He Saw My Ghost All Along, And Grew Tired Of My Clinging Chapter 02

He Saw My Ghost All Along, And Grew Tired Of My Clinging Chapter 02

We got home. Reid didn’t even sit down before he was barking orders at his staff.

“Clear out the second-floor bedroom in the east wing. I want it converted into a study for Nadine.”

My whole body went cold. That was my room.

I’d lived there when I was alive. Reid had set up every piece of it himself.

He’d run his fingers through my hair and promised me the room would always be mine. That this would always be my home.

Those were the happiest days I’d ever known.

He’d filled the walk-in closet with clothes and jewelry he had picked out for me. He’d even painted the walls my favorite color, doing it with his own hands.

And now he was the one giving the order to tear it all down.

I tried to stay put. Tried to swallow the ache. But my feet carried me upstairs before I could stop them.

I hadn’t set foot in that room since I died.

I was afraid that walking in there would break whatever was left of me.

I never imagined this was how I’d see it for the last time.

The staff yanked open the closet and tossed out my dresses like they were rags.

Jewelry scattered at my feet. I squeezed my eyes shut.

After every business trip, he’d come home with something for me. He used to say each one was a little piece of him missing me.

Now he wanted none of it. He didn’t want the memories. He didn’t want me.

I stood there as they gutted the room piece by piece. They painted over the walls. White, blank, empty.

His team moved fast. By nightfall, every trace of pink was gone. In its place sat a sleek, cold study.

Reid took Nadine by the hand and led her inside.

He pushed the door open himself. Everything that had been mine was gone. Not a trace left.

He wanted me erased.

Nadine threw herself into his arms, laughing. He smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. He never looked at me. Not once.

I couldn’t watch anymore. The air felt like it was crushing me. Every part of me screamed to run.

Before I could move, Reid’s assistant rushed in.

“Mr. Vaughn, the Carver Group acquisition is done. Every share. The contract’s been signed. It’s ours.”

Every word hit me like a fist. I couldn’t move.

Nadine was still admiring her new study when Reid carried the documents to his own.

I swallowed the dread clawing up my throat and followed him.

My father’s signature stared back at me from the page. Reid had taken my family’s company.

My parents built that company from nothing. He didn’t just stop loving me; he went after my family.

I stood there, staring at him. He kept his head down and worked like I didn’t exist.

I couldn’t hold it in anymore. My voice came out raw, cracked. “You took my family’s company? You owe me an answer, Reid. Why?”

“If you hated me for clinging to you these past four years, fine. But that’s on me. My parents didn’t do anything to you. Why are you punishing them?”

His pen stopped. He didn’t look up. His voice was flat, bored almost. “My decision. Not yours to question.”

Something inside me snapped. “Reid! What happened to you? Why are you doing this?”

He looked up. “Because you never know when to stop!”