Chapter 14
I pressed a finger against his chest, right over his heart: “Tyler Horton, if the child was destined to be taken from me, why should I bother giving birth at all?!”
He looked as though lightning had struck him. “Elizabeth, that’s not what I meant! Please,
believe me–I never meant it like that!”
I narrowed my eyes and asked quietly, “Tyler Horton, do you know the story of the boy who
cried wolf?”
He never thought I would fling his own words back at him in this way.
“Tyler Horton, whether it was Sarah accusing me of pushing her into the pool, deleting her thesis, or masterminding her kidnapping and assault–did you ever once stand by me or speak up for me?”
He opened his mouth but failed to utter a single word.
I voiced the ugly truth, forcing each syllable: “Tyler Horton, you had countless chances. Yet again and again, you made the same choice. You chose her.”
He tried to defend himself.
I let out a derisive laugh: “If not for the engagement, I might have forgotten that I was the one who loved you for ten years, not Sarah Carlisle.”
“You personally pushed me away.” My gaze turned knife–sharp. “So why, tell me, should I have borne your child?”
Tyler reached out to grab me, but I slapped his hand aside. “Elizabeth, I-”
I cut him short: “Tyler Horton, do you know why I called you that day, why I told you I was
pregnant?”
Belated regret flickered in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Elizabeth, I…”
I clenched my fists, nails biting into my palms, smiling mercilessly: “I thought if, at that moment, you had spoken one kind word–just one–I wouldn’t have chosen to abort.”
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He Forgot It. He Regreted It
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Chapter 14
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I spoke softly, “No matter how vile you are now, once upon a time I loved you for a decade.
That child would have been my only relative in this world.”
“Tyler Horton, you personally destroyed my trust and love, over and over.”
Suddenly, Tyler dropped to his knees.
He knelt before me, speaking with anguish: “Elizabeth, I love you! I never meant it to go this way, I just…I just…”
“Love?” I sneered, looking at him with utter disgust. “Don’t even talk about love. Hearing it from your mouth is filthy. Don’t ever mention love to me again–it makes me feel sick.”
I ignored Tyler Horton and stepped back inside.
My entire body was trembling.
As I passed through the lush garden greenery, Jeff Vince’s teasing voice drifted out: “He came to see you. Feeling good about that?”
By now, I was used to his good–natured, sarcastic tone. I pursed my lips and said, “I’m so angry I could pop a vein.”
Jeff chuckled. “If you’re upset, just shout at him. Why be mad at yourself?”
He approached, took my hand, and we strolled together through the sea of flowers.
Though I was still not completely accustomed to the role of husband and wife, he never overstepped any boundaries.
I was no longer very resistant to these small gestures of closeness.
“So, tell me–why did he come looking for you?”
“His career’s in ruins, he’s lost his status in his family, and his sycophants have scattered. He’s fallen from the heavens right down to earth. Of course he’d think of me now.”
It was all obvious enough. Jeff was just making idle conversation.
I tilted my head back to look at the bright moon hanging overhead. Its pure radiance
Chapter 14
illuminated everything so clearly.
“Only now does he realize that I was the one who truly cared about him for all those years. Too bad he’s already destroyed that with his own hands.”
Jeff smiled slightly. “All the crowds under heaven gather for profit; all the bustle under heaven is for gain.”
His words were laden with meaning.
I thought about how I was using loce
and felt a bit guilty, choosing not to reply.
Jeff stopped walking and looked down at me. Under the moonlight, his refined, handsome Jeff stopped walking and looked down at face was even more captivating.
“Elizabeth, you may use me.”
I widened my eyes in surprise: “How did you know what I was thinking?”
“I just do.” A gentle smile spread across his face. “I have everything you need, and I’m more than willing to do it for you.
”
His forthright sincerity plucked at my heartstrings, making me both touched and uneasy.
Not because it felt wrong, but ho I had so little experience with such kindness.
Ever since Sarah Carlisle arrived at the Cala home, I’d lived in a world of suspicion, accusations, betrayal, and insult.
Every time I was falsely accused, I had to fight to prove my innocence. Yet under their cold
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stares, my defenses only made me seem darker, guiltier.
Eventually, even I could barely distinguish truth from lies.
