“Stop shouting at me,” I yelp, scrunching my nose, feeling the hurt spread through my chest at his harsh words.
He laughs again, more bitterness, his eyes cold and numb as he stares at me.
Simon shakes his head. I lift my hand to reach for him, desperate to make him understand, but he steps back, sneering at me.
“Pack your things. We are leaving first thing in the morning. This holiday was a bad idea.”
“Simon, wait, no, please don’t do this, please talk to me.”
He glares at me in anger. “And what would we talk about? Would you tell me lies or would you tell the truth? And how would I be able to know which is which because apparently your cunning and deception is as skilled as your father’s.”
His words cut into my heart like a blade. “I’mnothinglike him,” I murmur in shock.
Simon says nothing, but his expression says everything.
Tears stream down my face as he turns and walks away from me.
He doesn’t sleep in our bed that night. He sleeps on the sofa, his eyes on the doors, his security team on high alert.
I don’t sleep either. I pack our things, leaving the bags by the door, ready to leave this beautiful place far too early.
The twins are crying, upset that we can’t stay, and I hate him for that. Why dangle this dream experience in front of their faces only to snatch it away? I truly hate him for doing that to them.
But maybe this is my fault, not his. Maybe I really did put us all in danger. Maybe I was stupid and reactive and made a rash decision when I trusted my brothers enough to approach them alone.
It feels like I am holding the weight of the world on my shoulders when we fly back home. The entire family is sullen and quiet. Arron is clutching his treasure box on the seat next to him like it’s the last remnant of happiness he will ever experience.
Maybe I really did make a mistake.
But honestly, I thought Simon trusted me more than he did. I thought we had built something. I thought I could come back and tell him what happened, and he would be happy that I shared the information. He didn’t even give me a chance. The trust was shattered before I said a word to him.
Was it really that fragile to begin with? Was this the reason I should never have let myself start feeling for him again?Have I destroyed everything? … But apparently, there was so little to destroy.
Chapter17 - Simon
I stand at the window in my office, looking over the city, wondering how the fuck it came to this. How was I so blind? Such a fool to fall for her again. Yet here I am in love, in pain, and regretting the choices I made.
The penthouse feels so much smaller than it did before we left for the holiday.
Now that we’re back, the tension is palpable. The weight of it is thick in the air.
I’m furious. I can’t let go of the anger.
The amount of effort I put into keeping her safe, into promising her that no one would hurt her—the things I did and the things I was willing to do—but all that time she was doing exactly what I stood up and defended her for. She was trying to feed her family information about my family.
She betrayed me.
She betrayed me five years ago when she disappeared and hid my children. And she betrayed me again now.
I think most of the anger is a way to hide the heartbreak.
Because my heart is breaking. The entire future that I was slowly building in my mind has been shattered all over again. Just like it was when I thought I would marry her five years ago, and she vanished into thin air.
I can’t even confront her about it because I’m too angry. Too hurt. I’m not ready to face it. So I do the only thing I can do: I avoid her.
The penthouse becomes strained. Each moment when we cross paths is so awkward, I can feel it crawling over my skin.I leave the room as soon as she enters. I make excuses about working during dinner time. I only go to say goodnight to the twins once she has left their room.
It’s horrible. It’s claustrophobic. It’s drowning me.
