Chapter 18
Bryce looked at Yara like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Lena and I are siblings. You want us to never see each other again? What’s wrong with you? We both came all this way to find you, and it’s still not enough? So what if you donated bone marrow? Do you think that gives you the right to threaten our relationship?”
His anger made it clear he thought she was completely out of line.
Yara gave him a bitter smile. She had left quietly in the first place because she wanted to help them save face and avoid any more entanglement. But after hearing his words, she realized they didn’t deserve her kindness at all.
Her expression turned serious as she looked straight at them. “You keep saying I’m your friend, but when I was in the hospital donating bone marrow, did either of you come to see me even once? I left all this time ago. Did either of you ever try to find me?
Bryce, I was married to you for years. Did you ever have any real feelings for me? All I ever was to you was a cover so you and Yelena could be together. If you two are really in love, then get married. Stop dragging me into it. Do you understand? I don’t want anything to do with you two ever again!
“Bryce, I don’t love you anymore. And I don’t want to be friends with Yelena, either.”
She finally spoke the words she’d held in for so long. Then, she turned around and walked away without a second thought.
Bryce’s face went pale. Before he could react, Yelena rushed over and grabbed Yara’s arm.
“Wait, Yara! Look, I know you found out the truth. I know I hurt you, but I can’t control how I feel about Bryce. In the beginning, I really did want you and Bryce to be together. I knew you liked him, so I tried to make it happen for you. I never expected things would turn out like this.
“I heard your brother wants to be with you, too, right? How about this? You remarry Bryce, and I’ll marry your brother. That way, we can be with the ones we love without anyone finding out, and our reputations won’t be damaged.”
Bryce frowned at the idea of Yelena marrying someone else, but he was willing to accept it as long as he could get back together with Yara again,
Before Yara could say a word, Jason was already stepping in. He had heard about everything between the siblings, but never expected them to be this shameless. He pulled Yara into his arms and glared at them with disgust. “You two are unbelievable! I’m going to be with Yara out in the open. I’m not going to sneak around and hide like you two are.
ཕོ ་ཊན ་བ ན
”
That comment clearly hit a nerve. Yelena’s grip tightened on Yara’s arm, refusing to let
- go.
“I looked you up, Jason. You’re adopted, just like me, right? If people found out you were in love with Yara, it wouldn’t hurt her but it would ruin you. You’d lose everything you have with the Spencer family. Is it really worth it? Why not just do it my way? If we keep it a secret, no one will ever know. You can have both Yara and the Spencer family fortune. Isn’t that good enough?”
Yelena talked fast, desperate to convince him, but Jason just shook his head with disdain.
“If I love her, I could never stand to see her get hurt. The family everyone’s blessing.”
Ortune means nothing to me. I’d give it all up for Yara. I just want to be with her openly with
With that, he pulled Yara away from Yelena’s grasp and walked off.
Bryce swallowed hard, his throat feeling tight. Deep down, he’d always
robe with Yelena openly, just like Jason had said.
Maybe he wanted to show his determination or simply vent his frustration, so he reached out and took Yelena’s hand.
“Lena, Jason’s right. I love you. I’m tired of hiding and pretending. I don’t care about the Dalton family fortune. I just want to be with you, if you’ll have me.” He tried to pull Yelena into a hug to finally make a promise, but the usually sweet and gentle Yelena pushed him away. Her eyes were red as she shouted at him. You’re their son! Of course you don’t care. Your father would never actually kick you out. But I’m just the adopted one. If I choose you, I lose everything I’ve worked for!
“Bryce, it’s easy for you to talk about giving things up, but do you even know what it feels like to have nothing? I fought so hard just to get into the Dalton family. I can’t throw it all away because of you!”
Hearing this, Bryce felt his heart turning to ice. He could put up with her moods, her need to keep things a secret, even her arranging him with Yara. But the one thing he couldn’t accept was that she didn’t love him.
He looked at her, color draining from his face. “Lena, do you really love me?”
Chapter 19