Chapter 1932
No.1
A faint smile touched Victoria’s lips. It wasn’t a marriage, but with all of Westchester watching, it might as well be. She would be announced as Alexander’s official fiancée!
“No! They can’t get engaged!” A sharp, clear voice cut through the room.
Everyone turned to see Isabella walking into the ward.
Victoria clenched her fists. Why was Isabella here? To ruin things again?!
Alexander’s eyes lit up. Isabella came… She actually came!
Did she finally have feelings for him? Enough to object to his engagement?
Worried that Isabella would stop the engagement, Eleanor quickly said, “Isabella, you’re just in time. Your sister is pregnant with Alexander’s child. They must get engaged and be together.”
What she really meant was: the engagement must proceed. Isabella should not interfere.
Benjamin glared at her and snapped, “I don’t care about your feelings for Alexander. Victoria is pregnant. They belong together. You need to accept that.”
No.2
“Exactly, Isabella. You’ve lost your opportunity with Alexander. You didn’t act during the ceremony—now it’s far too late to reclaim him,” Margaret Whitmore sneered.
Isabella only laughed softly. “Who told you I came to take him back?”
“Then why are you here?” Margaret demanded, her expression puzzled.
In silence, Isabella’s eyes shifted toward Victoria.
Victoria’s heart dropped. That gaze was icy and penetrating, like a surgeon’s blade poised to slice her open.
She felt a surge of guilt. What did Isabella know? Could she possibly be aware the baby wasn’t…
Would Isabella expose her?
Just as panic began to churn in Victoria’s stomach, Isabella’s attention suddenly turned to Alexander.
Alexander met her eyes. This was not the timid girl from five years ago. Her stare was fierce and commanding.
No.3
It stirred in him a raw desire to dominate her, to claim her. But he knew Victoria carried his child…
As Alexander opened his mouth to speak, Isabella looked toward Theodore Montgomery. “Grandfather, Victoria is pregnant. What’s the purpose of a grand engagement? Her belly will only swell in the coming months. People will assume Alexander was coerced into this. An engagement is pointless—a waste. They should marry immediately.”
What?
A wedding? Now?
Everyone stared, certain they had misheard.
Isabella Montgomery, Alexander’s former lover, was advocating for a swift marriage instead of sabotaging it?
Victoria was equally stunned. What game was Isabella playing?
Isabella continued calmly, “Even if we want a spectacular event, we must arrange the wedding as soon as possible. Today, Alexander pressures Victoria to abort. Who’s to say he won’t push her down the stairs tomorrow? Have you forgotten what he did to me five years ago? If he truly cherished this child, he would never have suggested termination.”
Her words were measured, yet they sent a chill through the Montgomery family. She had a point.
No.4
If Alexander truly loved Victoria, why would he do such a thing? He had seemed reluctant to even visit!
Theodore Montgomery made the final decision. “I don’t care about the details. The wedding will take place in three days. That is final.”
Alexander’s fists clenched tightly. A wedding in three days?
Did Isabella truly wish to see him marry another woman? Was she genuinely ensuring he was bound to another in just seventy-two hours?
“Three days is too rushed,” Alexander interjected quickly. “I doubt I can arrange a proper ceremony—”
“Don’t worry. My associate is highly skilled at event planning. They could organize it by tomorrow,” Isabella cut him off.
Alexander’s face darkened. She was forcing his hand.
Unexpectedly, Margaret Whitmore agreed. “Fine. The wedding will be in three days.”
Since Victoria was already carrying Alexander’s child, marriage was inevitable. Why delay and invite more scandal?
No.5
Margaret instructed Alexander, “Begin preparations immediately. Select an auspicious time to take Victoria dress shopping.”
Alexander seethed, but under the circumstances, he had no choice.
“Understood.”
He shot a furious glare at Isabella and turned to leave.
Victoria watched Isabella, her brow furrowed. Why would she help her? Why show such kindness?
It made no sense. Isabella was scheming—Victoria felt it in her bones.
The moment Alexander left, Margaret Whitmore finally spoke. “Alright then. Should we begin the wedding preparations immediately? I hope Victoria can get some proper rest now.”
“Of course.” Eleanor Kensington gave her daughter’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “You’ll stay right here, Victoria. I’ll handle everything. Don’t you worry about a thing.”
“Okay,” Victoria replied with a compliant nod.
No.6
It had all worked out in the end. As long as she married Alexander, her future was secure.
Most of the people in the hospital room filed out to start organizing the wedding. Uninterested, Isabella Montgomery turned to Theodore Montgomery. “If there’s nothing else requiring my presence, Grandfather, I’ll be heading home.”
“Thank you for your assistance today, Isabella. Your sister is in your debt. I’ll put you in charge of the real estate development project next year,” Senior Montgomery stated.
He felt a pang of sympathy for Isabella. She had spent eighteen years with Alexander, only to have her own wedding destroyed. Now she had to watch her sister marry him.
It must be agonizing. No project, no matter how profitable, could truly compensate for that heartache.
Isabella, however, showed no outward emotion. She simply acknowledged his words. “Understood.”
A bitter taste filled Victoria’s mouth. Her hands clenched into tight fists beneath the sterile hospital sheets.
She owed Isabella? Owed her for what? Isabella was the one who had publicly ruined her reputation!
And now Grandfather was just handing the project over to her? That project was supposed to be Victoria’s responsibility! Its success would have brought her significant profit and cemented her standing. Why this sudden change?
No.7
Theodore Montgomery turned his attention to Victoria. “Victoria, you must focus on recuperating. You don’t object to this arrangement, do you?”
Object? Of course she objected!
She felt like she could tear them all apart in that moment. But the wedding was imminent. She had to maintain control, to not risk offending the Montgomery family. She had no choice. “Of course not,” Victoria forced out. “As long as Isabella isn’t overburdened.”
“Don’t concern yourself. I’m not pregnant, and my health is excellent. You should concentrate on your recovery. Focus on becoming a good mother and a dutiful wife. I will manage everything else,” Isabella commented, a faint, cool smile touching her lips.
With that, she turned and exited the room.
Victoria watched her leave, teeth gritted. She was gloating. Isabella was deliberately rubbing her face in it—flaunting the project, her vitality, her victory.
If the original plan had held, Isabella would be the one marrying Alexander, destined for a life as a confined housewife. That was supposed to be Isabella’s fate! Isabella should have been the one rendered useless and irrelevant!
But the tables had turned completely. Now Victoria was the one being forced into that powerless role.
Once married, her standing in the modeling world would vanish. She would never reclaim her former glory. She would be forced to watch from the sidelines as Isabella’s star rose higher and higher.