Ex-Husband's Regret (Ava and Rowan) novel Chapter 510

Chapter 81.

Gabriel freezes, rooted where he’s standing. His hand tightens, holding mine in an almost painful grip. I look up at him only to find his eyes wide, shock coloring his features.

I look over his shoulders to find a red-headed woman, looking at him with unshed tears in her eyes. She seems emotional. I don’t understand her behavior or that of Gabriel’s.

Slowly, Gabriel unfreezes and turns, his movements a bit stiff. He seems almost like a robot.

“Ashley?”

This time, I’m the one that stands frozen on my spot. My heart races as her name hits my ears and registers in my brain. I take a step back and try to pull my hand from Gabriel’s, but he doesn’t let go. Instead, it tightens.

Her hair falls down her back in shinny ringlets that remind me of the setting sun. Her green eyes were wide and expressive, framed by long lashes that were a shade darker than her hair. Her high, well-defined cheek bones stand out, and her full lips finish off her striking features. She was taller than I was, probably standing at five foot eight or nine. She has a slender figure with a small waist.

I stare at the beauty in front of me, my eyes drinking her in. No wonder Gabriel went for her. The woman was gorgeous, her natural beauty shinning even with little makeup on her face.

“At first I didn’t know if it was you,” she says, her voice soft. “You are rarely seen in such a public place.”

Just then, a hot dog cart passes near us. I push down the urge to throw up. Its greasy smell turning my stomach. I have been feeling this way for the past one and a half weeks.

I have my suspicions, but I haven’t taken the test yet. I know the symptoms, and I am a hundred percent sure of what is ailing me. Despite this, I haven’t told Gabriel. I haven’t told him that I suspect that I am already pregnant.

I can’t explain it. It’s the same case with moving to the new house. I have been waiting for something. I just don’t know what, but I know that when I find it, I will know.

Her eyes momentarily shift to me before they go back to Gabriel. “Can we talk? I recently came back, and I was hoping we could talk.”

“I am sure anything you have to say you can say it in front of my wife, Ashley. There are no secrets between us,” Gabriel says, his voice calm and assured.

Again, she looks at me before pulling her eyes away. Before she did, though, I saw regret in them.

“I never got to apologize to you for what I did,” she begins, while fiddling with her hands nervously. “It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was wrong, but by then you had taken your revenge, and I had to flee abroad.”

Gabriel doesn’t say anything, so she continues.

“Paul put me up to it. We were dating, and when he realized that you and your brother were attending the same school, he wanted me to get close to you when he couldn’t. His plan was to be your friend and take advantage of it. He couldn’t get close to either of you, so he talked me into it. I am an orphan, and I was drowning in debts, so I agreed. We first learned all we could about you, what you like, what kind of girls you prefer, and your favorite places. After months of studying you, we set up the stage where we first met.”