Chapter 146 There Is Only One Woman I Love

Chapter 146 There Is Only One Woman I Love
Darcy's POV

My back rests against the wheelchair seat while my hands wrap tightly around my knees, I'm trying so hard to keep myself together but I fail miserably as tears roll down my cheeks without stopping.

I don't even bother wiping them anymore. I'm exhausted. Each day I wake up crying. I think because I don't know what's going on in his head. I keep waiting because I need an explanation from him.

Outside my room, I hear faint footsteps pacing back and forth. Every now and then they stop right outside my door before moving away again.

He's still there but he's not saying anything. I don't want to force him but I need him to say something because I'm loosing my mind.

Why pace around? If he had no intention of explaining anything, why come here?

My fingers clutch onto my dress.

The silence between us hurts more than any argument ever could.

A soft knock interrupts my thoughts.
"Darcy." He calls with a low voice, hoarse. It sounds almost broken.

I squeeze my eyes shut. I'm not falling for this, not this time.

Another knock follows. "Please..." He urges.

My heart clenches painfully. For two weeks I cried for this man. For two weeks I begged everyone to let me see him.

"Darcy... just listen to me." He pleads with a low voice.

I shake my head even though he can't see me. "Go away." I say with a firm voice.

Silence.

Then another knock. "I can't. We need to talk."

I laugh bitterly. "You couldn't come and see me for two weeks, yet suddenly you can't leave?" My voice cracks.

"I don't understand you anymore, Adrian." I add.

Nothing.

No reply.

The silence stretches so long that I begin to think he has finally left.

I slowly wipe my face.

Then his voice comes again. "I deserve that. I deserve every bit of your anger."

The words make my chest ache. Why does he sound so defeated?

"I never wanted to hurt you." He states and that makes me laugh.

"Really? I doesn't look like that because you succeeded."

He responds with a cracked voice. "I know."

"I trusted you."

"I know."

"You promised me."

"I know."

"You said you wouldn't leave me alone."

"I know."

Every answer comes quietly. Without excuses. Without trying to defend himself and that somehow hurts even more.

"Then why?" I finally scream. "WHY?" The tears start falling all over again. "What did I do wrong? Tell me!"

"If I offended you then tell me!" I pant. "If you got tired of me then tell me. If you regretted choosing me then tell me!"

"But I beg you, don't keep me in the dark. I can't take it anymore!" My chest rises and falls violently.

Outside, everything becomes quiet. Very quiet.

"I was protecting you."

I freeze.

Protecting me? Again? That same excuse.
I shake my head. "No."

"I'm serious."

"No!" I hit the door behind me. "You keep saying that! You keep saying you're protecting me but all you've done is hurt me!"

"I couldn't even walk. I cried every single day. I begged Maleek. I begged Julius. I begged everyone but not once..." My voice breaks. "...not once did you come."

The tears blur my vision again. "I thought you stopped loving me." The confession escapes before I can stop it.

"I never stopped." He replied immediately. "I never will."

I bite my lower lip. My pathetic heart believes him but head refuses to believe him. Not after everything.

"Then why avoid me?" I question.

"I wasn't avoiding you intentionally. I just wanted you to survive." He confesses.

Those words make my brows furrow. Survive. What is he talking about?

I slowly wheel myself toward the door. My fingers wrap around the doorknob. For a long moment I hesitate.

I unlock it after a while. The door opens slowly. Adrian is still standing there. His head is lowered.

His beard has grown unevenly and his eyes...

My heart almost stops. I've never seen someone look so empty. He slowly raises his head.

Our eyes meet. Neither of us says a word. Not immediately. He looks thinner. His eyes are swollen and bloodshot.

He opens his mouth but nothing comes out.
So I just stare at him. My blood runs cold. I was so angry that I didn't have a proper look at him. "What happened to you?"

His lips tremble. "I wish I could tell you nothing."

My breathing becomes uneven. "You look..." He cuts in before I can finish the sentence. "I know."

He looks at me. "I need you to leave this place."

My heartbeat skips. "I knew it."

His brows knit together. "Knew what?"

"You don't want me anymore."

"What?"

"You've been looking for the right way to get rid of me. I appreciate that you are no longer hiding behind the pity facade."

His eyes widen.

"Darcy, that's not true," he argues.

"Then why?"

He runs both hands through his hair in frustration. "I need you somewhere safer."

"What more do you want? I'm already hidden!"

"It isn't enough." He shuts his eyes. His shoulders rise and fall heavily. When he opens them again, the pain inside them almost makes me step back.

"Because..."

He swallows and pauses."Camille is alive."

Everything inside me stops. I stare at him. Unable to blink. Unable to breathe.

He continues. "She never died. She planned everything and faked her death."

The room spins around me as everything comes rushing back.The suspicions. The doubts. Adrian's mother and I thought it was unnecessary to raise false alarm.

My lips tremble. "This can't be happening." The tears begin falling again.

I look at him. "She's the one behind Hazel's disappearance?"

He nods. "Yes."

"And..." My voice becomes barely audible. "...behind everything?"

"Yes."

The room suddenly feels colder. My whole body trembles. Then another thought enters my head.

A terrifying one.

I slowly lift my eyes to Adrian. "You..."

He watches me quietly.

"You still love her?" I ask with broken heart.

The question hangs heavily between us. His face immediately changes. Almost offended. He slowly walks closer but not too close.

His eyes never leave mine. "Look at me."

"Darcy..." His voice is gentle now.

"The woman I loved died the day I buried her." A tear rolls down his cheek. "What came back..." He shakes his head.."isn't the woman I married."

Silence.

Then he continues. "I searched for answers. I blamed myself and everyone." His breathing becomes shaky.

"I pushed you away because I thought protecting you was more important than explaining." His eyes become glossy again.

"But through everything..." He slowly reaches for my hand. This time... I don't pull away. His fingers wrap around mine carefully.

"So listen to me." His voice is firm. "There is only one woman I love." My heartbeat quickens.

"You."

The tears I had been holding back finally spill over. "I loved Camille. I gave her everything but she destroyed every memory I had of her." He squeezes my hand gently.

"My heart doesn't belong to her anymore. It belongs to you."

My lips tremble uncontrollably.

"I love you, Darcy." His forehead rests lightly against mine.

"And if I lose you too..." His voice breaks completely. "I don't think I'll survive it." I close my eyes.

For the first time in weeks, I understand why he stayed away. I slowly tighten my fingers around his.

Neither of us says another word. Sometimes, words are too small for the pain this deep.