Chapter 18
“Clarisse!” Theodore’s voice rang out in a hoarse, desperate shout, trembling with fear even he had not
noticed.
At first, Clarisse could not believe what she was hearing. She thought she was imagining it. It was not until Theodore hurried toward her with eyes full of anticipation that she realized he had actually come looking for her.
Seeing the familiar white suit and the bouquet of roses in his arms, a flood of memories surged up in an
instant. For a brief moment, she was in a daze.
But only for a moment, for it passed as quickly as it came. What remained in her gaze was a quiet
calmness.
“Congratulations. The performance was outstanding.” Theodore tried to mask the unease gnawing at him, forcing his voice to stay steady.
He took a step forward, still clutching the bouquet. His eyes swept, seemingly unintentionally, over the man standing at Clarisse’s side.
“This is?” he asked, trying to sound casual.
Zachary immediately caught the hostility and possessiveness in Theodore’s eyes. He did not react much, just giving a slight nod and keeping a respectful distance. He left the response to Clarisse.
“Zachary Sinclair. A friend.” Her tone was flat, devoid of warmth. She had no intention of introducing them further. “Mr. Brooke, it’s been a while. If you’ve nothing else to say, you can leave now.”
The coldness in her eyes and that formal greeting struck Theodore like a blade. The composure he clung
to nearly cracked.
He pretended not to hear the distance in her words and spoke quickly. His tone was tinged with pleading. “Clarisse, you’ve been gone for so long. I miss you. When are you coming back? Or if you don’t want to, that’s fine too. I’ll stay here with you for however long you want!”
He stepped closer, reaching out for her wrist, but Clarisse immediately stepped back to avoid his touch.
“Mr. Brooke. We’re already divorced,” she stated the fact calmly. “The divorce certificate has already been
mailed to you. There’s nothing between us anymore.”
“No! Clarisse, I never wanted to divorce you!” His voice rose, emotions spilling over. “That divorce
certificate doesn’t count. You’ll always be my wife!”
Clarisse could not help but laugh hearing his words. Her lips curled into a cold, mocking smile. “Mr.
Brooke, you signed that divorce agreement with your own hands. Legally, our marriage is over.”
“I didn’t know it was a divorce agreement. I had no idea what I was signing! If I’d known, I would’ve rather died than signed it! Clarisse, come back with me. We can remarry right away!”
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As he spoke, he reached out again, trying to take her by force.
Zachary, who had been silent this whole time, stepped forward and blocked his path. His eyes were cold as he looked at Theodore. “Mr. Brooke, Clarisse already made herself clear. She doesn’t want to see you.
Please respect her wishes.”
Theodore exploded with rage at Zachary’s words. “And who the hell do you think you are? What happens between me and Clarisse is none of your business! Get out of my way!” he roared.
“Theodore Brooke! Enough!” Clarisse’s voice rang out, sharp and furious. Her eyes were filled with nothing but disgust. “I don’t know what made you leave your son and Bianca behind just to show up here acting
like a madman.”
Her voice turned cold and quiet. “I had hoped we could end things cleanly. That we could at least preserve a trace of good memories from what we had. But you insisted on coming here to ruin even that.”
“You want me to go back?” She looked at him as if he were a stranger. “Go back and keep being the eyesore in your perfect family of four? Watch you all play a happy family? Go back to being framed and hurt again and again?”
Hearing her words, Theodore rushed to deny everything. “I never slept with Bianca! Caleb isn’t my child! Bianca schemed everything! I never touched her, and I’ve already gotten rid of that test–tube baby.
“Clarisse, come back with me. I promise! No one will ever come between us again. We can start over, just
like before.”
When he said Caleb was not his, a flicker of surprise crossed Clarisse’s face.
Caleb, who changed everything and shattered her marriage, was not even his? The irony was brutal
indeed.
That flicker of emotion in her eyes gave Theodore false hope. He mistook it for hesitation and opened his
mouth again.
“Enough, Theodore,” Clarisse cut him off, her voice edged with disgust. “Whether that baby was conceived in a lab or not, you know better than anyone. And whether Caleb is your biological son, it
doesn’t matter.”
Her gaze cut straight through him, sharp as a blade, leaving the truth in bare sight. “What matters is that from the moment you betrayed me–again and again, choosing to hurt me–whatever we had ended.”
“No! Clarisse, please…” Theodore stepped forward.
She stepped back, putting a distance between them. “There’s nothing more to say.”
Her gaze flicked past his pale face to the rose still cradled in his arms. Her voice was flat and
emotionless. “Keep the flowers. Give them to someone who needs them. Zachary, let’s go.”
She did not spare Theodore a second glance and turned to walk away with Zachary at her side.
Zachary looked back once at the frozen Theodore with a complicated expression.
So, this was the man who had hurt Clarisse? He really thought he deserved her forgiveness. How laughable!
Theodore stood frozen, the bouquet now destined to never be delivered, as he watched the two of them. walk away.
Everything he had hoped for had shattered. He could only watch her leave without so much as a backward glance, her figure disappearing beside Zachary, who stood so naturally by her side.
Despair swallowed him whole.
“Clarisse…” Theodore stared down at the roses in his arms, eyes filled with hopelessness and despair.
He was determined. He refused to let her go. He would bring her back to his side, no matter what it took.
As he lifted his head, his gaze brimmed with the determination of someone teetering on the edge of madness with nothing to lose.
Chapter 19
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Chapter 19
