Chapter 115
"Just so Chloe can have a father's love?" Monica looked at Evelyn in surprise.
Evelyn didn't answer. After a long while, she slowly spoke. "These past few years, I've been busy studying, busy working, busy looking after the kids."
"Besides... after everything with Matthew, I seem to have this instinctive fear of loving someone."
"I feel like I've lost the ability to fall in love with someone."
"Silly girl." Monica squeezed her shoulder hard. "Being a mother doesn't mean you have to give your kids a father."
"Whether or not you're a mother, you still have the capacity to love someone."
"But when it comes to love, better to have none than settle for less, right?"
"Otherwise wouldn't it be like sticking a flower in cow dung..."
Evelyn laughed, turning to Monica. "So is that your excuse for not dating all these years?"
Monica was about to laugh and curse back when her phone buzzed.
It was a message from Monica's mother, Niamh.
[Your brother and the Capulet family's young lady Vesper Capulet have been getting along wonderfully these past few days.]
[I think they're perfect together. I'll arrange for you all to meet in a couple of days.]
[Sweetheart, tell me what type you like. I'll help you look too.]
Monica instinctively clicked on the video Niamh had sent.
In the video, Caspian stood beside a woman with gentle features.
They looked like they'd just finished playing tennis. Caspian was thoughtfully wiping sweat from the woman's face.
Vesper had soft features and a bright smile.
Noticing Niamh filming, her face flushed slightly as she said to the camera, "Ms. Lawson, please don't film. I'll get embarrassed."
Her voice was sweet and soft, completely unlike Monica's.
Caspian stood beside her, smiling faintly, not responding.
Monica's eyes couldn't leave the perfect couple on screen for so long that even Evelyn couldn't help asking, "What are you watching? You're so focused."
"Nothing." Monica smiled bitterly and turned off her phone. "Eve, didn't you just ask why I don't date? Actually, Caspian and I were together. For almost three years."
Evelyn looked at her in shock. "Caspian? Your stepbrother?"
"Yes." Monica laughed mockingly. "Pretty self-destructive, right?"
"Why did you never mention it? When did it start?" Evelyn was so surprised she could barely form words.
Monica lowered her eyes, her voice dropping. "After your funeral, I was devastated. I quit my job and left the country, wanting to escape this city full of memories."
"My mom was worried about me, so she had Caspian come take care of me for a while."
"When you're vulnerable, you magnify every little bit of affection. I grabbed onto him like a drowning person clutching a lifeline."
"We stayed in that ambiguous zone, never breaking through that final barrier."
She paused. "Until Caleb and Chloe's first birthday. I was so happy I drank too much."
"On impulse, I bought a ticket to his apartment."
"It was snowing so heavily that night. The streets were completely empty."
"When Caspian came to get me, he said I was like a stray cat—like if he didn't pick me up, I'd die in that winter night."
Her voice trembled. "That night, in a daze, we slept together. After that, there was no going back."
"Remember when you asked where I was that week? I spent seven days and nights at his place."
"I hated myself for falling for him so pathetically, for sleeping with him. I didn't dare tell you."
Evelyn hugged Monica. "So your relationship started from there?"
Monica nodded.
"But it's been two years. Why didn't you ever tell me?"
Monica smiled bitterly. "Maybe people in love are all fools."
"Caspian and I had a sweet honeymoon period. I desperately wanted to tell you, to tell my mom and his father."
"But he wouldn't let me. He kept telling me to wait, wait for the right moment."
She paused, her voice getting lower. "I waited so long. It never came."
"These past six months, our relationship has been really strained."
"All the sneaking around, Mom's pressure to marry, his father's demands—they all became straws breaking our relationship one by one."
"Now he's even going on blind dates." Monica took a deep breath. "Eve, I'm done waiting."
Seeing Monica's dull eyes and dejected appearance, Evelyn's heart ached.
"Caspian's a bastard!" she cursed angrily.
She'd never met him and didn't really know him.
But just from Monica's fragmented words today, she could tell—Caspian was no good.
He'd taken advantage of Monica's vulnerability. He dated Monica but made her hide it from everyone.
Monica was young and naive, willing to throw everything away for love.
But Caspian was a seasoned businessman. He couldn't not know what position this put Monica in.
Yet he did it anyway.
"Mon, if you're done waiting, then be done. You should be happy. A scumbag like that isn't worth it."
"Yeah, not worth it..." Monica raised her glass, murmuring.
"That bastard, that piece of shit!" The more Evelyn thought about it, the angrier she got. She wanted to find Caspian right then and beat him up.
Monica grabbed her hand, telling her to calm down. "Eve, don't be angry. I'll pull myself together!"
"There are plenty of good men out there. If he doesn't cherish me, I don't need him!"
"At least in this relationship, the moments I gave my heart were happy. That's enough."
She smiled and changed the subject. "What about you... seriously, if you really want to date, why not consider Ronald?"
"We've kept it from him for three years, but I heard that for three years, he's gone to Seaside City every weekend without fail to visit your grave."
Evelyn froze.
Ronald truly was a wonderful person.
But she knew clearly that what she felt for Ronald wasn't romantic love. "Forget it. I don't want to hold him back."
"I don't think he'd see it that way." Monica raised an eyebrow. "I heard he still hasn't dated or married anyone."
"He's now the head of a Gray Group branch. If you two got together, wouldn't that be a power couple?"
Monica smiled as she imagined it.
She'd added Ronald on WhatsApp at the funeral.
After Evelyn's "death," Ronald had organized the entire funeral as a brother figure.
His care and deep feelings were obvious to anyone who looked.
Besides, Monica often heard Evelyn talk about their childhood. She had a really good impression of Ronald.
Evelyn smiled.
After faking her death, she'd constantly worried Matthew would go after Ronald.
She'd asked Susan to look out for him. After meeting him once, Susan immediately recruited him into the company, saying he had real talent.
Three years later, he'd indeed risen very high.
But still...
Afraid Monica would keep pushing, Evelyn spoke bluntly.
"I don't have romantic feelings for Ronald."