She went abroad. I’m going to pick her up now.” Troy’s voice was low but steady.
“Be sure to bring her home for dinner when you return,” Mr. Green said warmly over the phone. “That girl is thoughtful. Just last month, I mentioned offhand how I missed the old tea set from my youth, and she went out of her way to find a vintage one at an auction. Your mother’s been struggling with insomnia, and she’s been quietly accompanying her to acupuncture every week.”
Troy stiffened, his hand frozen on the doorknob.
He didn’t know. He had no idea Thalia had done all that.
As he stepped out the door, the housekeeper walked in hurriedly, followed by the bodyguard–Bianca trailing behind them. Her eyes were bloodshot, her makeup smeared from a night of crying. The moment she saw him, she dashed forward and clung to his arm, trembling.
“Troy! Don’t leave… please,” she begged, her voice cracking. “Let’s just forget about yesterday. Let’s not end like this, okay?”
Troy looked down at her, his expression calm but unreadable.
“Then go tell our parents about us. Publicly. Admit everything.”
Bianca froze. Her grip on his arm faltered, and slowly, her fingers slipped away. She bit her lip, eyes flickering with hesitation.
Troy gently removed her hand. “Bianca… I’ve indulged you enough. But love without dignity? I won’t do it anymore. I’ve already chosen your fiancée. From now on, we’re just siblings again. Nothing more.”
His words were soft but firm–unshakable. “When I bring Thalia back, you are not allowed to touch her ever again. I will never take your side again.”
He turned and walked out without so much as a glance back, his tall figure disappearing into the driveway as Bianca collapsed in silent sobs.
The twelve–hour flight felt endless. Troy didn’t sleep. He couldn’t. Instead, he sat rigid in his seat, haunted by memories–Thalia’s laughter, the glow in her eyes, the countless times she reached for him and he didn’t reach back.
He had brought gifts–her favorite chocolates, the perfume she always wore, a velvet box of jewelry she once admired but never bought.
And a new wedding ring. He rented a car the moment he landed in New Zealand, driving straight to the villa where Thalia was staying, according to his assistant’s intel.
The sun was shining. The streets blurred past, but his mind only replayed possible reunion
scenes.
Maybe she would cry when she saw him. Maybe she’d demand to know why he only came
now,
Or maybe–just maybe–she would smile like she used to and say, “You finally came.”
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Or maybe just maybe–she would smile like she used to and say, “You finally came.”
But all his imagined scenarios shattered the moment he parked in front of the villa.
As Troy reached for the door handle, he froze.
In the garden, just past the low stone fence, he saw her.
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Thalia. Wearing the red dress he once told her was too bold. Her long hair caught the breeze, her arms looped tightly around a man’s neck. The man leaned down and kissed her -long, deep, unrestrained.
Sunlight wrapped around them like a spotlight. She looked… free. She looked like the Thalia he first met years ago, before she became the quiet, careful woman shaped by his silence.
Troy gripped the door handle so tightly his knuckles turned white.
His breath hitched. A cold flame of jealousy surged through his chest and rose to his
throat like bile.
“Thalia.”
The name slipped out, low and sharp, cutting through the quiet air.
The two figures in the garden paused.
The man turned first. He had sharp features, sun–kissed skin, and tousled hair that looked like it belonged in a magazine. Dressed in a black open–collar shirt, his posture was casual, cocky even–his eyes glinting with playful arrogance.
“I’ll be damned,” the man said with a smirk. “Troy Green?”
Troy’s expression turned to stone.
Xander Shepherd. Thalia’s childhood friend. The Shepherd’s family heir, known for his money, his charm and his reckless disregard for rules.
“What the hell are you doing?” Troy’s voice was ice.
Xander didn’t flinch. In fact, he slung an arm over Thalia’s shoulder like it belonged there.
“Isn’t it obvious?” he said coolly. “I was kissing my girlfriend.”
He tilted his head thoughtfully, enjoying the reaction. “Ah, did she forget to tell you? We’re dating now.”
Troy’s jaw clenched, his fists trembling at his sides.
Chat- 15
