Seven Years A Fool, One Day A Queen

"Sorry, the number you have dialed is currently on another call. Please try again later..." The automated message sounded distant and unfeeling. Beyond the doors of the courthouse in Gridron, Kristine Green stood stiffly in a slate gray suit. The chill of the autumn wind stripped any trace of warmth from her sharp, elegant features. Her fingers clenched around a document that had already been wrinkled beyond repair. This was supposed to be the day she officially tied the knot with her boyfriend, Colton Yates. From morning until now, she had waited, but he never arrived. At this point, she could not even count how many times he had left her waiting like this. Another call went through as she tried his number once more. The same mechanical voice answered her again. As she finally dropped her gaze, a breaking news alert lit up her phone screen. "Yates Group CEO Colton Yates personally appears at the airport to welcome his girlfriend back from abroad. The couple reunites sweetly and shows open affection." Curiosity and dread pushed her to open it, and an image filled the display. The photograph showed Colton in a tailored black suit, standing tall with effortless poise. Even from a side angle, his sharp profile was striking enough to draw attention. What caught Kristine's attention above everything else was the softness reflected in his gaze. A faint, bitter curve formed on her lips as Kristine reacted to the sight. She had never known Colton to look this gentle or this openly tender toward anyone. It became clear to her that Elyse Lloyd had always been the woman Colton could never let go of. After all, a single call from her had been enough for him to walk away from a day that was supposed to matter more than anything. Kristine's phone vibrated again, and a new message appeared on the screen. "You saw the news already, didn't you? If you still have any pride left, you should leave Colton immediately." Elyse had sent it, the woman who clearly held Colton's heart. Scrolling upward, Kristine came across a message Elyse had sent several days earlier. It was a prenatal checkup report confirming that Elyse was already more than eight weeks along. The document clearly listed Elyse as the expectant mother, with Colton's name recorded as the father. When she first saw the report, Kristine wasn't shocked in the slightest. Year after year, Colton spent nearly half of his time traveling to Eyling, the country where Elyse lived. Given how long this had gone on, she might have questioned his fertility instead if Elyse had not ended up pregnant by now. Rather than choosing to walk away, she suggested that they get married. Maybe it was because she simply could not bring herself to let go. Back when she was eighteen, love struck her hard the first time she saw Colton standing at the university entrance. People around her often said Colton was the Yates Group heir, someone unreachable and far removed from ordinary lives. Still, she refused to accept that. Fueled by passion and stubborn hope, she chased after him without hesitation. By the third year of pursuing Colton, she finally made it. Even so, happiness never came. Because right after she confessed her feelings and he agreed to be with her, a call from Elyse came through, and he left her standing alone in the biting wind. That was the moment she first heard Elyse's name. Taking a slow breath, Kristine brought up the call screen once more. This time, the number she dialed was not Colton's, but her mother's. The call went through almost immediately. Without waiting for her mother to say a word, Kristine spoke in an even, distant voice. "I'll return and accept the arranged marriage." The surprise in her voice was unmistakable when Monica Palmer heard Kristine's decision. "So you've finally made up your mind?" Without pausing even for a breath, Kristine answered, "I have." After a brief silence, Monica asked, "When will you be coming home?" "The twentieth." Ending the call right after, Kristine slid into her car and drove back toward Colton's villa. During the drive, she allowed the ache in her chest to swell without restraint. In the end, it no longer mattered. This was meant to be the final time. By the time Kristine reached her destination, exhaustion weighed heavily on her body. Once she finished showering, she fell onto the bed. She knew she could have chosen to walk away much earlier, but seven years of loving Colton had tied her emotions too tightly to let go so easily. With less than half a month remaining, she needed to use every remaining day to settle everything and cut him out of her life for good. Later that night, while she slept, Kristine sensed the bed dip slightly beside her. Moments later, a cold pair of arms drew her into an unfamiliar embrace. A crease formed between her brows as irritation surfaced. Colton's low, magnetic voice brushed against her ear. "I'm sorry." Wrapped in darkness, Kristine did not open her eyes. Her lashes quivered as she lay still. Colton spoke quietly. "How about we get married tomorrow morning?" Almost immediately, the phone resting on the nightstand lit up. Colton loosened his hold on her, and his tone turned gentle. "Don't cry. I'll come over right now." The rustling of him changing clothes reached Kristine's ears from behind. She reacted with a silent, humorless laugh. Moments later, she turned on the bedside lamp and called out to him as he reached the doorway. "Colton, don't go." Despite her words, Colton kept moving. Without hesitation, he turned the handle, pulled the door open, and walked out. As his footsteps gradually disappeared, Kristine forced a smile onto her lips. She held it there until one tear slipped quietly from the corner of her eye. Morning came, and when Kristine woke up, she realized someone else was in the house. Bobby Davis, Colton's assistant, had arrived. "Miss Green, Mr. Yates asked me to deliver these to you," Bobby said, motioning toward the neatly arranged jewelry on the table. Instead of excitement, Kristine responded with calm detachment, "I see." A flicker of surprise crossed Bobby's face. In the past, Kristine had always reacted with visible delight whenever Colton sent gifts. Never before had he witnessed her greet them with such clear indifference. "I'll excuse myself, then." Keeping his tone professional, Bobby chose not to ask questions and quietly left. Left alone, Kristine glanced at the gemstones shimmering under the light, yet her expression did not change. She was fully aware that Bobby had selected every single piece. Whenever Colton tried to make amends, sincerity was never part of the effort. Thankfully, she had stopped expecting anything from him. With nothing left to hope for, the ache in her chest had no reason to linger anymore. A gentle chime sounded from her phone, drawing her attention to a new message. Elyse's name appeared on the screen. "You received the gifts Colton sent, didn't you? You should be thanking me. If I hadn't convinced him to apologize with presents, he wouldn't have done anything at all." Kristine's fingers curled tighter around the phone in her hand. The only reason Elyse was still not blocked was that she intended to gather every single message and forward them to Colton once she left Gridron. She wanted him to finally see the truth and realize how vile the so-called pure and innocent Elyse was behind his back. After drawing in a slow breath, Kristine lifted her eyes toward the surroundings. The estate belonged to Colton, and there was barely anything of hers inside, so packing was not something she felt pressed to do. What truly worried her was her own home. When her feelings for Colton had been at their strongest, she truly believed she would spend her life in Gridron, the city he belonged to. Because of that belief, she had purchased things freely and without much thought. As for appliances and everyday items, she did not care much. Those could always be sold. What hurt Kristine the most to leave behind was those priceless antiques. Still, before she returned home, a visit to the hospital was unavoidable. Over the past few days, her stomach had been giving her trouble, and nearly everything she ate came right back up. Even so, she had delayed seeing a doctor just to go to the courthouse to make their marriage official. Eventually, she drove herself to the hospital. Just as she was about to step out of the car, she noticed the entrance swarming with people, and a voice rang out above the noise. "They're coming out! Mr. Yates and his girlfriend are coming out!" A slight tremor ran through Kristine's lashes as her eyes locked onto Colton, who was carefully guarding Elyse while they pushed through the crowd beneath flashing lights. Previously, Kristine had only seen the two of them together in a photograph. This time, she was witnessing it unfold in real life. From where she stood, she could clearly catch the sharp warning etched into Colton's cold, penetrating gaze. "Back off, or you'll regret it!" he shouted. An unmistakable threat followed his words, and the commanding presence he exuded forced the crowd into sudden silence. After a brief pause, a reporter finally gathered enough courage to ask, "Mr. Yates, who is this lady to you?" Although rumors had long painted Elyse as Colton's girlfriend, he had never personally acknowledged it. Every pair of eyes fixed on Colton, including Kristine, who watched from inside the car. Rather than responding right away, Colton reached out and seized the reporter by the neck with his long fingers. Shock spread instantly through the crowd. In the middle of the day, had he completely lost control? Was he really willing to go this far just to protect a woman? Only after an extended moment did Colton release the reporter. The man's face had gone pale as Colton swept a frigid glance across everyone present. At last, Colton spoke. "If you're all that desperate to know, then I'll make it clear what our relationship is," he said. "But this will happen only once. Do not expect an answer again!" At his words, the entrance of the hospital plunged into complete silence. An oppressive sense of fear settled over the scene. Cutting through it all, Colton's deep, commanding voice rang out alone. "She is someone I guard. If any of you dare bother her again, you'd better think twice about what follows!" At that moment, Elyse slowly raised her head and appeared gentle and reserved. She looked at him with open admiration. Watching this unfold, the reporters immediately grasped the situation. Inside the car, Kristine felt her resolve to see a doctor vanish completely. She pressed down on the accelerator and drove straight back to her own place.