The Man Who Broke Me (Grace and Antonio) novel Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Grace Parrish had a perfect marriage, and everyone envied that she had a perfect husband who loved her more than anything.

Yet, on the day she knew she was pregnant, she came to know that Antonio Kaufman, her so–called perfect husband, had already cheated on her for more than two years.

His mistress was Rowena Quinn, who had bullied Grace in college. The two even had twins.

Rowena kept provoking her, and Antonio lied to her again and again for secret trysts with Rowena.

To get back at Antonio, who had cheated on her, Grace had an abortion decisively and arranged for her fake death.

Before leaving, she gave him the abortion surgery form and the proof of Rowena provoking her as a gift, telling him that he could only open it in a few days.

***

“Help me stage an accident of a private jet crash so that I can leave Antonio,” Grace said.

Hearing this request, her bestie, Sybil Bourn, was slack–jawed. She couldn’t help but wonder if she had misheard.

She was as shocked as the first time she knew Antonio and Grace were getting married.

Grace came from a poor family in the village, whereas Antonio was the heir of the Kaufman family, a top–notch family in Boston. They were like two people from two different worlds, and the news of them getting married shocked everyone.

For a time, everyone in town was curious. Some chalked up his feelings for Grace to a mere novelty, some suspected that he had a beloved that he couldn’t be with, and Grace was a stand–in, and some figured he married her because of some bet.

But after they got married for three years, Antonio proved to everyone that the only reason why he married Grace was that he loved her.

He loved her to the core.

Back then, he fell for her at first sight and then started to pursue her relentlessly.

He gave her gifts every day, donated billions of dollars to charities in her name, and built primary schools worldwide while naming them “Grace Primary School“.

The reason was simple–he wanted everyone in the world to know her and thank her; if she met trouble in the future, no matter where she went, there’d be someone who helped her out.

To spend more time with her, he did part–time jobs with her, including waiting tables, handing out flyers, delivering packages, and so on. He had been papered since childhood and had never lifted a finger doing chores, yet he toughed it out for two entire years.

His slender hands, which had only been used to play the violin in the past, were calloused.

Finally, he won Grace’s heart with his sincerity. However, given the huge gap in their family backgrounds, his parents firmly refused her to be their daughter–in–law.

To gain his parents‘ consent, he was whipped sixteen times severely, and his back was always covered in blood every time. It was scarred even now.

Realizing he still couldn’t persuade them because of that, he gave up all inheritance and started from scratch because, in such a way, no one could stop him from being with Grace.

All his friends thought he had lost his mind. He had always been shrewd, yet for a woman, he willingly walked away from that huge sum of money.

His family finally gave in and agreed to his marriage with Grace.

After getting married, he changed all his staff to men.

He always told Grace about his whereabouts and even had a tracking system installed on his phone so that she could check on him at any time, though she had never asked him to do so.

The netizens all thought they were a great match, the proof of

real love.

He and Grace harvested countless shipping fans and were even more popular than celebrities for a while.

Grace was the only one who knew that her so–called perfect husband had twins with another woman behind her back.

When she learned this, she was so heartbroken that she coughed up blood and passed out.

From now on, you’ll be strangers to me.”

Grace stroked her abdomen gently. Unable to hold back any longer, she sobbed. Why did her baby choose to meet her now of all times?

Antonio held her in his arms, coaxing her gently, “Why are you crying? Who upset you? Tell me. I’ll make things right for you.”

Then she caught a faint, unfamiliar scent of perfume mingled with baby formula on him.

She pushed him away with great force and leaned over the bedside, puking.

Antonio figured it was morning sickness. He instinctively held up his hands and placed them next to her lips, not worrying she might puke on him at all.

He looked at her worriedly. Of course, he was overjoyed that she was pregnant, but he was there for Rowena back then when Rowena got pregnant and gave birth, and he knew exactly how much women would suffer in terms of pregnancy, delivery, and postpartum recovery.

Grace gawked at him. She knew he was a complete neat freak, but there wasn’t a hint of disgust on his face. He even hand- washed her clothes and shoes usually.

He had loved her for three years unconditionally, and vice versa. She couldn’t even bear the thought of leaving him.

For a moment, she even wanted to abandon all her principles; she figured that as long as he promised not to see Rowena again, she’d forgive him.

Yet, in the next second, he received a text message and left hurriedly, saying something had come up at the office.

Half an hour later, Rowena sent her a photo. In the photo, Antonio was holding his twins, kissing one of them on the forehead.

The photo shattered all her hopes.

After leaving the hospital, she went to Sybil, asking Sybil to stage a fake jet crash.

She knew Antonio. He’d never say yes to a divorce, and the last thing he’d do was let her go. He’d go mad instead.