Chapter
The Great Escape to Happiness
Webfic
Chapter 1
“I’m getting married on the 10th of next month. want you to crash the wedding.”
Only then did the man finally lift his head and glance at the woman sitting across from him. A flicker of surprise passed through his sharp, fox–like eyes. He lightly tapped his long fingers on the table, his tone ambiguous.
“Crash the wedding? Do you even realize who you are… and who I am?”
Yet, Eleanor Sutton remained calm and composed, her voice as smooth as ever. “Of course I do. I’m Aaron Ford’s fiancée, and you’re his sworn enemy. You just need to answer me–are you coming or not?”
The confidence in her voice made Leon Whitman’s lips curl into a faint smile. He leaned back in his chair, slipping back into his usual laid–back pose. “I’ll come. What’s in it for me?”
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“I heard Mrs. Whitman Senior hasn’t been doing too well and keeps pressuring you to get married. If you crash the wedding, you’ll embarrass the Fords and get your family off your
back two birds with one stone.”
Eleanor said it so casually, like she was talking about the weather. Her indifference only made Leon more intrigued.
He raised his right hand and stretched it toward her, saying, “Deal.”
Their hands met briefly in the air, sealing the agreement. Without hesitation, Eleanor stood and turned to leave. But Leon studied his hand for a few seconds, then called out to her.
“Everyone in our circle knows Aaron’s obsessed with you–says you’re the love of his life. If you run off with me in the middle of the wedding… won’t he go completely nuts?”
Eleanor didn’t say a word. She paused for just a beat before walking out without looking back.
As she passed through the city square, a massive screen lit up with a live interview. The moment Aaron appeared on the screen–gold–rimmed glasses, sharp suit–every girl nearby stopped to stare.
Eleanor stopped too, quietly listening to the voice that felt so familiar. The host, Eric Smith, asked, “Mr. Ford, why did you suddenly acquire the brand BloomVine?”
Aaron answered, “I recently proposed to my fiancée. I needed a top–tier floral design team to decorate the wedding venue.”
Eric was caught off guard by his reply. He asked, And Ford Enterprise also just acquired dozens of snack companies. Is that part of your new business strategy?”
Aaron replied without missing a beat, “No. I bought them because they’re all her favorite snacks.!!
Eric was rendered speechless by Aaron’s reply. The interview lasted less than ten minutes, but no matter what Eric asked, Aaron kept circling back to one thing–his wedding and his flancée.
People watching couldn’t help but feel amazed. The powerful CEO of Ford Enterprise, a ruthless name in the business world, was clearly st a man hopelessly in love.
Light rain began to fall, and Eleanor listened for a couple more minutes before quietly turning and walking into the nearest store. As soon as she stepped inside, her phone rang. She picked
and heard Aaron’s voice, warm and full of tenderness.
up
“Nora, the housekeeper told me you went out. It’s raining now–where are you? I’ll come get you.”
She gripped her phone a little tighter. She paused before responding, “I thought you had an important meeting today. Don’t worry, I’ll just call a cab.
There was no hesitation on the other end before his voice came through again. “No way. Nothing matters more than you. Text me the address–I’m coming right now.”
Eleanor didn’t say no this time. As soon as the call ended, she sent him her location. However, just seconds later, two new messages popped up on her screen.
They were from the private investigator, Noah Arturo, she had hired a few days ago–finally, an update.
“Mr. Ford didn’t go to the office today. He spent the morning at the hospital with a woman attending her prenatal checkup. They just left.”
Attached was a high–resolution photo. In the picture, Aaron was holding the door open for a woman. The sign above the door clearly read “OB–GYN“.
Not far away, a few girls nearby were still gushing about how lucky anyone would be to marry Aaron, convinced he would spoil his wife like royalty. Eleanor kept listening, her eyes glued to the photo as a bitter, sarcastic smile tugged at her lips.
She had known Aaron since they were kids. They were childhood best friends who had grown up side by side. While other boys had been pulling girls‘ hair and causing trouble, Aaron had taken it upon himself to be her protector. He wouldn’t let any guy so much as look her way.
They had
gone from childhood innocence to the spark of teenage love, and he had been there through every moment. Whatever she had wanted, he had given her. He would have plucked the stars from the sky if she had asked for them.
Eleanor had once gotten curious about learning to ride a bike and fell, scraping her knee. Aaron had been so heartbroken by her tiny injury that from then on, he had refused to let he use any kind of ride–share or public transport. Instead, he had insisted on driving her
everywhere himself.
Eleanor had always believed she would be the only one in his heart. Yet, everything changed because of one unexpected invitation.
She had to cancel a pre–planned date with Aaron for an overseas performance that was important for her career. She had thought he would understand. A week later, she had come back home only to find that everything had fallen apart.
The night Eleanor had left, Aaron had been planning to propose. He had arranged a grand, romantic setup, but when she hadn’t shown up, he had drowned his disappointment in alcohol.
Drunk and heartbroken, he had gone to a hotel and accidentally entered the wrong room. That night, he had slept with one of his employees, Alla Spencer. Two months later, the news broke–she was pregnant.
Aaron’s grandmother, Margaret Habel, had found out and caused an uproar. She had been so furious and heartbroken that she had threatened to end her own life if Aaron didn’t take responsibility for the baby.
Margaret had also blamed Eleanor, claiming she was too obsessed with her dance career and would probably be unwilling to have children. Margaret had begged Aaron to at least leave behind one heir for the Fords.
Aaron, being the devoted grandson, didn’t want to hurt her, so he had signed an agreement with Alina. He had given her a huge sum of money in exchange for a promise–she would carry the baby to term and then leave quietly.
Once Eleanor had returned from abroad, Aaron had wasted no time proposing to her again. He had thought that if he cleaned up the mess behind the scenes, everything could go back to how it had been. He had believed he had hidden everything well enough that she would never find
out.
But what he didn’t know was that Eleanor–his one and only–had already learned the whole. truth. She could not forgive the betrayal nor could she live with the stain.
Thus, she had made up her mind to end this decade–long love once and for all. And now, was planning to walk away from their relationship and leave him for good right at the altar.
