Chapter 88 CHAPTER 092
Chapter 88 CHAPTER 092
"I used to think accusing me of cheating on her was her way of pushing me to leave the clique at all costs. But I recently discovered she was being fed lies by someone who used to be a friend." His face hardens again. His jaw ticks. I don't say anything.
"Anyway, back to that timeline. So Sheryl started insisting I was cheating on her seemingly out of nowhere. It was what drove the final wedge between us. We were passionate and fiercely in love at the time, this brought out all sorts of ugly insecure feelings in us and looking back now, our relationship was really toxic. I could have been more mature. I could have listened better. I could have been less selfish. But, she could also have been less crazy and impulsive. She could have trusted me more. She could also have listened better. What I am driving at is that we were young and reckless. Back to the first point I raised." Linc leans back in his chair. He looks oddly relieved.
I stare at him, wowed. I guess twenty years is enough time to become this self aware and mature, but it is still wonderful to watch it manifest like this. I wonder if in twenty years, I could look back on my actions now with this much grace and maturity.
"Well, fast forward to the end, I asked for a break from the relationship when the fights and back and forths became unbearable. She came back some weeks later, pregnant. I freaked out. I was sure it wasn't mine. I was mad she would even dare come back to me with that kind of responsibility. I turned her away coldly and that was the last time I saw her. I heard she left college and moved south to some distant relatives. I wished her well and that was the last of it. Till now."
I glance at my phone for the time. The hour he gave Hernandez is almost up. All he has said is a lot to take in. But the one thing that resonates is his honesty and introspective mindset. He highlights his experience without bias. I find that worthy of emulating. And hot. Christ. He could be doing the most mundane activity and I would find him irresistible.
"Did she tell you it was yours at the time?" I clear my throat. What I need is to clear my head if that is possible.
"No. To be honest, I don't think I remember much from that particular time. I was reeling from the breakup, getting high all the time, partying like a wild animal. I was doing everything I could to forget her. Then for her to come back and basically show that she was busy fucking some other guy whilst I was unraveling, I just kind of snapped. I don't think she told me it was mine though. I think she came to me for comfort or whatever. Which was a sick manipulative thing to do, but that was Sheryl."
Linc looks tired of the topic. I want to laugh at his expression but I don't. It must be exhausting, if not frustrating, to have a situation from two decades ago come back to haunt you like this.
"Wow." I can't think of anything else to add.
"Apparently, she was mad at and felt wronged somehow. All these years later, she hears her detached son is within my proximity and she goes off with a lie. A lie that made me almost lose you." His expression darkens.
I feel like going to tell Hernandez to not bother bringing Sheryl in. I know she must be here to beg for forgiveness. It will be tough to watch because I can see Linc's rage at the situation and how he would never forgive her. It is not something I want to get in the middle of.
"But you didn't lose me, Linc. I am here. With you." I smile at him, he stops gritting and clenching his teeth, but he doesn't smile back. I will take it.
"We were close. And I can't forgive myself for it. I have tried. I can't. There is no where to direct my anger. To let off the steam. Look at Sheryl, what can I do to her as revenge? Nothing. She is pathetic. All she has is her pride and I am empathetic enough to let her be with it intact." His tone is bitter. I get the sense again that I would probably never fully grasp the extent of the effect my kidnap had on him.
He would never stop beating himself up over it. He must have been stunned, wondering how something like that could have happened.
Judging by his logic yesterday when I came onto him, it looks like we would not be fucking anytime soon.
It is crazy that that is the first thing I derive from this whole situation. I want to throw my head back and laugh but I don't.
Hernandez walks back in, "Mr. Dmitri, I have Sheryl in the den."
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I think when Linc said Sheryl was pathetic, he didn't mean physically. The tastefully lean woman I am looking at can never be described as pathetic on a surface level. My first impression of her is that she seems pretty elegant.
Her hair is jet black, it is almost blue and the contrast on her milky white skin is ethereal. I suspect it is dyed but I keep that to myself. She is aging gracefully though not as gracefully as Linc who is a billionaire, but she looks stunning in her own right.
She has smile lines and wrinkles. Her skin appears thin in spots. She doesn't have makeup on. Her skin is flawless asides the lines. Her grey weary eyes catch me watching her multiple times, I look away only to go back to watching her.
There is something about her that I can't place.