Chapter 19
Lucia sobbed over the phone. “I’m begging you to talk to Shawn. He just got out of the hospital and went straight back to drinking. He’s been throwing up blood, but he still won’t stop.
“No one can get through to him. I wouldn’t bother you if I had any other choice, but I’m completely out of options.”
Thinking of Lucia’s heart condition, Candace couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. She said gently, “Don’t worry. I’ll find him.
“But I need to make one thing clear upfront. There’s no way I’m ever remarrying him. Please convince him to let go of this obsession and stop harassing
- me.
“We should just stay out of each other’s way and live our lives in peace.”
“I’ll talk to him, so don’t worry.” Lucia’s voice brightened with relief. “I’ll send you the location right now.”
Candace rushed to the VIP room at Sunglow Bar to find a crowd of people surrounding Shawn, trying to reason with him. Shawn’s black shirt was unbuttoned, his face flushed red from drinking, and his right hand was wrapped in thick bandages.
When they saw her, everyone stood to greet her.
“Candace, thank God you’re here! Please talk some sense into Shawn. He just had stomach tumor surgery and can’t be drinking. If he keeps this up, it could kill him!”
“Candace, Shawn always listened to you. Just say something to him. Tell him to stop destroying his body like this. Mrs. Hamilton Senior has a heart condition and can’t handle this kind of stress.”
Candace stopped about three feet away from him as she said in a cold tone, “Shawn, stop drinking and go home.”
Shawn looked up with drunken eyes, his face lighting up with wild joy as he lunged forward to touch her face. He then stopped mid–air and dropped his head in despair.
“I must be dreaming again. I’m dreaming that Candy came to take me home. She’s mad at me and won’t talk to me. She’d never come to get me.”
“It’s not a dream, Shawn. Candace is really here.” One of Shawn’s friends patted his shoulder.
“Stop messing around and go with her.”
“Candy came for me?” Shawn’s voice was filled with joy and disbelief.
He stumbled over to Candace and studied her face carefully for a long time.
He held out a wooden box with both hands and cautiously said, “Candy, I rewrote all 238 love letters you burned, word for word, exactly like the originals. Will you please look at them?”
Candace stood still without moving. His expression darkened for a moment, then he suddenly began unbuttoning his shirt.
“Candy, I even carved these words onto my chest so I’ll never forget you again. Please give me a chance to make things right, okay?”
She looked up and saw the words “My Beloved Candy” tattooed in red ink on his chest.
The crimson letters embedded within blooming lilies were particularly striking, burning into Candace’s eyes. In a daze, she seemed to hear countless voices echoing in her mind
“My beloved Candy, New Year’s Eve is so lonely and cold without you. Order me a cup of sweet peach iced tea!”
“My beloved Candy, I love watching you turn all red when I kiss you, then chase me around trying to hit me with your textbook. You’re so adorable that I could just eat you up!”
“My beloved Candy, Merry Christmas! Don’t forget to wear our matching watches to school today. I’ll kill you if you forget again!”
“My beloved Candy, don’t worry about your grades or finding a job later. I’ll work my ass off to support you for life, okay? Don’t cry. It breaks my heart when you cry.”
All those words merged together in her mind, becoming the letters carved into his heart.
She turned her face away, speaking slowly and deliberately. “Shawn, it’s too late. I’ve used up every bit of love I had for you, and it’s never coming back!”
