Chapter 9.1
“I’m sure you still love me. You‘ ve written everything you like about me in your notes. You and Lyle are just
pretending to be married. You‘ re working together to get back at me. Fine, you win. I’m sorry. I know you still love me, Rowena.” He still couldn’t believe it.
I let out a sigh, sliding my phone over to him with the memo him to see.
open f
“You‘ re wrong.
wrong.” I Replied almost
immediate with icy–cold tone. “Didn‘ tI already tell you? I don‘ t love you
anymore.” The memo that had once been filled with his name, with our memories, was now completely full of Lyle. Everything from before was long gone, erased.
“And by the way, my marriage to Lyle is real. I have a certificate to proof it.”
Nicolas stared at me in disbelief, his eyes wide, like a deer caught in headlights.
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“What? No way… we only just got divorced! How could you get married so fast?”
I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms, trying to keep my voice steady, but inside, I was furious.
“Nicolas, do you really think me and Lyle would put on some show for you? You‘ re not even worth that much of a thought.”
I kept my eyes on him as a tear slowly slid down his cheek. He trembled, trying to reach out to me.
“It doesn’t matter,” he stammered. “You can always get a divorce. You don’t really love him, do you? Remember how happy we were before? We could go back to that.”
“You‘ re crazy!” Get that idea out of your head because we will never can go back to what we were.” I stared at him,
I stared at him, my mouth dry with shock.
“Why can’t you let it go? You don‘ t even
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Chapter 9.1
“What? No way… we only just got divorced! How could you get married so fast?”
I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms, trying to keep my voice steady, but inside, I was furious.
“Nicolas, do you really think me and Lyle would put on some show for you? You‘ re not even worth that much of a thought.”
I kept my eyes on him as a tear slowly slid down his cheek. He trembled, trying to reach out to me.
“It doesn’t matter,” he stammered. “You can always get a divorce. You don‘ t really love him, do you? Remember how happy we were before? We could go back to that.”
“You‘ re crazy!” Get that idea out of your head because we will never can go back to what we were.” I stared at him, my mouth dry with shock.
“Why can’t you let it go? You don‘ t even
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Chapter 9.1
love me, Nicolas. What are you still hanging onto?”
“If you love me, you wouldn’t have ever misjudged me, treated me like I was the enemy. You wouldn’t have betrayed me, cheating with your first love.”
Nicolas couldn‘ t even look at me anymore. His shoulders slumped and he bent over, defeated.
“No… It’s not like that. I love you, Rowena. I really do.” He looked up at me, eyes bloodshot. “And I still love you.”
“If that’s true, then why did you treat me the way you did?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he just turned and walked away, his footsteps heavy, echoing in the quiet hallway. The phone in his pocket buzzed insistently, a sign of more bad news waiting for him. I knew it wasn’t just me; it was his world crumbling.
I didn’t need to hear the phone call to
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Chapter 9.1
know what had happened. I already knew.
Lyle had filled me in the night before. The company Nicolas had been running down in the Gravenhold was on the verge of collapse. The Reid’s headquarters in Eldermere had been struggling financially. for months. They’d lost a major contract, stocks were plummeting and the public relations disaster had his whole company in crisis. That’s why they’d been relying so heavily on the Gravenhold branch to keep the company afloat. He was the boss of that division and now, he had to clean up the mess, or the fallout would affect the entire company.
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Chapter 9.2
Chapter 9.2
I couldn’t help but feel a little satisfaction. He’d once been so smug, so sure he could have it all. Now it was all slipping through his fingers.
As for the Kent, after my parents died in a plane crash while on business trip, Lyle, who was twenty at the time, worked day and night to keep the family business afloat. After Nicolas‘ betrayal, Lyle had sworn to make him pay. And pay he did, day in and day out, working tirelessly, never stopping.
The only time he slept was for four hours a night and even those were interrupted.
The rest of the time? He was working the business, making deals, refining operations.
Now, the Kent’s company were a powerhouse in Eldermere, an economic giant. And Lyle had connections all over
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Chapter 02
the country, people who owed him, who respected him. I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of admiration.
“So now you‘ re a big shot, huh? People must be careful not to cross you. Should I do the same?” I teased him.
“Of course not,” Lyle chuckled. “You see, you‘ re the one with the real power here, Ro. I’m just the guy doing the grunt work.”
It felt strange, having this new life. Lyle had started as a businessman, running the show, but I hadn‘ t known how much effort he’d really put into keeping the family business afloat–especially after everything with Nicolas and my family s tragedy.
When my parents had passed away in that crash, Lyle had stepped up. He’d kept the Kent Company running, making hard decisions every single day and by the time he and I had gotten together, the company was already a force to be reckoned with in
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Chapter 9.2
Eldermere.
When I officially joined the central television station, Annette was forced out of the Gravenhold Weather Network by both the Reid Group and the station. She fought tooth and nail, but with no one backing her, she was powerless. Not even Nicolas would lift a finger to help her. Her days of trying to sabotage me were over. She couldn’t even get an audience with Nicolas anymore. Her previous arrogance. had cost her everything. Without her former connections and the protection of Nicolas‘ family, no one was willing to hire her.
As for Nicolas, his family’s empire was on the verge of collapse. He was too busy trying to salvage what was left to do anything else. The only thing he could do was leave bizarre comments on my social media posts and take pictures of himself with strange messages like, “You look so beautiful today. I’m so happy I can watch your weather reports every day.”
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It was a little unsettling, though, the way
the tables had turned. Nicolas, once so
powerful, was now just a shadow of his former self, clinging to whatever scraps of the past he could.
Meanwhile, Lyle had taken it all in stride. He was still the reliable one, showing up at my side every day. He’d take me to work, pick me up and even bring me lunch when I was working late. It wasn‘ t glamorous,
but it was real and it was mine.
The weird thing was that, after all the pain, after everything I’d been through with Nicolas, I finally understood what it meant. to feel truly loved. I never realized it before, but after marrying Lyle, I discovered something. Marriage didn’t have to be painful, full of doubts and insecurities. With him, it was easy.
One chilly morning, I stood in front of the camera, dressed in my work attire, hair slicked back into a tight bun. It was 6:45
- AM.
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Chapter 9.2
“Good morning. Here’s your weather update: Over the next two days, a strong cold front will affect most of the country, bringing temperatures down another
notch.
Especially in the northwest and areas along the middle and lower reaches of the River Elden, daytime highs will be unusually low. Many places in the northwest will see highs below freezing, while the middle and lower River Elden regions will have highs around 10°C. By the weekend, these areas are expected to see new post–winter low temperatures; the freezing line will push southward to the middle and lower reaches
of the River Elden. In the northwest, temperatures will commonly drop below
-10°C.
In addition to the temperature drop, the cold air moving east and south will bring strong winds. Parts of northern border regions, central and eastern Eldermere, northern and central Gravenhold and the southwest are expected to experience level-
