Too Late to Beg: I’m No Longer Yours Chapter 14

Too Late to Beg: I’m No Longer Yours Chapter 14

Three years later, I flew back to the States for an industry summit.

The convention center happened to be right next to the restaurant where I had spent my final birthday with Hayes

During the catering arrangements for the gala, an organizer asked me for dietary restrictions.

I was just about to answer when a painfully familiar voice sounded from behind me.

“She’s allergic to mangoes. And she’s lactose intolerant.”

I turned around.

Hayes stood a few feet away.

He wore a dark suit. He was painfully thin now. The undeniable, arrogant edge that used to make him magnetic had

been completely scrubbed away.

He took a subconscious step toward me the second our eyes met.

But my dead, placid gaze stopped him dead in his tracks.

“Long time no see.”

I nodded.

“Long time no see.

His eyes dropped to my neck.

The restored vintage necklace rested quietly against my collarbone.

Hayes’s eyes immediately reddened.

“You’re still wearing it.”

I didn’t engage.

He offered a bitter smile.

“I know. I have no right to ask.”

Right before the gala started, the organizers reshuffled the seating chart.

The moment I sat down, I spotted a small box resting next to my nameplate.

Inside lay a butterfly hair clip.

It was from the exact same designer collection as the one Brie had stolen.

Only this one was a newer, far more expensive model.

Hayes lingered behind my chair. His voice was barely a whisper.

“It took me a long time to track this down.”

“She lost the original.”

“I know it’s not the exact same one, but…”

I snapped the box shut and pushed it away.

“Hayes. I’m not a garbage collector.”

The color drained from his face.

A few guests glanced over at our table.

He acted like he didn’t even notice. He just locked his desperate eyes onto mine.

“Nova, I’m not trying to harass you.”

“I just want to pay back everything I owe you. A little at a time.”

I looked up at him.

“My lawyers already squared the cash.”

“And you found the necklace.”

“Whatever else you owe, you can’t afford.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed heavily.

“I know.”

“That’s why I never dared to reach out.”

“For the past three years, I’ve gone to that restaurant on your birthday.”

I order the exact same cake I light the exact same candles.”

“I just keep thinking, what if I hadn’t walked out that night…”

I cut him off.

There are no what–ifs.”

“That wasn’t the first time you walked out on me.”

“You milked my obedience to cater to everyone else, over and over again.”

“You plotted to gaslight me into insanity just to ruin my career.”

“You killed my love for you, Hayes. Piece by piece.”

The final spark of hope in Hayes’s eyes completely died out.