Part 2
The door of the elegant bridal shop swung open, revealing Mateo’s tall, elegant figure. He carried a beautiful bouquet of white orchids, but his eyes held not the loving warmth of a man about to get married, but a cold determination that made Valeria instinctively take a step back.
“What are you doing here, Mateo? You weren’t supposed to see me before the wedding,” Valeria said, trying to hide the trembling of her hands as she concealed the recovered note behind the layers of lace on her dress.
Mateo locked the door and bolted it with a soft click that sounded like a gunshot in the small room. He looked at the mirror where she had been gazing at herself just moments before and placed the flowers on the glass table.
“I knew you’d come to this specific boutique, Valeria. Your mother made it very clear in her will that this was the only place where you would keep her most precious secret,” Mateo replied in a measured voice, completely devoid of the affection he had shown her during the last two years of their courtship.
“What are you talking about? What secret?” she asked, feeling her chest tighten.
“The document that proves the company never belonged to my family, but to yours,” Mateo revealed bluntly. “For two years I’ve worked hard to gain your trust, to make you believe we were meant for each other. All to get to this day and make sure the documents signed at our marriage transferred total control to me without you suspecting a thing.”
Valeria felt the ground give way beneath her feet. All the warmth of the memories they had built together suddenly transformed into a coldly calculated deception. The radiant smile she had worn just moments before vanished completely, replaced by a profound courage that rose from the very depths of her being.
“You’re a monster,” she whispered, looking him firmly in the eyes. “I thought you loved me.”
“Love is a luxury for fools, Valeria,” he said, slowly approaching her. “Now, give me the paper you found in the hem. Don’t let things get complicated before the ceremony.”
It was at that moment that the back door of the shop, the one that led to the sewing workshop, suddenly opened. Out came not a stranger, but the shop owner, an older woman with gray hair and a serene gaze who had been observing everything from the shadows.
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