Goodbye, Mr. Regret

He couldn't let Jessica face this alone anymore.

Back when he barely knew her, he already felt a deep tenderness for her. Now, the thought of her enduring more misery because of Timothy was simply

unbearable.

But Jessica understood all too well.

She'd been married to Timothy for seven years. He'd always been distant, but she'd loved him fiercely, always hoping to bridge the gap between them. She'd tried, time and again, to get to know him better, hoping that if she just tried hard enough, he might finally come closer.

How could she not know Timothy by now?

He'd found the person he was looking for—if he hadn't wanted this, Vince would never have managed to track anyone down.

Jessica wanted to stay and talk to Timothy alone. She gently asked Vince to leave.

"Jessy..."

Vince gripped her arm tightly, refusing to let go.

From everything he'd seen and heard, he knew Jessica might give in for the sake of his little sister.

"Don't talk to him. Let's just go."

Vince understood just how much Jessica had suffered at the hands of Timothy and the Lawsons. He knew better than anyone how desperately she wanted to leave Timothy.

He couldn't bear to see her give up now.

Timothy's methods were ruthless-even Vince might not be a match for him, let alone Jessica.

But Jessica carefully pried his hand away, offering a gentle smile as she pushed him out the door.

Now, only Jessica and Timothy remained in the hospital room.

Timothy's deep, unreadable gaze lingered on her. After seven years of marriage, how could there be no feelings at all? The air itself seemed thick with longing.

He wanted her back.

Happiness slipped through his fingers, little by little, before he even realized it was gone. Now, he wanted to reclaim every piece of what he'd lost.

The woman before him overlapped again and again with the memory of the stubborn, wide-eyed girl he'd known as a child.

How could she possibly divorce him? How could he ever let her go? After all, she'd spent her childhood insisting she didn't want to marry Yates-she'd always said she liked him best, wanted to be his wife.

She couldn't go back on her word now.

"Jessy." Timothy's voice was rough, almost choked. "I'm sorry for making you stay like this."

Jessica's anger flared even hotter. After everything he'd done all the underhanded, cruel things he still managed to say something so perfectly poised, so elegant.

"If you know it's wrong, if you can apologize, then why do it in the first place? Are you really so selfish, so utterly incapable of caring about anyone else's feelings?"

Her hands carved angry shapes in the air.

"You barely know Herbert, you don't care about him. But Vince? He's been your friend since you were kids!" she signed fiercely. "His sister-you know her, don't you? Don't you want her to come home? To let their family be whole again?"

"And Vince's mother-he told me his mom's been sick with grief, she's barely holding on. He's terrified he won't find his sister before his mothe passes, so he even asked me to pretend to be his sister if the

worst happens Timothy donoveldrama

have a heart at all?sn't Mrs

you

Zimmerman someone you know? How can you be this cruel?"

Sure, Timothy was cold. But for Sheila, he'd gone to extraordinary lengths.

Jessica always thought, at the very least, that he'd care for the people around him.

Vince wasn't a stranger.

And still, Timothy could be this ruthless.

"How can I do this?" Timothy

echoed, his voice sharp with pain. "You want to know how? Because

can't let you go. Isn't that e

don't want a divorce. Isn't that ~ enough? Listen to me, Jessyellove you I can't live without you isn't that enough?"

He spoke in a rush, voice thick with emotion, every word echoing in the room.

But Jessica only looked at him with a bitter, almost mocking smile.

If this were years ago, she might have believed him—might have been moved, even thrown herself into his arms. But after everything she'd endured, how could she trust him now?

Seven years ago, he'd wanted to marry Sheila. That box she'd found-all the evidence pointed to that fact. And still, she'd been foolish enough, just once, to almost believe his hollow explanations.

She couldn't fall for his lies again.

He couldn't have Sheila, so he settled for her-the mute girl, the one who seemed unlikely to fight back.

He must have thought that giving her a scrap of tenderness, a little wealth, the title of Mrs. Lawson, would be enough for her to be grateful, to be satisfied.

This way, he could give his family an answer, bring home the woman he really loved his precious aunt.

That must have been the real reason he married her.

"Jessy, don't do this. Let's not get a divorce, alright? I know I made mistakes, but I can change—all of them, I promise, okay?"

Too late.

It was far, far too late.

Her heart was dead to this marriage. She had no hope left.

"Timothy, you really are heartless. For the sake of this marriage, I wasted seven years, lost so much—and now you use Vince's sister to threaten me. Don't you feel even a little bit guilty? What is your heart made of?"

Her gestures were filled with sorrow. "Why is it so hard to let me go? Even without me, I'm sure there are plenty of women who d be happy just to have the title-who would want nothing but your money, who'd never expect love or loyalty. But I can't do that. I just can't."