Chapter 28
Monica dropped the act and looked pleadingly at Cedrick. “Cedrick, we have no one else to turn to. We’ll pay you back, we promise…”
“With what?” Lucille interrupted again. “By selling another daughter? Or by breaking my other leg?”
Bang! Jaxon slammed his hand on the table.
After some drinks, he was ready to explode.
But Lucille was even angrier. She put down her fork. “Don’t bother slamming the table. Just hit me. End all this. Make it clean.
“You think I won’t?” he roared, picking up a plate. “I should’ve never had a daughter like you!”
Monica held him back, begging. “Stop! Think of Cedrick! Don’t make a scene!”
Lucille almost laughed. “Think of Cedrick? As if he cares about you,” she sneered in her heart.
Cedrick put his arm around her shoulders and said gently, “Let’s pick an apartment first. If we find one nice…”
“No ‘ifs“!” Lucille shook him off and stood up, staring coldly at her parents and brother. “You want to get married?”
Tristen nodded.
“You want a new apartment?”
Monica nodded hesitantly, confused.
Lucille smiled bitterly. “I have an idea.”
“What is it?” Tristen and Monica asked in unison, eyes gleaming.
She picked up her bag, sneering, “I’ll divorce Cedrick. Then Tristen’s girlfriend can marry him. She’ll get everything, not just an apartment. No middleman. No markup.”
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Her family stared in shock.
But beside her. Cedrick chuckled.
That surprised her. She thought he’d be offended, but he was genuinely smiling.
Either way, she couldn’t stay any longer. She turned and walked out.
No one tried to stop her.
She didn’t care how Cedrick handled the mess. She pressed the elevator button.
When the doors opened, Cedrick stepped out after her. They rode down together.
“What was that about?” he asked quietly, pressing B1.
Lucille took a deep breath. “Cedrick, I want to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.” He paused.
“How much is my leg worth to you?” She pointed at her injured leg.
His expression darkened. “Why ask that?”
Her eyes stung, and her heart ached. “Just tell me, how long are you going to keep making up for my leg?”
Cedrick was silent.
“I know you don’t like them. I know why you give them whatever they want. It’s because of my leg, isn’t it? Is there even a limit? When will you stop paying?”
“Lucille…”
The elevator doors opened. Someone stepped in, saw Lucille’s tear–streaked face and Cedrick standing opposite her, and hesitated.
Cedrick nodded slightly, turning Lucille toward him so others wouldn’t see her crying.
The conversation couldn’t continue.
When they reached the parking level, Cedrick’s grip tightened unconsciously, and before Lucille knew it, he had pulled her tightly against him.
The stranger left the elevator quickly. All she could breathe was the scent of his shirt. She
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shoved him away and stepped out.
He followed.
In the car, he started the engine but didn’t drive. After a moment, he said, “Lucille, I told you, just be my wife. Don’t worry about these trivial matters. They mean nothing to me
“I know,” she said, voice trembling. “To you, money is nothing. Apartments, cars… It’s nothing to you. But to me, it feels like I sold my leg to you, and you’re still paying for it. Cedrick, I hate this. Even if you are paying for my leg, five years is enough. Let’s end this. The transaction is over. The debt is paid. Let’s each move on.
He didn’t answer and started driving.
A song began to play in the car. It was a melancholic tune about regret, marriage, guilt, and how a moment of carelessness could ruin a life.
Word by word, note by note, it pierced her heart.
Lucille covered her face, tears streaming through her fingers.
“Cedrick, why are you listening to this? Can’t we just stop hurting each other?” She sobbed.
Cedrick’s phone rang, cutting off the music.
The caller ID showed Marce Bear.
The name cut off Lucille’s tears.
Cedrick disconnected Bluetooth, pulled over, and answered.
Lucille couldn’t hear what she was saying, but she saw his expression grow tense.
“I’ll be right there.” Cedrick said. He hung up and looked at her. “Lucille, let me take you home first. Mari isn’t feeling well. I need to go.”
It was as expected.
She opened the car door. “Don’t bother. I’ll go back myself.”
“Lucille…”
She slammed the door, cutting him off.
Cedrick didn’t wait. He turned the car around and drove off without hesitation.
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Lucille watched the car disappear. She felt numb, as if a sharp claw had torn through her heart. After all the bleeding, even the pain was gone.
She was about to call a ride when her phone rang.
It was a delivery call.
“Hello, you have two boxes of fruit. Are you home?”
But she hadn’t ordered any. “Where are they from?”
“Locally, Grapes. The sender’s last name is Radford.”
Lucille knew it was from her grandmother.
She lived in the countryside and grew grapes in her yard. She was sending some for Lucille
to enjoy.
Standing on the street as the sky turned gray, Lucille was suddenly overwhelmed with longing for her grandmother.
“My maid is home. Please deliver them there. Could you ask her to put the grapes in the fridge?” She missed her grandmother. She wanted to see her now. She didn’t want to wait another moment.