Page 86 of Please, Forgive Me

“Actually, if you really want to know, the baby’s father… is Diego!”

Her voice carried just enough for those nearby to hear, and the impact of her words rippled through the room like a shockwave.

For a moment, the air vanished.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Ricardo’s eyes went wide as he turned to me, looking for confirmation. Around us, conversations faltered, curiosity replacing polite indifference.

I was furious, confused, and something else I couldn’t quite name.

Why did she have to say that here, in public? Why turn something already complicated into a spectacle for everyone else?

I tried to keep my expression neutral, but I knew that anything I said now would only make things worse. Inside, I was boiling; on the outside, I forced myself to stay cold.

My eyes locked on Maria Gabriela’s. Despite dropping that bomb in the middle of a business event, she stood tall. Her posture didn’t falter, even under the judgmental, stunned stares surrounding us.

She’d just thrown a grenade into the middle of my world. I knew Maria Gabriela was strong—but I’d never imagined she was capable of this.

“Is that what you want?” My words came out low, controlled, but heavy with meaning. “You want to put on a show in front of everyone?”

She blinked quickly, as if absorbing the hit, but lifted her chin again. The determination in her eyes was unmistakable.

“I wasn’t the one who chose to hide the truth,” she said, her voice quieter but no less intense. “I just got tired of pretending.”

Ricardo, still stunned, stepped back, clearly uncomfortable. The silence around us thickened, and I knew people were edging closer—not enough to intrude, but enough to listen.

Everyone wanted to hear. They wanted to know what would happen next. A personal drama at a public event was irresistible.

But I’d had it.

I was already at my breaking point with this whole situation…

MARIA GABRIELA

It might have been the wrong thing to do—and I know it was—but I couldn’t help myself, and I ended up speaking the truth, drawing the attention of several people.

That wasn’t what I wanted, but keeping so many things inside, being subjected to humiliations, to suspicions, and to the controlling way he’d treated me these past months…

Everything I’d been holding in needed to come out.

As I looked around, I saw curious, shocked, judgmental faces. They didn’t know half of what I’d been through, and honestly, it didn’t matter.

What mattered was Diego. He stood there, frozen, as if he’d been struck. His eyes met mine, and for a moment all the anger, frustration, and hurt I’d bottled up flared into a burning fury.

My blood boiled and my breath came fast.

I had done everything to keep things separate, to stay focused on work even when he made my life a living hell. But now… everything felt too small compared to what was happening.

I knew he was wrestling with his own demons. I knew there was a shadow from the past between us, something aboutthe mother of his child that made him treat me like the villain. Still, it was no excuse.

It didn’t justify what he put me through.

“So that’s it?” His voice finally cut the silence—low and laced with a dangerous mix of surprise and anger. “You decided to do this here, now?”

My throat was dry, but I forced myself to answer, keeping my gaze locked on his.

“I didn’t want to…” I started, my voice wavering more than I liked. “But after everything you did… the things you said… I just can’t anymore. I won’t pretend it’s all fine.”