you hurt?"

His warm lips brushed against the back of her ear, filled with tender concern, as if she were something fragile.

For a moment, Clara felt disoriented.

It all felt like a dream-as if Adrian had never betrayed her, never proposed to Sienna.

But the next second, she caught the faint scent of perfume on him-citrus and rose. Sienna's favorite fragrance.

A wave of nausea hit her. The man behind her felt unbearably fake-disgusting.

For seven years, he had played both sides-juggling two women, making a fool out of her.

A surge of instinctive disgust rose within her, and she shoved Adrian away.

"What's wrong? You don't look happy." Adrian frowned, his gaze falling on her fingers. "Where's your ring? Why aren't you wearing it?"

Suppressing the nausea rising in her chest, Clara pressed her lips together. "I put it away. It gets in the way when I'm sketching."

His expression eased. As if recalling something, he took her hand and pressed a light kiss to the faint mark where the ring had been.

"I was actually looking for you. Clara, you should drop out of the jewelry design competition."

If it had been yesterday, she might have asked why. But now, she didn't need to.

He wanted her to give up because Sienna was competing too.

She didn't expose him. Lowering her gaze, she said quietly, "This has always been my dream. I won't give it up, no matter what."

"But you're a doctor." Adrian's tone turned flat. "You weren't trained in jewelry design. What you make is average at best. Why enter a competition just to embarrass yourself?"

Clara let out a cold laugh. "The results aren't even out yet. How do you know it'll be embarrassing?"

Her instructor at the design institute had once said that with her talent, she would shine brilliantly in the design world.

She was about to say more when Adrian's phone rang.

He glanced at it but didn't answer. "Babe, I'm telling you to quit for your own good. Think it over carefully. I've got things to handle at the lab. I'll come back tomorrow to be with you."

Without waiting for her response, he turned and walked out.

Clara watched his departing figure with a mocking gaze. The man felt like a complete stranger.

She had caught a glimpse of the caller ID earlier. It was Sienna.

One phone call was enough to pull him away-even though he knew she had just been beaten for refusing that marriage because of him.

She pulled out her phone. As expected, Sienna had just posted something.

In the photo, a man and a woman held hands. The silver ring on the man's ring finger gleamed under the light. The caption read, "Between her and me, I'll always be his first choice."

Clara glanced at the ring still lying in the toilet and let out a bitter laugh.

If Adrian had paid even a little attention, he would have noticed it-the ring she hadn't had time to flush away.

She pressed the flush without hesitation and watched it disappear down the drain.

Just like their eight years together-washed away without a trace.

She didn't sleep at all that night. The next morning, her phone rang by the bedside.

"Ms. Whitmore, hello. The design you submitted yesterday, Sunrise, has been reported for suspected plagiarism. Please come in and cooperate with the investigation."

By the time Clara arrived at the design institute, Adrian and Sienna were already waiting for her in the office.

Grant Holloway pulled two identical design drafts from his drawer and swept them with a sharp look.

"Your designs are exactly the same. One of you is suspected of plagiarism, and that person will be disqualified from the competition."

The moment Clara saw the two identical drafts, her face turned pale.

"Mr. Holloway, this is..."

"That's my design." Sienna cut her off and said timidly, "I created it myself. I don't know why it ended up looking exactly the same as Miss Whitmore's."

Clara froze. She had poured three months of blood and sweat into that design. Since when had it become Sienna's?

Forcing herself to stay calm, she swallowed her anger and said, "What nonsense are you talking about? I designed this myself, line by line. Since when did it become yours? I still have my original sketches."

She immediately pulled out the folder where she kept her drafts. But the moment she opened it, she found that every page inside had turned into blank paper.

Before she could even process what had happened, Adrian suddenly stepped forward.

"Mr. Holloway, I can testify that this design was indeed created by Sienna herself." He took out a stack of sketches and showed them to everyone. "These were all drawn by Sienna, line by line. I can vouch for that."

Looking at those painfully familiar sketches, Clara's fingers went numb as she stood frozen in place.

It was Adrian. He had taken her drafts...

For Sienna's sake, he was actually framing her for plagiarism. He knew perfectly well that design was her dream. He also knew that the word plagiarism could destroy a designer completely.

It felt as if a sharp blade had pierced straight through her heart, leaving nothing but cold emptiness behind.

Grant looked at her with disappointment, his tone turning colder. "Do you have anything else to say for yourself?"

Clara bit down hard on her lip and forced herself to stay steady.

"I still have proof. I saved my design process and concept notes, but I need to go back and get them."

Thank God. She had saved her design concepts onto a flash drive earlier. As long as she could retrieve those files, she could prove her innocence.

Grant nodded. "If you can't prove yourself within three hours, we'll revoke your eligibility to compete."

Three hours was more than enough for a round trip.

Clara rushed home at once. The moment she grabbed the flash drive, she hurried back toward the institute.

But the moment she reached the building entrance, someone suddenly rushed at her and drove a knife hard into her lower abdomen.

"It was you! You heartless doctor! You killed my dad, and I'm making you pay for it!"

Her lips parted. She wanted to tell him he had the wrong person. But the next second, blinding pain hit her, and she blacked out completely.

When Clara woke again, she found herself lying in a hospital bed.

Adrian was holding her hand, his face drawn with exhaustion. "Babe, you're finally awake. I almost lost you."

Clara pulled her hand away coldly and said with bitter mockery, "Adrian, is this act fun for you? You gave my design to Sienna. What else are you trying to take from me now?"

He paused, then explained softly, "I know you're angry, but you're a doctor. You're the Whitmore family's daughter. You already have everything. You even have me. Even if you never work another day in your life, I'd still take care of you. But Sienna is different. She graduated in design. If she doesn't place well in this competition, her career will be ruined. You already took her parents and her life as a rich lady. Don't take her future too."

Clara thought she had misheard him.

"What does that have to do with me? Those things were mine to begin with! Why should I be the one to give them up?"

She was shaking with rage, unable to believe that the man she had loved for so many years could say something so shameless.

A flicker of irritation crossed Adrian's face, followed by disappointment. "When did you become this petty? It's just one design. So what if Sienna gets it? And the deadline has already passed. You've already been disqualified from the competition, so stay here and recover."

His tone was indifferent, as though he were not talking about the dream she had carried for years, but some trivial thing that meant nothing at all.

Clara closed her eyes in despair. A self-mocking smile tugged at her lips. "Adrian, let's break up. I don't want to see you again."

"You want to break up over something this small?"

But Adrian did not get angry. Instead, he coaxed her the way one might soothe a pet cat. "You're not thinking clearly right now, so I'm not taking that seriously. Just calm down first."

With that, he turned and left, leaving Clara alone in the hospital room.

Some time later, Clara felt thirsty. Enduring the pain in her abdomen, she got up to pour herself some water. But as she passed the nurses' station, she overheard two nurses talking.

"What happened with that hospital incident? Dr. Whitmore wasn't the one whose surgery went wrong and led to the patient's death, was she?"

"It was Dr. Whitmore's boyfriend. He said she had a duty to protect her colleague, so he deliberately misled the patient's family into thinking it was Dr. Whitmore's fault."

With a sharp crack, the cup slipped from her hand and hit the floor.

Clara's mind went completely blank. She could not even feel the pain of the hot water splashing onto her hand.

Tears rolled down her face in heavy drops. Adrian had already disappointed her beyond words, yet hearing this still made every breath feel painful.

She had come so close. So close to dying.

Just so Sienna could steal her design, he had personally pushed her to the edge of death.

Darkness blurred her vision, and in her daze, she saw Adrian as he had been seven years ago.

The teenage boy had been covered in injuries as he carried her out of the fire. His voice shook, yet it was filled with the joy of getting her back alive. "Clara, I won't let anyone take you away from me. Not even death."

But now, for Sienna's sake, he had personally shoved her toward death.

It turned out that Adrian had long forgotten the promise he once made.