âNone of them think that this is important, so both Vicky and Tyler didnât think much of it or look into it.
Vicky happened to break up with Tyler at the same time, so none of them had the energy to focus on
you. Thatâs why the misunderstanding continued for years,â Harvey said.
âMisunderstanding?â Gloria repeated sharply. âWhy donât you just come right out and say that Iâve been
living in my fantasy?â
Harvey fell into silence for a moment and said, âI know youâre not that kind of a person. Besidesâ¦itâs
normal for you to misunderstand after picking up something that belonged to Tyler. Gloria, this isnât
your fault.â
âI donât believe you!â she mumbled and shook her head frantically. âIf Tyler doesnât love me, why would
he pursue me?! Why would he be so tolerant of me? He even gave me that same necklace that he
dropped!â
Harvey could tell that she was hanging on by her last hope and shattered her last bubble mercilessly.
âThatâs because you looked like Vicky from behind. Heâs always been seeing you as Vickyâs substitute.â
âImpossible!â Gloria shouted. âVicky was still clinging onto Tyler when he pursued meââ
âIf Vicky was still in love with Tyler at the time, why would she get engaged with me?â Harvey
interrupted her.
âItâs because she looks down on Tylerâs family background! After that, Tyler gained success in his
business, and you failed, so she turned her attention to Tyler instead!â
Harvey stared at the pale look on Gloriaâs face. âWhy didnât you ever mention to me that Vicky once
dated Tyler?â
Gloria froze in an instant. She moved her lips slightly to speak, but no words would come out.
âItâs because you knew Tylerâs feelings toward Vicky were far more complicated than that. Why else
would you keep him hanging all back then? Was it really just your way of testing him?â
Gloria looked away.
Harvey took her silence as the opportunity for him to continue, âYou didnât accept him because you
always knew that Tyler didnât truly love you. He only pursued you because you were a substitute for
Vicky but also becauseâ¦â
He paused when he saw the tears scrolling down Gloriaâs cheeks, knowing that exposing the truth was
cruel to her.
She looked up and said, âYou want to tell me the truth, right? What else is there? Go on. I want to know
what I mean to him.â
After a few silent moments, Harvey said, âThereâs another reason why he pursued you, and thatâs
becauseâ¦youâre Vickyâs cousin. If he pursues you, heâll be able to get closer to Vicky. Think about
what Tyler is capable of for a second. Itâs a piece of cake if he really wants to get rid of a woman he
doesnât want.â Harveyâs lips curled into a sneer. âDo you know why you were kidnapped on the day of
my engagement party with Vicky?â
Gloria shivered, and another tear fell from her eye. âCan it be thatâ¦â
Harvey nodded. âI found the kidnapper who did it back then and he came clean, saying that Tyler
staged it all. He wanted to separate me and Vicky, and toâ¦â He pursed his lips, and his expression
darkened.
Though he was not in love with Vicky when they were engaged, having his fiance defiled by another
man was a humiliation to any man.
Tyler had been the one pulling all the strings, yet Harvey was the one who had to bear all
responsibilities. He lost the right to condemn Tyler because he was the one who chose to save Gloria
instead of Vicky, yet everything turned out to be a trap set up by Tyler.
âGloria, Iâm telling you all this in the hope that you can give up on Tyler in time, or heâll keep using you.
Do you really think that heâs caring for you because of guilt or love? Thatâs not it. All the so-called
compensation that heâs been making are just excuses for what he truly wants. Heâs been using you,
Gloria. Once you lose your values to him, heâll abandon you and cast you aside as he did with Sheila.
âOne last thing. After some consideration, I decided to tell you this, and itâs up to you what to do with
this piece of information. I wonât intervene again.â