Chapter 543
Hudson felt more and more awkward about showing up unannounced, but he could not bring himself to leave. He had that feeling that if he walked away right now, Chloe would only get further out of reach. "Won't you let me come in for a bit? I made time just to see you..."
Chloe was still pushing against Hudson's knee. She wanted to close the door and put Hudson out of her life for good.
She thought she was ready for that, but Hudson's unexpected visit had thrown her off balance.
She could not let this continue. She just could not.
Who was Hudson anyway? He was a big-shot CEO. Meanwhile, she was just someone from an ordinary family who had known Hudson all her life. The gap between them was too wide to cross. She had been foolish to think otherwise before.
Chloe said calmly, "Mr. Xender, a busy man like you doesn't have time for a nobody like me."
Hudson's heart ached. He had once said those words to Chloe, not realizing how cruel they were. Feeling the sting of his own words, he understood just how much they had hurt her.
"Chloe, I'm sorry for what I said before. I didn't mean it."
Chloe's heart felt heavy. She did not want to dredge up the past with Hudson. She had always believed that what was done was done, like smoke disappearing into the air.
"We both know what you meant by those words, Mr. Xender. It's all water under the bridge now. I don't care about it anymore. Please, just go home."
Even as Chloe spoke, her heart ached as if it were being sliced open. She could taste the bitterness of saying goodbye, but she could not let herself be soft with Hudson. If she did, she would be the one to pay the price later. That was the hard lesson she had learned from their years together.
Chloe stood firm, and Hudson's words could not sway her. She would not let him in. Hudson felt downcast, yet he could not bring himself to leave her doorstep. It was as if his feet were glued to the ground.
"Mr. Xender, you're wasting your time here."
That phrase echoed in his head. It
was a
wter reminder of his own net
to Chloe. Now, it was
back to haunt
belongs to en.FindNovel
For the first time, Hudson felt a sharp pain as if needles were piercing him. His head throbbed.
Distracted for just a moment, Hudson saw Chloe reaching to close the door.
"Chloe!" he called out in desperation, nearly dropping the flowers he held.
"Chloe, who's there?" a man's unfamiliar voice echoed from inside the house. Chloe pushed Hudson toward the exit. "Hudson, you need to leave my house now!" Then, to the man inside, she said, "Um... It's just a friend."
"Friend? What kind of friend?"
A man Hudson did not know came out of the kitchen, wearing an apron just like Chloe's.
Hudson took one look at the man's outfit and felt a weird feeling
bubbling up inside. Without even・
thinking, his hands balled into fists.
"Who is this guy?!"
Hudson's voice was steady, not too loud or too quiet. Chloe and the man could hear him just fine.
The man tried to break the ice with a smile and said, "I'm Chloe's colleague, Felix Carlson. I'm here
today to help her clean up her place because she needed an extra pair of hands."
"Got that, Hudson? Now get going, and don't make me tell you again."