Novel 543
Chapter 300
Chapter 300
In the bustling corner of Bayridge City, the din of a crowded bar reverberated through the night. Selina lifted her glass, knocking back one shot after another.
Her chosen poison to drown the sorrows that clawed at her pride, the unbearable truth of her lineage.
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she drank, her heart a storm of despair and rage.
Frantically, she dialed Howard’s number on her phone, only to be met with the incessant beep of a busy signal. Every avenue to reach him had been coldly blocked, and he was gone from her life.
“Howard, you heartless jerk.”
Was their childhood bond, their near marriage, all for nothing?
If not for Gwendolyn, it should have been her wrapped in Howard’s loving embrace. Hatred for Gwendolyn seethed within her, hatred for Gwendolyn’s very existence, for herself not being the true daughter of the esteemed Magnolia family.
A destructive impulse to tear down the world itself bubbled up inside her.
“Selina.” Ryan burst into the bar, spotting her in her drunken haze, mercilessly downing her drink..
He snatched the glass from her hand, “Cut out this nonsense. Howard isn’t worth ruining your life for.”
“Mind your own business. Who do you think you are?” she snapped.
Grabbing a bottle, she took several harsh gulps, coughing as tears welled up in her eyes.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.
“Enough.” Ryan tossed the bottle aside and tried to lead her out, but Selina resisted, sobbing over her wretched fate, over Howard’s ruthlessness.
“If you care about me at all, stay and drink with me. My heart aches, the alcohol numbs the pain,” she cried out, her voice laced with hysteria.
Ryan clenched his teeth, “Fine, I’ll stay.”
He joined her madness, matching her shot for shot, his eyes betraying the affection he harbored for her.
He had carried a torch for Selina for years, even as he knew her heart pined for Howard, following her around like a lovesick puppy.
“To the broken–hearted.” they toasted.
“Drink up.”
Under the influence, Selina’s gaze on Ryan became blurred and doubled.
She saw Howard’s face in his.
“Howard, you finally came to see me. That bitch Gwendolyn, always clinging to you. She’s a whore,” she slurred, “I’ve seen her in that little slip dress, throwing herself at you. Howard…”
She collapsed into Ryan’s arms, her pale limbs wrapping around his neck, her lips seeking his in a hungry
kiss.
Her skilled hands worked him into a frenzy, his heart pounding uncontrollably.
“Selina, stop,” he protested weakly. But her hands were insistent, pulling at his clothes, reaching lower.
“I want you. Howard, if you can do those things with Gwendolyn, why not me? I want to be with you,” she purred, straddling Ryan.
The bar’s patrons had started to take notice.
Not wanting Selina to be recognized, Ryan scooped her up and left for the neighboring hotel, intent on finding a private place to settle her down.
He booked a suite and carried Selina inside, planning to leave her to sleep it off.
But she was like an irresistible siren, shedding her clothes and pulling him into a fervent embrace, pinning him to the bed.
Confronted with the woman he had adored for so long, Ryan finally succumbed, letting the current carry him away.
He was tender and careful, allowing her to vent her frustrations on him, all the while she whispered “Howard“. He indulged her every whim, playing the part of Howard in her deluded dream.