[Alex Shaw and I have been making love up to eighty-two times in the past six months.] That was the message that Tracy Lombard sent to Giselle Diaz. Not only that, she also sent a lot of photos of her and Alex as much as two gigabytes. Giselle scrolled every single one of those.

Then she wrote another message. [Do you still want to marry Alex, Giselle?]

Giselle and Alex had been in love for ten years. He had chased after her throughout her entire youth, and today marked seven days until their upcoming wedding.

***

"Giselle, Tracy is not well. She will be staying here to recuperate for a while. Take care of her, okay?" Alex who had taken Tracy to stay at the villa without thinking, said.

Giselle stood there as she watched Tracy lean weakly in Alex's arms.

Her eyes sparkled with allure, and Tracy spoke with a gentle voice, "Alex, does Giselle not like me staying here?"

Alex comforted her with a low voice, "Of course not. Giselle is an excellent cook and she'll take good care of you. Besides, I promised your parents that I’d always protect you."

Alex had never asked her whether she was willing to do so, he decided that Giselle would attend to Tracy's needs. He even took her to the second floor.

"Alex, I like rooms with lots of sunlight," Tracy cooed. Her delicate fingers pointed whimsically towards a room. She was pointing at the bridal suite of Alex and Giselle's and it was also the sunniest room in the house.

Although Alex knew that, he still brought Tracy into their room.

Then, he turned to Giselle to say, "Giselle, tidy up the room and move your things downstairs for now. Tracy needs to stay here while she recovers."

Giselle said calmly, "I had already put my things downstairs."

Alex was taken aback. On the other hand, Tracy said with a feigned innocence, "I'm sorry, Giselle. Alex was just afraid that since I stay alone, no one will take care of me and my mother and father are also worried about me, so that's why I troubled Alex."

Giselle just looked at Tracy's innocent look. In her phone, the messages and photos that Tracy sent half an hour ago were still there. 

Her phone buzzed. A new message came from Tracy. So, she clicked the message to see it. When she opened it, she saw an image of sexy provocative lingerie, and from the receipt, it was clear Alex was the one who paid for it. Giselle recognized his account immediately.

"Giselle, go downstairs and make some cream soup for Tracy. She needs to eat light food." Alex instructed.

Giselle left the room. Just as she walked away, she heard Tracy sobbing in Alex's arm. "Alex, does Giselle hate me? Maybe I should leave ..."

"Tracy don’t cry. Giselle will take care of you," Alex coaxed her.

Downstairs, Giselle’s phone vibrated again. It was from Tracy's again.

[Look for yourself. Alex blatantly let me come in to live in your bridal suite, so who do you think is more important in his mind, is it me or you?]

Did Alex love her? Of course, he did. This was the man who had pursued her tirelessly for years, and the man who had nearly died saving her. However, for the past ten years, whenever it came to Tracy, he never stood by Giselle’s side.

Back when Tracy was younger, he used to say, "She’s Uncle Harry Lombard's daughter and also the girl I promise to protect."

Giselle had once tried to be kind to Tracy, but all she got in return was being framed by Tracy again and again, and Alex never believed her.

Then, Tracy went abroad to study. So Alex flew overseas every month just to visit her.

On her phone, Giselle received another photo from Tracy. It was another photo of Tracy and Alex. They were on the bed. Tracy even sent her a high-definition one.

[Giselle, Alex spent last night with me. He said I looked stunning in that lingerie. He also said you’re dull and boring in bed.]

At that moment, the door swung open. Giselle quickly locked her phone screen. Alex stepped inside. He raised his hand to hug her.

Giselle moved further away and put distance between herself and Alex.

Alex's voice was gentle as he said, "Giselle, Tracy twisted her ankle last night. I had no choice but to bring her back. Her parents are abroad, so I'm the only one she has in Rosewood."

He pulled her into his arms and made her stay in his arms. "Don't be upset. We’re getting married soon. Besides, Tracy even said she wanted to be your bridesmaid, she’s really happy for us."

Giselle’s lips curled into a cold smile. "So, I should cook for Tracy, right?"

The corner of Alex's lips hooked into a smile, “Giselle, I've already asked Lea to do it, it'll be ready later.”

Giselle observed Alex's face as he wondered.

When did the man before her become so calculating? In front of Tracy, he played the role of a caring brother, and yet he shared a bed with her, he played the role of a devoted fiancé. He made it seem like everything he did was for her, while also he was balancing his so-called responsibility to Tracy.

For a long time, she had foolishly believed that Alex was just being overly considerate. However, the photos and videos Tracy occasionally sent her … had torn her heart apart.

These two gigabytes of high-definition photos and video were ironclad proofs of Alex's betrayal over the past ten years.

Alex's voice remained soft. "Please take care of Tracy, will you Giselle? As you know …  You know…   Gerald Lombard died because of me. The least I can do is look after Tracy for the rest of my life. It's the only way I can make it up to him."

He then reached into his pocket and took out a bracelet. Giselle immediately recognized. It was the same bracelet in those photos that Tracy sent last night, that had been wrapped around her ankle, and today Alex gave it as a gift for her.

With practiced ease, he fastened it around her wrist and kissed her forehead gently as he murmured, "Giselle, I can finally marry you."

Ten years ago, her parents had betrayed and schemed against each other, and those experiences had shattered any faith she had in love. However, at that time, Alex stayed by her side and comforted her, and after her parents divorced and remarried, she became the victim of their marriage. She became the unwanted child, that no one wanted to support with love or care, let alone with money.

Through that, it was only Alex took her in. He hugged her and said, "Even if they don't want you, I do. Giselle, you're mine and my most precious treasure."

He had kept his promise. When the Shaw family disapproved of their relationship, he chose to attend a different university with her. Over the past ten years, he had worked tirelessly, becoming outstanding, brilliant, and wealthy.

For the past ten years, she was practically supported by Alex. In their relationship, Alex had given his all, and it had warmed her heart.

She had fallen in love with him in their third year together. It was the night he got into a car accident while rushing to pick her up. She had witnessed it with her own eyes.

At that moment the gut-wrenching pain that she felt had been unbearable. That was when she knew that she loved him.

Yet, the moment she arrived at the hospital; Alex did not care about his own bleeding injuries on his arm. All he cared about was the tears on her face.

His trembling hand had reached for her face, and his voice filled with tenderness. "Giselle, don’t cry. I’m okay. Really, I’m okay."

***

Back to the present, Giselle carried a bowl of cream soup into the room, while Alex was in the study room.

Seeing it was her, Tracy who was lying in bed, ceased all her pretense. She deliberately pulled down the neckline of her shirt, and Giselle immediately saw the hickey that covered her collarbone.

"Giselle, thank you so much. Since Alex dotes on me the most, I became a hassle for you," she said. Her voice dripped with false sweetness.

Giselle said indifferently, "You are right. You could have done all this yourself, couldn’t you?"

Tracy smirked, "Alex insisted that I be your bridesmaid. Do you agree about that, Giselle?"

She got up from the bed. Her ankle was perfectly fine. Giselle had expected that Tracy had been faking the whole thing so she was not surprised.

Suddenly, Tracy collapsed onto the floor and burst into tears as she wailed, "Giselle,  I know you don’t like me, but it was Alex who took me here. How could you treat me like this?"

Giselle was Tracy's impressive performance.

Before long, the door burst open with a bang. Alex stormed in, his angry eyes sweeping over Giselle before he scooped Tracy into his arms. He growled, "Giselle …."

Giselle saw the worry in Alex’s expression. He wasn’t even trying to hide it.

"Giselle, Tracy injured her leg. Can’t you be more considerate?”

She looked at the two people before her and calmly said, “I didn’t push her.”

Tracy sobbed in Alex’s arms. “Alex, I fell on my own. It’s not Giselle’s fault.”

Without another word, Giselle walked out. As she stood outside the door, she could hear the comforting words that Alex said to Tracy, "Does it hurt?"

"Alex, I would never ruin your wedding with Giselle. I know she’s the one you love most. I just want a little bit of your love.”

Alex lowered his voice, "I'm sorry, Tracy but Giselle is my wife."

Since the door was not fully closed and Alex had his back to her, Tracy looked at her through the gap, her eyes filled with provocation. Then she leaned in and kissed Alex.

Giselle didn’t see Alex push Tracy away. Instead, he cupped the back of her head to deepen their kiss.

Tears fell silently down Giselle’s face. Her trembling fingers moved to her abdomen. She could not keep this child.

She went downstairs to her room and sent a message on her phone.

[Doctor Sutherland, please schedule an abortion for me.]

[Are you sure about it?]

[Yes. You told me before that my body isn’t suited for pregnancy.]

[That’s right. You still have a chance to recover with chemotherapy, but you can’t keep the baby.]

[Okay.]

[Come to the hospital today for a check-up.]

When she first learned she had cancer, her biggest fear was that Alex wouldn’t be able to accept it. She was afraid he would leave her. At that time, she also found out that she was pregnant and she said with conviction that she would keep the baby.

The doctor said that her cancer was in the middle stage and that chemotherapy had a chance of curing it. However, she did not want to take that risk because she had longed to have this child for so many years. She and Alex had wanted a child for years. Her health had always made it difficult, and they had never succeeded.

She had barely stepped out when her phone rang.

"Giselle, where are you?" Alex's angry voice sounded. It was clear he was trying to suppress his anger.

Giselle replied flatly, “I went to buy some food for Tracy. I’ll make her some soup.”

As expected, Alex’s attitude softened immediately. He spoke gently. “Come back soon. Tracy and I are waiting for you.”

Giselle hung up as a mocking smile appeared on her face.

Then a message popped up on her phone.

[Mrs. Shaw, Mr. Shaw ordered a limited-edition handbag for you. He said you could use it for the wedding.]

The attached image shows an extremely festive red handbag.

[Mr. Shaw also said that this bag should be a unique one. What was the convenient time for you so I can send this bag to you?"

Something suddenly clicked in her mind that every time Alex went to meet Tracy, Alex would send her a bag. So. did this mean that these bags represent the time he met Tracy and cheated on her?

A bitter smile spread across her face. So, this was the real meaning of his gift.

As soon as Giselle arrived at the hospital. Doctor Sutherland immediately conducted an examination of her body. Then she waited for the result.