The rims of his eyes slowly turned red. He forced a pained smile, then lowered his head, looking utterly helpless and pitiful. "Are we really... just going to let it end like this?" he asked, his voice hoarse.

He refused to accept it.

He didn’t want to accept it.

And he couldn’t.

’Annabelle, is this really how it ends for us?’

’You’ve been by my side for more than twenty years. Are you really going to leave now?’

There’s always one person in this world you can’t let go of, can’t give up on—someone you’d cling to even if it left you battered and bruised.

For him, that person was Annabelle Linton.

He lowered his head and let out a laugh, his reddened eyes staring at the ground with a look of utter desolation.

He couldn’t let her go. He really, truly couldn’t.

’We could have been together. She was supposed to be mine. How could she be leaving, just like that?’

Leona Grant felt as if his heart was being carved out of his chest. His very life source felt like a beached fish, suffocating and unable to breathe.

He said through a choked sob, "I can give you everything. Just come back, won’t you? I love you so much..."

"You’ve said that so many times I’m sick of hearing it. Honestly. I wasn’t going to waste my time discussing these... pointless topics with you, but I feel like I should clear things up to avoid any future trouble."

Annabelle Linton quietly watched him from above, clad in his hospital gown. The rims of her own eyes began to redden as a thin layer of mist clouded her vision. She cut him off.

She gazed at him, her feelings a tangled mess.

’This was the man she once loved more than anyone. The one she had spent her entire youth chasing after and dreaming of. His pleading desperation now was something she could have never imagined, not even in her wildest dreams. She wanted to ask him, too—how did we end up like this?’

’But now she understood. There was no reason.’

’Once you miss your chance, it’s gone. What’s the point of asking why?’

’The child... that was a pain in her heart she could never be free of. Every time she thought of it, it was a piercing agony, like being stabbed with a thousand needles.’

’There were two lives standing between them. How could she ever get close to him again?’

’So, Leona Grant, you and I are just people on two parallel lines, fated never to cross. Why insist on holding on?’

’Today, I will be the one to end this.’

The mist in Annabelle Linton’s eyes grew thicker until it condensed into tears and streamed down her face.

’She had already told him ’no’ more times than she could count. If that wouldn’t make him give up, then she would have to try a different approach.’

’Leona Grant, one day you’ll thank me for this.’

She let out a derisive laugh. "Who made the rule that just because you like someone, they have to stay by your side?" she said, her tone deceptively light. "And who gave you the confidence to think I ever truly liked you? Hmm?"

"Mr. Grant, the only reason I was ever ’into you’ was because you were rich and powerful. You were just a trophy I could show off. Did you really think you were such a great catch? Oh, wait, you’re right. You *are* a great catch. The ’Nation’s Husband,’ right? Everyone’s dying to get their hands on you. I was just fighting for my turn, that’s all. A chance to show you off. But now? I’m not interested anymore. And talking about love? Sorry, but that was never real."

She leaned lazily against the wall. "What on earth made you think I’d be in love with you for all those years? What made you think I’d just wait around with no expectations for the prodigal son to return?"

"Besides, Aaron Wyatt and I fell for each other back in college. We only broke up because something happened between us. The only reason I married you was because the Linton Group was about to be acquired. I had no other choice. I had to marry you and use you to slowly build up my own network. Haven’t you noticed? As soon as the threat to the Linton Group was gone, I started the divorce proceedings."