Chapter 6
Under Kieran’s expectant gaze, I stayed quiet for a few seconds before finally picking up those beautiful earrings I no longer wanted.
But I didn’t put them on like he hoped. Instead, I held them in my palm, weighed them, then turned my wrist and watched them fall and shatter.
The broken crystal fragments bounced onto Kieran’s dress pants.
Only then did I noticed his legs were covered in torn holes and bloody wounds from the dog bites.
But with that, I pretended not to see and looked up calmly:
“The gift’s ugly. I don’t like it. Anything else? If not, I’m leaving.”
His untouched coffee spilled as he gripped it too hard. The guy who was usually such a neat freak didn’t even care
about the coffee stains on his sleeve.
He pressed his throbbing temple and asked with a bitter smile:
“Chloe, how long are you gonna keep up this act? Hmm?”
“You threatened Ivy into quitting, then deliberately picked the worst time–when she needs heart surgery abroad–to break up with me. I could overlook all that crap for old times‘ sake. I just want to know what you really want.”
“Marriage right now? Fine, let’s go to city hall. We’ll get the license first thing in the morning.”
Kieran’s face darkened as he suddenly grabbed my arm, yanking me closer.
Looking into each other’s eyes, he was shocked to see only cold indifference in mine.
I pulled away from him with disgust, having zero desire to explain or defend myself against whatever ridiculous accusations Ivy had thrown at me.
I just said, word by word, calm as still water:
‘Kieran, I’m telling you one last time–we’re done.”
‘So don’t worry. I’m not marrying you, and I don’t have any of the crazy demands you’re imagining. If we run into each other at alumni events, just pretend you never knew me. Don’t bother saying hi.”
No hysterical accusations, no tears that used to annoy him–watching me get up and walk to the counter to order three full–sugar lattes to go, Kieran’s eyes finally showed unmistakable panic.
He followed me out of the coffee shop, his face pale:
15:22
Nine Years Wasted–Now l’ın Marrying Your Rival
63.30
Chapter 6
“Chloe, I was your first love.”
I looked at him with mild interest. “So?”
“You confessed to me first, blushing like crazy. You told me you’d never felt this way about anyone before… At graduation, we promised each other we’d be together forever, no matter what. So…” His voice actually started to stutter: “So you can’t just decide to break up because you’re bored. That’s not fair to me.”
I burst out laughing. “Sweet talk from when we were horny teenagers–you didn’t actually take that seriously, right? Kieran? Why are you even…”
Before I could finish my thought, the clearly angry man stormed into the elevator, grabbed my wrist, and dragged
me out.
Ignoring my struggles, Kieran gritted his teeth and said:
“Chloe, fine. You win. Whatever you want, I’ll agree to it. Just stop torturing me with this cold war bullshit.”
Hearing “cold war,” I looked at him like he’d completely lost it:
“Kieran, are you deaf? How many times do I have to tell you we’re broken up before you leave me alone?”
Even after I’d made myself crystal clear, Kieran still acted like he hadn’t heard a word. He stared at me for several seconds. Then he kept gripping my struggling right hand, his face cold as he tried to drag me toward his silver car parked nearby.
Seeing this, Grayson rushed forward, quickly grabbing my other arm:
“Chloe doesn’t want to go with you.”
Noticing how I was using all my strength to move toward Grayson, Kieran’s mouth became a thin, hard line. He said mockingly:
“You know Chloe and I are engaged, right? She already said yes to my proposal. In a few days, she’ll be my wife. What right does some outsider have to interfere between me and my wife?”
Grayson’s grip on my hand tightened.
Before he could come up with a comeback, I was so pissed off by Kieran’s shameless words that I snapped:
“Grayson’s my boyfriend. My business is his business. As for you–you’re just a disgusting ex who won’t take no for an answer. Where do you get off barking at my boyfriend?”
15:23
