Thorns Grow After Betrayal (Celeste and Chester) novel Chapter 181

But she was a proud and dignified woman.

The Joanna she used to be would never have lowered herself to say such things, swallowing her pride and dignity—

Joanna wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes, then turned with bitter resentment to look at Celestine. "Mrs. Fordham, are you satisfied now? Chester is your husband. He'll always be yours! I hope you're pleased with all your scheming—now he's seen it for himself. Make sure you don't disappoint him again! Don't make him suffer because of you!"

With that, she stormed out of the gallery without another glance.

Chester, stunned by Joanna's final words, seemed to awaken from a trance.

He shot Celestine a long, searching look—no words, just that—and then turned to chase after Joanna, both of them vanishing down the hallway.

Celestine's hand tightened around her paintbrush until her knuckles whitened, then slowly relaxed.

She had seen it clearly in Chester's last glance: a flash of anger, blame, and contempt.

Joanna always knew how to play her cards.

This time, she'd twisted her own "crimes" into acts of love for Chester.

That made everything fall into place.

After all, a man can't bring himself to hate a woman who loves him so desperately, so single-mindedly.

He was the one who had everything to gain, and Joanna was his lost ideal, the one that got away.

Seeing a woman like that lower herself, humble herself for his sake—even her "crimes" seemed almost moving.

And Celestine? The wife who'd had her very right to survive stripped away, and now couldn't even get a divorce—she was the villain in their dramatic love story.

Celestine filled in the last patch of green on her canvas, as if, stroke by stroke, she was piecing back together the shards of her own shattered heart.

The simultaneous appearance of all three of them today had been an accident, pure and simple.

Joanna's performance was flawless—her tears so convincing, even Celestine almost felt something for her.

If Chester chose Joanna in a moment like this, Celestine could hardly blame him. It almost made sense.

She should be grateful, really—those two had left her with all the evidence she'd ever need of their affair.

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