Chapter 16
Shannon froze when she heard them.
It was funny how life worked. When there was someone you didn’t want to see, the more likely they were to show up.
Christopher tightly hugged Shannon’s legs, refusing to let go no matter how hard she struggled. It was a stark contrast from how disgusted he was with
her back then.
Yet, she sternly pushed him away, looking annoyed.
Christopher looked at Shannon, stunned. He couldn’t understand how someone who’d loved him in the past would hate him so much now. He hadn’t seen her for an entire year, and when he finally did, all he received was her irritation.
Thomas looked at her tearily. “Where exactly have you been in the past year, Shannon? I looked everywhere for you, yet I could never find you. Chris and I miss you please come back, okay, Shannon?”
His voice trembled as he spoke, his words heartfelt.
Yet Shannon merely coldly replied, “We can no longer go back to how we were before, Thomas.”
Thomas was in disbelief. He reached out to grab her hand, but she stepped back. She said, “And for the record, whatever that was between us ended a year ago. Please have some self–respect.”
Shannon’s icy tone felt unfamiliar to him.
She had never spoken to Thomas like this in the past. She’d only speak gently without ever raising her voice. But now, she was colder to him than she would be to a stranger.
After a while, Shannon followed him to the entrance of the banquet hall. After all, this was Maya’s wedding venue, and she didn’t want to create a scene at her best friend’s wedding.
Jacob cast a worried gaze at her, but she shook her head and said, “It’s alright. I’ll be right back.“‘
When they reached the entrance, Thomas looked at Shannon and asked in a trembling voice, “Who was that man from earlier?”
She scoffed before replying, “Who are you to ask me that, Mr. Ford? Who I’m involved with is none of your business, isn’t it?”
Thomas felt hurt by those words, yet he was aware he had brought this upon himself. Clenching his fists tightly, he asked reluctantly, “Why did you leave without a word last year, Shannon?”
Christopher looked at Shannon and asked, “How could you bear to leave when you love me so much, Mommy? I’m sure you had your reasons, right?” She threw them a derisive look when she heard their words. She figured they’d be well aware of the reason she left.
Shannon glanced at Thomas and mocked, “Have you not seen the agreement? Do you need me to recite what’s written on it?”
Tears welled up in his eyes as Thomas choked out, “But everything you did for me and Chris during those five years was all genuine. Don’t tell me you never felt anything!”
Shannon’s gaze darkened upon hearing his words. She stared at him and said with clenched teeth, “Thomas, if you’re asking if I ever felt anything in those past five years, then let me be clear–I did. I’m a living human, not some cold–blooded machine.
“But
every time I tried to treat you like family, you’d stab me straight in the heart. It was how you treated Laura that made me realize that you weren’t incapable of love. You just never loved me.”
Shannon’s gaze was filled with hurt, and her tone was dripping with mockery. Each time the past was mentioned, they always dragged her back to those painful memories of all the times she wasn’t chosen, and the car accident where no one cared.
Each recollection chilled her to the bone.
Christopher burst into tears and said, “I’m sorry for making you sad before this, Mommy. I know it’s my fault now–can you please forgive me and Daddy?”
