“I didn’t do anything wrong! Why should I apologize?!”
I shot back, furious.
HE was the one who suggested coming here, and it was because Candy had been recklessly climbing over the barriers taking selfies that we both fell in the first place.
But I never imagined Blake had been blaming me for Candy’s death this whole time.
No wonder in our last life, when he was dying, he’d rather donate everything to charity than leave me and our kids a single penny.
Hearing my defiance, Blake figured I was hopeless:
“I KNEW you hadn’t learned a damn thing!”
“Fine, then you can find out what it felt like when thousands of snakes tore Candy apart!”
With that, he shoved me hard!
“OH MY GOD!”
As the crowd screamed, I crashed down from the fake rock straight into that writhing mass of snakes.
The snakes twisted and coiled like the world’s worst nightmare.
Thank God for all those gym classes–I rolled and scrambled to my feet the instant I hit the ground.
But even that split second of contact with the slimy, squirming mass made my scalp tingle with horror.
As my childhood sweetheart of fifteen years and husband of decades, Blake knew I was terrified of snakes–any kind of slithering creature.
Our whole family was genetically wired to be afraid of them.
So scared I couldn’t even look at pictures.
But now he’d literally shoved me into a snake pit!
“Hissss!”
“Get away! GET AWAY!”
Terror shot my adrenaline through the roof as I used my jacket to swat at the snakes.
Maybe because I was still on higher ground, the tangled mass of serpents couldn’t quite reach me yet.
But the crowd in the distance thought this was all part of the show.
They started laughing and placing bets:
“Hey! Hurry up and rip some snakes apart! If you make it out alive, I’ll give you ten grand!”
“Hahaha, I’ll bet twenty grand she doesn’t make it! One bite and she’s nothing but bones.”
“Come on, DO something! Quit standing there like an idiot!”
Caught up in the excitement, the crowd had turned into mindless gamblers.
Chapter 2
And Candy was now leaning against Blake, laughing as she threw a stack of cash down at me in the snake pit.
“Riley, didn’t you say your dad’s condition got worse?”
“And you begged me to help you find part time work?”
“Well, if you gut ten snakes and get me their bile for my beauty treatments, I’ll pay your dad’s medical bills for FREE!”
“Beats you practically whoring yourself out for money.”
Her laugh was pure malicious mockery.
This was the first time I really saw her true face.
So she’d always looked down on me.
Right now, I was just a clown for people to laugh at.
Nobody cared about my feelings, much less whether I lived or died.
Not even the childhood sweetheart I loved most or the bestie I trusted completely.
“You hear that, Riley? Candy wants snake bile for her skincare. Are you DEAF or what?!”
Seeing me frozen in place, Blake frowned impatiently.
“Or are you gonna keep playing tough until you’re six feet under?!”
He sneered, then pulled something from his pocket.
It was an old but well–preserved hair clip.
The little flower decoration was hand–stitched.
Not trendy or pretty, but full of love and care.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.