Chapter 17
The smile vanished from Lennox’s face instantly, her tone turning cold.
“What are you doing here?”
She twisted her lips with mockery: “Shouldn’t you be on your honeymoon with Raina right now? What’s this little performance about?”
Her words hit like a poisoned dagger, cutting straight into Hayes‘ chest and twisting his insides into knots.
His face went pale, voice hollow: “I didn’t marry her, Len.”
“You’re the only person I ever wanted to marry.”
Lennox narrowed her eyes, derision flickering in them.
Since he’d protected Raina so fiercely, she was happy to let him have her. Coming here now to declare his loyalty was just pathetic.
“Oh.” She responded flatly, emotionless. “What’s that got to do with me?”
Hayes‘ heart trembled, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he forced a weak smile.
“Len, you’ve got it all wrong. I never liked Raina. It’s always been you in my heart.”
“What happened in detention wasn’t me—Raina used my name to bribe those people.”
“Not getting your call that day was my fault. I had no idea you were in danger.”
“I got revenge on everyone who hurt you. The Thorne family is bankrupt, and I shipped Raina off to be some seventy–year–old geezer’s trophy wife.”
He spoke rapidly, like he was afraid of being interrupted, spilling everything at once with desperate urgency in his eyes.
After listening, Lennox’s expression remained unchanged. She simply asked: “And then?”
Hayes‘ throat worked again, his voice softening: “I know I messed up, Len. Come back with me, okay?”
Lennox laughed–a light sound that made Hayes‘ heart clench inch by inch.
“Hayes, when you gave her my mother’s keepsake, when you favored her at every turn, did you think about my feelings?”
“When you left me alone on that mountain, didn’t you consider I might be in danger?”
“You say you love me, but you’re the one who stabbed me deepest. Don’t use ‘not knowing‘ as an excuse. If you hadn’t enabled her over and over, would Raina have dared to be so bold?”
“Whether you actually liked her or not, you gave her the impression she could replace me.”
She closed her eyes, as if all her energy was drained, her voice growing softer: “Just go back. Don’t come looking for me anymore.”
“I… stopped liking you a long time ago.”
Hayes‘ eyes instantly reddened. He grabbed her wrist desperately, staring at her: “Len, we grew up together. Fifteen years of history.”
“You can’t…” his voice cracked, “you can’t throw me away completely just because I made one mistake.”
“I didn’t cheat! I was just confused for a moment. You can’t do this to me!”
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A Billion–Dollar Goodbye: Too Late for Second Chances Mr Ev
12.80%
Chapter 17
“Look at this.” Hayes frantically pulled the sapphire necklace from his pocket, holding it out to her. “I found another one of your mother’s belongings.”
Lennox stared at the necklace, her gaze momentarily distant.
Of course she recognized it. But compared to this necklace her mother had donated long ago, the wooden bead bracelet her mother had worn her entire life was what she treasured most.
“Hayes, let’s end this amicably.” She pulled her wrist free forcefully. “I don’t like you anymore, and I don’t hate you either.”
“The necklace cost you money. Keep it yourself.”
After moving here, she’d slowly come to understand that all those grudges from half a lifetime should have been let go long ago.
She’d hated her father’s favoritism, hated Raina’s viciousness, hated Raina’s mother’s schemes. But all that fighting had only hurt herself the most in the end.
She thought if her mother were still alive, she’d want her to live freely and easily.
So she’d let go of her hatred for Hayes too.
Hayes felt like he was being sliced by a thousand knives. He looked at her with pleading eyes:
“Len, compared to our fifteen years together, my mistakes really don’t matter. Can’t you give me a chance to make amends?”
Lennox took a deep breath, meeting his eyes as she asked word by word: “Do you think I’m making a big deal out of nothing?”
Hayes‘ face drained of color as he waved his hands frantically: “That’s not what I meant…”
“You think it’s not enough, that I’m throwing a tantrum. But Hayes, what you don’t know is–we’ve already been married once before.”
Hayes‘ mind went blank with a buzzing sound.
He stared at Lennox in shock, stammering: “Len, what… what do you mean?”
Lennox’s gaze was unnaturally calm, but her words pierced like ice picks:
“You think I’m overreacting, but this isn’t my first life.”
“In my previous life, you did marry me. But three years later, I discovered you and Raina had already built a family together–your kid was already two years old.”
“You say you never liked her, but who knows? Maybe in a few years, you’ll cheat again, start a family with her again, have children together.”
“Your betrayal, I’ve already experienced once. That’s enough.”
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