جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 210

[Vivienne]I agree to ride with Caden, but not without having the biggest distance between us possible.We make it to the restaurant and he helps me out of the car.The restaurant is a little bit fancier than I imagined. It’s not some huge place, but still, it’s got a really nice vibe to it.As we enter the restaurant, there’s a short, plump woman in a suit standing there. Her blonde hair is pulled into a low bun and she smiles as we approach.“Welcome,” the woman greets, giving us a small bow.“Table for two,” Caden replies.“Yes, this way, please.”The hostess leads us to a table and pulls out the chair for me, which I accept gratefully.I take my seat, and Caden follows, the hostess handing us each a menu before leaving.“What do you want to have?” he asks, as if this is some normal, everyday thing for us, instead of him practically forcing me to come here.“Doesn’t matter.”“Come on. There must be something you like. Order anything you feel like. I promise I won’t judge.”He says

[Caden]Before I can even reach for her arm, she pushes her chair back and grabs her bag.“Are we done?” she asks, her tone distant, her gaze fixed anywhere but me. She doesn’t even want to look at me anymore.If this had been one of those times in the past—when things were easier, when she still loved me—I might have thrown a fit myself. I might have grabbed her arm, dragged her to the car, shoved her inside, and kissed her like she was the air I needed to breathe.Kiss her. God, it’s been so long since I felt her lips on mine. Too long. And who knows how long it’ll take me to convince her to come back home, to even give me a chance to touch her again. I’d do anything for her, but I know better now. I burned those bridges myself. I’ve been a jerk, an asshole, so utterly blind to her existence, that if it takes me an eternity to carve even the smallest fragment of love back into her heart, I’d deserve every second of that wait.But I don’t have that kind of time.I can’t let my child

[Caden]Vivienne leaves.But of course, I can’t just let her go.Not without knowing where she’s been staying these days.For some reason, none of my hired help has been able to track her down anywhere in the city, which seems absolutely bizarre. It’s not like she just vanished off the face of the earth. She has to be living somewhere, right?I decide to follow her, but I instruct my driver to keep a reasonable distance from hers. The last thing I want is to make her panic.I’m only doing this to make sure she’s safe—to ensure she’s living in a decent neighborhood, where she doesn’t have to worry about being robbed or attacked, day or night.But when her car slows down in front of massive black gates, I don’t know what to think.The property seems to belong to someone named H. Richardson, but the name doesn’t ring any bells—at least, not in a personal sense. The only Richardsons I’m familiar with are the ones who’ve been head-butting with my company for the past few months. The same o

[Vivienne]When I enter Harvey’s mansion, I’m instantly greeted by the head maid, Matilda— a forty-something woman with a stern look but a polite demeanor.She recognizes me immediately, though I have no idea how.“You must be Ms. Vivienne,” she gushes, her eyes bright. “Sir always speaks so highly of you. It’s a great pleasure to finally have you here.”“Thank you,” I say, unsure of what else to do. “Is my brother home?”Her smile falters slightly. “Not at the moment. But I’ve already informed his assistant about your arrival. I’m sure he’ll rush home as soon as he gets the message.”“You didn’t have to do that,” I say, a flicker of guilt creeping in. Arriving unannounced suddenly doesn’t seem like the best idea. Not that I can’t be here, or that Harvey wouldn’t welcome me, but I know him well enough to guess his reaction. The moment he hears I’ve shown up out of the blue, he’ll likely assume I’m in some kind of trouble.Which, of course, I’m not.Not anymore.“Oh, please.” The woman

[Vivienne]For some awkward reason, neither of them says anything after that.Rosita remains eerily quiet, while Harvey sits on the couch across from her.Surprisingly, he doesn’t look guilty. Not that he has anything to feel guilty about. I mean, wasn’t it kind of my idea for them to get together?The only thing that bothers me is that neither of them felt the need to be honest with me about it.I was their biggest supporter, wasn’t I?So why lie? Why hide? Why sneak around when:- You’re adults and fully capable of making your own decisions.- You never had anything to hide in the first place.“So, how long has this been going on?” I ask, because why not? I’m curious as hell.Rosita looks up from her lap, sneaking a glance at Harvey as if trying to gauge his reaction after the whole scene we’ve somehow stumbled into.Harvey, on the other hand, simply sighs and looks at me like he has nothing to hide. “A year and a half.”I can’t help but raise a brow. “Are you serious? This has been