Chapter 8

Yates stopped in his tracks. After a moment's hesitation, he actually turned back.

For one absurd, fleeting moment, Yvette felt a spark of hope.

Then she watched him hurry past without so much as looking at her. He crouched where Claire had fallen and searched the floor until he found a small good-luck charm, one corner blackened by the flames.

It was the charm Claire always wore close to her body.

So that was why he'd come back.

Yvette began to laugh. The sound grew louder until tears streamed down her face, mingling with the smoke and heat surrounding her.

There had been a time when Yates would panic over the smallest cut on her finger, worrying so much that he'd scoop her into his arms and rush her all the way to the hospital.

Now she was barely alive, trapped in a burning building, and he'd come back only for another woman and the little charm she wore.

Once he'd retrieved it, Yates gathered Claire into his arms again and rushed out through the flames without looking back.

The moment they disappeared, a burning ceiling beam came crashing down toward Yvette with a deafening roar.

She closed her eyes, and everything went black.

When Yvette regained consciousness, she was back at the mansion.

Yates stood beside her bed, looking as though he wanted to explain himself. When he finally spoke, his voice carried a distant, almost rehearsed formality.

"Everything was so chaotic during the fire last night. I didn't realize you were trapped in there, too. If I'd known, I would've..."

"What would you have done?"

Yvette finished the question silently in her heart, the faintest trace of a bitter smile touching her lips.

"Would you have left Claire behind to save me first?

"Of course not.

"When I was the only woman you cared about, you were always there the moment I needed you.

"Now that Claire is the only woman you can see, how could you possibly notice me?" she thought bitterly.

She was exhausted, too tired to exchange even another word with him. Without a sound, she turned onto her side, giving him her back, and closed her eyes.

Her lifeless indifference made Yates frown. He seemed about to say something, but in the end, he merely rubbed his forehead and placed a glass of water and several pills on her nightstand.

"Take your medicine."

Over the next few days, Yates surprised her by staying at the mansion. He spent most of his time there, even handling company business from his study.

Yvette, however, refused to acknowledge him.

Her complete, icy indifference became a constant irritation, like a tiny thorn lodged in his heart. It wasn't enough to seriously hurt him, but it bothered him more with every passing day.

By the evening of the fifth day, he'd had enough.

Setting aside his tablet, Yates approached her bed.

"Yvette," he began, his voice tight with barely restrained impatience, "what exactly are you so upset about?"

She continued gazing out the window without responding.

His patience finally snapped. He grabbed her shoulders and forcibly turned her to face him.

"Look at me! I've already told you that Claire is the woman I love now. Of course I was going to put her safety first in a situation that dangerous! Why are you still throwing a tantrum over it?"

Only then did Yvette slowly raise her eyes to meet his.

There was no anger in them. No accusation. Just an unsettling calm.

For some reason, that calm sent a strange jolt through Yates's chest. His frustration intensified, yet there was nothing for him to direct it against. It was like trying to land a punch on a pillow.

He studied her for a long moment before finally releasing his grip. Apparently tired of arguing with someone who refused to engage, he wearily rubbed his forehead.

"Well, since you're fine now, there's no reason for me to keep wasting my time here. I have plenty of important business to deal with at the office."

With that, he turned and walked out of the bedroom without a backward glance.

Only after the door had closed did Yvette whisper, so softly that her words were barely audible, "Yates, I'm not angry.

"I've given up on you.

"I don't expect anything from you anymore. I don't even resent you."

True to his word, Yates didn't return over the following days.

Without him, Yvette's world suddenly seemed peaceful again.

She spent her days quietly recovering, eating her meals, and watching the clouds drift past her window.

Occasionally, she picked up her phone and inevitably came across Claire's social media posts.

They were filled with pictures of her romantic dates with Yates.

What struck Yvette was that every place they visited was somewhere he'd once taken her.

There was the restaurant at the top of the mountain where Yates had promised to love Yvette for the rest of his life. There was the beach where they'd once left their footprints together.

They even visited the wishing tree where Yvette and Yates had hung a love lock all those years ago. Yates had cut off their old lock and replaced it with a new one bearing his and Claire's names.

And just like that, Yates took his new "love" from one place to another, calmly and methodically erasing every trace of the nine years he'd shared with Yvette.

It was as easy as wiping chalk from a blackboard.

He hadn't hesitated for a second.