The Last Autumn We Shared のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 21 - チャプター 28

I turned slowly and looked at him. A faint smile touched my lips, but there was no warmth in my eyes."Xavier, aren't you tired of this game yet? I'm not some prize for you and Caleb to fight over."Caleb had followed close behind. The moment he saw me, his eyes widened, and before I could react, he pulled me into his arms."Yvette... I missed you so much."He held me so tightly it felt as though he wanted to pull me into his very bones. For a moment, I couldn't even break free.Xavier's first instinct was to tear him away from me. His hand was already reaching out when he stopped.With bitter clarity, he realized he had no right to.After all, whatever had happened between us, he and I were still nothing more than two people who knew each other well enough to feel familiar and not well enough to be anything more.I pried Caleb's fingers from my waist one by one. He let out a muffled grunt before finally releasing me.Then he met my icy stare and fell silent.Neither man followed as I

Caleb clearly hadn't expected me to agree. His head snapped up, disbelief all over his face.But I wasn't doing it for him.I was thinking about the employees who had been with the company for years. Realistically, many of them were older now. If the company collapsed, starting over somewhere else wouldn't be easy.I left Caleb to his surprise and went straight to Natalie.I asked for permission to build a team of my own and return home to recruit a group of experienced employees.Natalie trusted me completely. The moment she heard I planned to bring in people as capable as I was, she lit up and immediately submitted the proposal to headquarters.Headquarters took it seriously too. The request was approved almost at once, and I was given a month to put the team together.With everything settled, Caleb and I flew back together.At the airport, Xavier suddenly appeared.All his casts were gone. He looked completely recovered, dressed in a tailored suit and looking so polished that I almo

Xavier froze, then blinked at me with an innocent expression."Yvette, what are you talking about? Just because I'd take a little satisfaction in Caleb getting what was coming to him, that makes me some kind of monster?"The harmless look on his face sent a chill racing up my spine."There was something I could never figure out. Why was Yara so determined to cling to Caleb? Why was she so fixated on getting rid of me? And how did she know exactly what he liked well enough to win him over so easily?"Xavier rubbed his chin thoughtfully."Maybe it was coincidence. Or maybe she'd done her homework because she wanted to land a rich guy."I gave a humorless smile."Really? Then explain something to me. Yara grew up poor. Where did she get the nerve to scheme her way into that much of Caleb's money? And once she had all that money, why come back and provoke him? She was practically asking to get herself killed."Xavier nodded solemnly."People who suddenly come into more money than they know

One corner of Caleb's blanket had slipped aside.Underneath, blood had soaked through a large section of the sheets. The wound on his wrist was still seeping, and from the amount of blood beneath him, it was obvious he'd cut himself some time ago.No wonder his face had been so pale, his voice barely more than a whisper.The nurse immediately called for help, and he was rushed into emergency treatment. Even after they took him away, the metallic smell of blood seemed to linger in my nose.In the end, the blood loss was too severe.Caleb died.As his only remaining family, Xavier came to handle the arrangements. When Caleb's ashes were handed to him, he turned around and dropped the urn straight into a trash can.My fingers curled slightly, but I said nothing.I simply turned and walked away.After seven years together, staying until the end was more than enough.Not long after I took my former coworkers overseas with me, I heard that Yara's condition had worsened before her case ever m