He Played Dead, I Played the Headlines Chapter 10
The next morning, I lay curled on my side in William’s arms. His arm was wrapped around my waist, his warm breath brushing against my neck.
Flashes of the night before interrupted my thoughts-the way his hands had held me in place. My ears grew hot.
“What the hell? They’ve already slept together?”
“Where’s the detailed scene? I need to know exactly what happened!”
“There was so much detail for Matteo’s romance, but when it comes to William, it gets skipped? Unfair!”
William cleared most of his schedule and flew me to a private island somewhere in Erowe for our honeymoon.
Far from the noise of Newford, I let all my worries slip away. The beautiful scenery helped a lot.
But for the first few days, I still woke up in the middle of the night, crying for no reason. Even I found it strange, but I couldn’t stop.
At first, William didn’t know what to do. Later, he would pull me into his arms, kiss away my tears, and gently coax me back to sleep.
There was a faint scent about him that made me feel safe.
Gradually, the nightmares faded. And his kisses stopped being so gentle. The way he “helped” me sleep changed completely.
Completely exhausting me, it turned out, worked just as well.
When we returned home, news of us went viral again. Fortunately, I had expected it.
“Breaking news! The new lady of the Valente family was previously Matteo Cassimo’s fiancee. Shortly after his death, she entered into a secret relationship with Don Valente.
“Sources claim that the two were already involved before Cassimo’s death. The pitiful Cassimo narrowly survived an assassination attempt, only to discover that his fiancee had already married someone else.”
Once the story broke, criticism flooded in. People called me fickle and unfaithful.
I contacted a journalist friend, planning to release my own evidence.
But before she could act, the news vanished completely. Even the anchor who had reported it resigned.
There weren’t many people who could pull that off. It was most likely William’s doing.
Three days later, I ran into Matteo while out shopping. Gone was his former confidence. He looked worn down and disheveled, and even his clothes were wrinkled.
The moment he saw me, he rushed forward. “Annie, it’s me. I’m not dead.”
I looked at him coldly.
When I didn’t react the way he expected, he froze for a moment. Then, he hurried to explain, “My death was a
staged accident. Someone had tipped me off that day, so I used a double to take my place in the car. I hid to avoid the assassins in a-”
“In a forest?” I finished his thought for him.
Matteo clearly hadn’t expected my reply. He was stunned.
I continued, “You stayed awake for days, afraid you’d drag me into it?”
He stared at me in disbelief. “You knew? Then why didn’t you send someone to help me?”
The live chat exploded with comments.
“Is Matteo serious right now?”
“Matteo, wake up. You might be the male lead, but William is more popular. He’s already won.”
“I wish I could step in and yell at Matteo myself.”
“I just don’t understand where he gets his confidence from. What makes him think he’s better than William?”
Matteo didn’t see any of that. He pressed on stubbornly. “Annie, have you seen what people are saying about you? They’re saying you went and married William right after hearing I died. The only way to shut them up is for you to come back to me.
“Annie, believe me. I love you. If you divorce William, I’ll marry you immediately. I’ll pretend none of this ever happened. Okay?”
I sneered coldly. “No. Matteo, cut the act. Weren’t you perfectly happy with Julie?”
His expression turned stiff. “You knew? Who told you? Was it my men?”
I looked at him, feeling helpless. I simply said, “Yes. They told me everything. Since you’ve already found someone you like, I wish you happiness.”
With that, I turned and walked away. The bodyguards stopped him from following me.
Behind me, I heard him shout, “Annie, I was wrong. Give me one more chance, please?”
