Chapter 18 Unfinished Conversations
1299 Words
Chloe had barely settled back into work after the emotional strain of the past few days when she saw him.
Richard was standing across the street from her office building.
Waiting.
Her steps slowed instantly.
For a brief moment, she considered turning around and pretending she hadn’t noticed him. But he had already seen her. Their eyes locked, and the familiar pull she had tried so hard to bury resurfaced without permission.
He crossed the street toward her.
“Chloe,” he said, slightly breathless, like he had rehearsed what to say but forgotten everything the moment he saw her.
She kept her expression guarded.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been waiting,” he admitted. “I needed to talk to you.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” she replied quickly. “Richard, you should go back to Clara. She needs you right now.”
Guilt flickered across his face, but determination replaced it just as fast.
“The marriage alliance is canceled,” he announced. “Clara is stable. Her parents are with her. I came because… because I can’t keep pretending everything is fine when it’s not.”
Chloe was shocked. She sighed, exhaustion weighing on her.
“I don’t want to do this here,” she said, glancing around at coworkers passing by.
“Then come somewhere with me,” he said immediately. “Just thirty minutes. Please. After that, if you still want me to leave you alone… I will.”
She hesitated.
Every instinct told her this was a bad idea. But the sincerity in his eyes — the familiarity — weakened her resolve.
“…Fine,” she said quietly. “Thirty minutes.”
Relief washed over his face.
He took her to a small eatery a few blocks away. It wasn’t fancy — just quiet enough for conversation without attention. They sat across from each other, an awkward silence stretching between them while a waiter placed menus on the table.
Neither of them looked at the menus.
Richard spoke first.
“I canceled the engagement,” he said.
Chloe’s head snapped up. “I know,” she replied. “Clara told me. You humiliated her, Richard. Do you even understand what that did to her?”
Pain crossed his face.
“I never wanted to hurt her,” he said. “But marrying her would have been worse. It would have been a lie.”
“A lie she didn’t deserve,” Chloe said firmly.
“I know,” he whispered. “But Chloe… I couldn’t stand there and promise forever to someone when my heart was still somewhere else.”
Her chest tightened.
“Don’t,” she warned softly.
“I still love you,” he said anyway.
The words landed heavily between them.
Memories flooded back — laughter, comfort, the version of life she once believed they would share.
But so did the pain.
“You had your chance,” she said quietly. “When things got difficult, you disappeared. You let your family control everything. You chose the easier path.”
“I chose the path I thought would protect everyone,” he replied. “Including you.”
“That wasn’t your decision to make.”
Silence followed.
Richard leaned forward slightly.
“I know I failed you,” he said. “I know I broke us. But I’m here now. I’m trying. Just… give me another chance to fix it.”
Chloe looked down at her hands.
Her emotions were betraying her — resurfacing despite the walls she had built.
Images of Damon flashed in her mind.
His intensity.
His protectiveness.
The way he stepped into her chaos without hesitation.
Her life was different now.
Complicated.
Dangerous.
“I’m not the same person anymore,” she said softly.
“I don’t need you to be,” Richard replied. “I just need you.”
Her eyes lifted to his.
For a moment, the past and present collided — two different futures pulling her in opposite directions.
“I don’t know if I can trust you again,” she admitted.
“That’s okay,” he said gently. “Then let me earn it.”
Her heart wavered. She hadn’t said yes, but she hadn’t said no either. And that uncertainty was enough to reopen wounds that had never truly healed.
Richard stood from his sit. Walked slowly towards Chloe, he bent over, attempting to kiss her. But he stopped suddenly. He was distracted, a figure appeared in their midst.
It was Damon. His eyes were red in anger.
"Damon," Chloe stood looking surprised, "How..."
The next movement from Damon was a blow to Richard's face.
Richard looked up instantly, holding his punched face with irritation. He was going to react, but he restrained, noticing the chaos he would create, and the possibility that he would not win the fight.
Chloe was utterly dumbfounded, "Why did you have to do that?"
Damon didn't reply, he just dragged her out, like an obsessed drug user.
-
The hum of the city outside faded as Damon’s sleek black car glided through the quiet streets. Chloe sat stiffly beside him, arms crossed, heart hammering, not from fear, but from frustration.
The mansion came into view, its stone façade looming like a fortress. Damon’s hands still wrapped tight on Chloe’s arm. She struggled, “Damon! Stop! Let go of me!” She snapped, yanking her hands free. “Why do you keep doing this? Meddling with my life, controlling who I see, what I do, dragging me around like I have no say. You’ve totally taken away every right to my freedom!”
Damon’s chest tightened. Every word she spat was a shared of truth piercing him. The intensity of her outburst made Demon’s heart ache. He wanted to reach for her again, to tell her she wasn’t seeing the truth, but her words were sharper than any weapon.
“I never wanted to hurt you!” Damon roared, his voice loud and terrifying, making Chloe to tremble in shock.
She whirled toward him, eyes blazing, “I don’t care about your reasons! I care about mine. I care about my choices!”
“Seriously?” Damon continued, his voice low and deliberate. “I’ve thought of every possible reason you and Richard cannot be together. Think Chloe! Peter Carter wants the Reliquary and he couldn’t get it. Getting you to his side should be another possible opportunity, even though the family doesn’t like you. And all of a sudden, the marriage alliance between the families of the Wilson and Carter was cancelled, and Richard came running to you immediately.”
Chloe’s chest tightened, absorbing his words.
Damon’s voice softened, trembling just enough for her to notice, “If loving you is a sin… then I am guilty. Truly guilty, but it’s the only thing I’ve ever been certain about.”
Tears welled in his eyes, glistening but refusing to fall. Chloe could see them clearly, the raw honesty in the moment.
“You are free,” he said finally, “Go. Be with whoever you want. I will never interfere in your life again.”
Without another word, Damon walked away, his figure retreating down the long hallway, a mixture of anger and sorrow in every step.
Chloe stood frozen, the weight of the silence pressing down. Her hands trembled slightly. For the first time, she understood Damon’s feelings were not just obsession, or dominance, or control. They were genuine, pure, and in that moment, her heart betrayed her, whispering truths she had tried to deny.
She sank slowly onto the velvet chaise, shoulders heavy, realizing that the man who had roared in anger and softened in sorrow may have loved her more than she had ever understood.
- Writer
