Chapter 92 Ninety two

Chapter 92 Ninety two
RONAN POV

I set the phone down and just sat there, staring at nothing. The apartment was silent not the peaceful kind of silence this was suffocatingz

The kind that made every thought louder.

Every mistake louder. I leaned forward, elbows on my knees, and buried my face in my hands.

For six years I’d convinced myself that if Ivy ever came back into my life, I’d do things differently.

I’d tell her the truth… I’d be better…. I’d prove I wasn’t that man anymore. Instead, I’d done exactly what I always did.

Waited too long to before opening up.

And now she hates me. She fucking hates me.

My phone buzzed again. This time I almost ignored it.

Almost…. But it kept ringing so I picked it up.

Deylan: Harrington is losing his mind. Reporters are outside the club. What the hell happened last night?

I stared at the message.

Then typed.

Me: Nothing.

Three dots appeared immediately.

Deylan: Bullshit.

I dropped the phone onto the couch. I didn’t have the energy for this and not for the reporters either. Not for damage control.

Not for any of it. My gaze drifted across the room and landed on a picture frame sitting on a shelf.

One of the few personal things I owned.

A photo from years ago me and Deylan… with some friends before Hanna… before Ivy

Before Hanna.

Before I became the kind of man people warned their daughters about.

I laughed bitterly. The sound echoed through the empty apartment.

A knock suddenly came from the door.

I frowned. Nobody came here unannounced.

Another knock… Harder this time. I pushed myself off the couch and crossed the room.

The second I opened the door, Deylan shoved past me.

“You look like shit.”

“Nice to see you too.”

He ignored me completely, walking into the living room. His eyes swept across the apartment. Then back to me.

“What the fuck happened?”

“Nothing.”

“Try again Ronan and this time don’t fucking try that shit me with me again .”

I rubbed a hand over my face.

“Deylan—”

“No.” His voice was firm. The kind he’d only used a handful of times in our friendship. I knew he was pissed.

“You got drunk.”

“You got into a fight.”

“You’ve ignored every call from your PR team.”

“And you look like someone just died.”

Silence filled the room. His expression slowly changed..

“So someone has to fucking die for you get your shit together again!.”

My clenched my jaw” That’s low… I don’t need you rubbing my wounds I already have enough scolding for the day.”

“Ivy.” His voice dropped low.

I closed my eyes.

“Yeah.”

Neither of us spoke for a moment…. Then Deylan sighed. “You finally told her.”

I nodded once.

“Everything?”

Another nod.

His jaw tightened. “And?”

I laughed. A short, hollow sound.

“And now she knows exactly who I am now a fucking monster.”

Deylan stared at me for a long second. Then he sat down on the couch. “Ronan.”

I looked at him. “You’re not helping.”

“I’m not trying to.” He leaned forward. “You don’t need someone to tell you you’re a good guy. ” I tapped my shoulder “You need someone to tell you to stop feeling sorry for yourself.”

I blinked. “What?”

“You heard me.”

His gaze didn’t move. “You screwed up.You screwed up years ago. You screwed up with Ivy.”

“But sitting in this apartment acting like the world ended isn’t fixing anything.”

Anger flared briefly. “What exactly do you want me to do?”

“I don’t know.. maybe stop fucking avoiding shit.” He shrugged. “Start by being honest for once.”

The words hit harder than I expected. Because honesty was what got me here. It was honesty that made Ivy walk out.

My phone suddenly lit up again. Unknown number…. But it kept buzzing.

Then frowned and answered it

“Yeah?”

Silence followed a mintier before a voice came through One I hadn’t heard in years.

My entire body went cold. “Ronan.”

I froze.

No… No way. The color drained from my face.

Across the room, Deylan immediately noticed.

“Who is it?” he mouthed.

I couldn’t answer. Because I knew that voice.

And the last time I’d heard it was standing beside a coffin six years ago.

“Hanna’s mother?” I whispered.

The room seemed to tilt.

Across from me, Deylan went completely still.

I hadn’t spoken to her in six years.

Not once…. Not after the funeral…. Not after the lawsuit. Not after I spent years pretending that chapter of my life was buried.

Yet here she was…. Calling me.

Now of all time.

“Yes,” she said quietly.

I sank into the nearest chair. My chest felt tight.

“I…” My throat was suddenly dry. “I wasn’t expecting—”

“No,” she interrupted. “I imagine you weren’t.”

There was no anger in her voice. That somehow made it worse. I deserved anger. I deserved hatred. I didn’t know what to do with calm.

Silence stretched between us.

I glanced at Deylan. He was watching me carefully now.Concern written all over his face.

“I heard about the news,” Hanna’s mother finally said.

Of course she had…. Everyone had.

The fight…. The headlines. The latest Ronan Hale disaster.

“I see,” I replied.

Another pause.

Then she asked the question I had been dreading for years.

“Are you finally falling apart?” The words hit me like a punch.

Because the answer was yes…. Absolutely yes. Just like she wished and prayed I am falling apart.

I looked around the apartment. At the empty couch. At Ivy’s coffee mug still sitting on the counter. At the life I’d built on top of a foundation of lies and avoidance.

“I am,” I admitted. For a moment neither of us spoke. Then she sighed.A tired sound. The sound of someone who had spent years carrying grief.

“You know,” she said quietly, “for a long time I hated you.”

I closed my eyes. “I know.”

“I wanted to.” Her voice cracked slightly.

“But eventually I got tired.”

I swallowed hard. Because somehow that hurt more. “I never stopped feeling guilty, I’m really sorry” I said.

The confession slipped out before I could stop it.“I think about her every day.”

The line was silent.

Then— “Good you should that way you can atone for it.” She said softly

I opened my eyes.

“Hanna made terrible choices,” she continued. “You made terrible choices. Everyone wants a villain, Ronan and you were the best cast for it. Life isn’t always that simple.”

My grip tightened around the phone. “I did hurt her.”

“Yes you did.” She said immediately

I lowered my head. Deylan remained quiet across the room.

Listening.

“But carrying guilt forever doesn’t bring my daughter back.”

My chest tightened. “Why after so long did you call me tonight.” The question escaped before I could stop it.

Another pause.

Then— “Because I received a message earlier.”

I frowned. “A message?”

“From a young woman.”

Every muscle in my body tensed. My mind immediately went to one person.

Ivy.

“Hanna used to talk about her,” Mrs. Parker said softly. “The wonderful tutor she had in first year of college.”

My heart stopped.

“What?”

“Your Ivy.”

The room went dead silent.

I stared straight ahead…. Unable to move…. Unable to breathe.

“What are you talking about?” I whispered.

“I received a letter.” My pulse began pounding.

“A letter explaining what happened all those years ago.” I closed my eyes.

“She wanted the truth,” Mrs. Parker continued. “And for the first time in six years… someone actually asked me for it…. Someone cared of enough to apologize for the pain my family had gone through”

I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t think.

Across the room Deylan looked completely lost.

Mrs. Parker sighed.

“That girl loves you.” The words hit harder than anything else she’d said.

I laughed bitterly.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No,” I repeated. “Not anymore.”

The silence that followed felt endless.

Then her voice softened. “Then why does she sound heartbroken?”

My eyes closed.

“That’s what love looks like and you should consider yourself lucky. I just called to let you know that I want you to be happy Ronan. Live your life.” And she hang up

I sat there staring into space… my heart shattered into pieces hurt and yet relived.

I felt like a weight has finally been lifted