Chapter 112

Chapter 112
Chloe looked at Grace packing her suitcase, tears welling in her eyes. Grace packed the clothes slowly, constantly pausing to wipe her face. Chloe couldn't tell if she cried out of sadness or happiness.

“Promise you'll come visit me whenever you can,” she paused, turning to Chloe. “This house is going to feel massive without you.”

She threw herself into Chloe’s arms the second she finished the sentence. She cried out of pure sadness, and that made Chloe cry too.

“I’ll come visit you all the time,” Chloe said, swallowing the lump in her throat. “You should get a boyfriend, build your own family.”

Grace pulled back suddenly and gave her an annoyed look. She wiped her face and tossed the clothes into the suitcase.

“Men only cause trouble,” she snorted, irritated. “I feel like Ruan was my husband; all the anger I felt toward that man gave me actual trauma.”

Chloe smiled because she knew it was true. From the very beginning, ever since Chloe married Ruan, Grace had been around, sharing in every single problem that plagued their marriage.

“Your marriage doesn't have to be a mess like mine was,” Chloe said as Grace zipped the suitcase. “You'll find a man who isn't in love with someone else.”

“Let’s drop this subject and talk about you,” Grace said, sitting on the bed and looking at Chloe expectantly. “Why didn't you tell me that Ruan confessed his love to you? That little rascal Chris told me.”

Chloe gave Grace a confused look.

“He overheard you two talking through the door,” Grace rolled her eyes, brushing the matter off as irrelevant. “I'm your best friend—were you really going to leave without telling me this?”

“I didn't have an opportunity to tell you,” Chloe wanted to dodge the topic, but Grace grabbed her arm and forced her to make eye contact.

“You still love him, I know you well enough to see it,” Grace tightened her grip on Chloe's arms, her voice a low, urgent whisper. “You're letting him move to Stanford with you, and don't try to tell me it's just for Chris.”

“I decided to give him another chance,” Chloe whispered, “but he doesn't know it yet.”

Grace smiled and let go of her, tossing her head back dramatically. She stayed quiet for a moment, processing everything that had happened.

“If this were some time ago, I’d lock you in this room and never let you leave to commit this madness,” Grace locked eyes with her. “But I actually believe Ruan's feelings now. I’d already noticed the way he looked at you.”

“Are you giving me your blessing?”

“Consider it given,” Grace stepped closer again. “I followed your story so closely that I felt like a part of it.” Grace smiled. “You never stopped loving him, but you let him go to make his own choices, and Ruan paid a heavy price for them. He’s already been punished.”

“What if I say I’m terrified?” Chloe dropped everything she was doing and sat on the bed. “Terrified that it won't work out, terrified of going through another breakup. Sure, I’m happy to leave Phoenix, to abandon the past and all the pain it caused me, but love still feels so uncertain.”

“That's completely normal; Ruan has to earn your trust back, and he knows it.” Grace sat down next to her. “Just let things happen the way they're supposed to and be happy. You're going to work your dream job, you'll be next to the man you love, with the family you love. Just enjoy it and be happy.”

Chloe immediately hugged her. The tears she had held back for so long spilled over a second later. They would have spent hours crying right there, but Chris pushed the door open and sprinted into the room.

“Let’s go, Mom." He grabbed Chloe’s arm and tried to yank her up. “Dad is already in the car waiting for us.”

The pure excitement on Chris’s face felt like the greatest reward Chloe could ever receive. Her son felt happy because the family was finally reunited. That had always been his deepest wish: to have his father back in his life.

“Don't I even get a hug?” Grace opened her arms to him.

Chloe left them alone and headed out toward Ruan. She saw him talking to the detective and watched from a distance until he spotted her and waved her over to join the conversation.

As Chloe walked up, Ruan wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close. The sensation of his touch felt the same as when they were married. Her stomach still flipped and her heart hammered wildly against her chest.

“The detective just came by to tell me they arrested Osvaldo along with Megan,” Ruan said. Chloe froze, staring at him in utter disbelief.

“Why did they arrest Megan?”

“She’s the one who torched my house and your old house,” Ruan explained. Chloe felt her entire body tense up as her brain nearly short-circuited. “She tried to frame Osvaldo, thinking she'd get rid of him if he went down. The police locked him up for assaulting me, Megan, and Josephine.”

“Are you saying that man assaulted my stepmother?”

“Josephine had bruises all over her body; she didn't die from the fire itself," he continued, pausing dramatically. "She could have easily escaped the house before the flames spread, but he beat her so brutally that he knocked her unconscious. Josephine died from smoke inhalation."

Josephine had paid for all the malice she committed in life; incredibly, Chloe felt no sense of relief. She had never imagined or wished such a horrific fate upon her stepmother.

The detective kept talking for a bit longer, but Chloe tuned him out completely after that; her mind drifted far away, to a dark, somber place.

"I wish you two a lot of success at Stanford," the detective said, shaking her hand. "I’m really glad you guys are back together."

Chloe looked at Ruan, noting the smug smirk on his face as the detective walked away, got into his cruiser, and drove off.

"Are we back together?" She eyed him, and that stupid grin still lingered on his lips. "What did you tell him?"

"I just told him I was leaving Phoenix with you," Ruan said, keeping his hands on her the entire time. "He just assumed we were back together."

"What do you think about that?" she turned to face him. "About us being together?"

"It's what I want more than anything," his answer fired off as fast as a gunshot in the dark. "But I will respect your timeline and your decision, whatever it turns out to be."

She stepped forward and placed her hands flat against his back. The feel of her body touching his sent electric waves jolting through his every organ. Ruan stared at her, his mouth suddenly going dry. He never imagined he would one day love his ex-wife this fiercely.

"I love you, Ruan," she finally confessed the words she had bottled up since the day she signed the divorce papers. "I never stopped loving you, and I swear I tried everything to forget you."

He leaned down and kissed her so fast that Chloe couldn't pull away. She didn't want to pull away. She let him kiss her. He pulled his lips back, resting his forehead against hers, his breathing entirely too heavy.

"I’m so incredibly sorry for everything I did that made you suffer," he offered a raw, sincere apology. "The only thing I don't regret is the night we spent together."

"Your reaction back then said otherwise."

"Let’s just forget the past," he pulled his face back, running a hand through her hair. "Let’s leave Phoenix behind and bury the memories here. We won't carry any of this baggage with us."

"I agree," she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, right as Chris walked through Grace’s front door for the very last time, heading toward them before opening the car door and hopping in.

"Let’s go, Dad," he said, buckling his seatbelt. "I want to see our new house."

Ruan stepped away from Chloe and walked up to Grace. She had been the most loyal friend he had ever known in his entire life. She was the very first person to fight for his marriage with Chloe. The only thing Ruan truly hated leaving behind was her.

He hugged her tight, at a complete loss for words.

"If I find out you hurt Chloe again, I swear to God I’ll get in my car and hunt you down to the ends of the earth," Grace warned. Ruan chuckled, but she snapped, "I’m not joking, Ruan."

"I know you aren't," he pulled back. "But I won't give you the satisfaction of using that as an excuse to visit. Thanks for everything."

Tears streamed down her face. Ruan watched Chloe say her final goodbyes to Grace while he walked around the car, buckled his seatbelt, and started the engine. As Chloe climbed into the passenger seat and he put the car in motion, he watched Phoenix fade into the distance like a mirage. They had left once before, but as Ruan crossed the city limits this time, he swore he would never return to visit his worst buried memories.

He reached over and squeezed Chloe’s hand. He glanced at Chris in the rearview mirror. Perhaps he didn't deserve this happy ending, but he promised himself he would stay grateful for this fresh start and never throw it away.

He had his family back, which meant he had everything he would ever need.