Too Late to Love Me

Chapter 6

Evelyn: Nine a.m. the day after tomorrow. Meet me at the Civil Council.

The words were simple. Completely devoid of emotion.

Aiden stared at the message, frozen for several seconds, as an unfamiliar panic surged through him without warning. The feeling caught him completely off guard. Instinctively, he wanted to reply, his fingers hovered over the screen, but he had no idea what to say.

Ask her why the rush? Or… beg her to stay?

Beg her to stay? The thought startled even himself.

"Aiden, who’s that?" Iris, still curled in his arms, sensed his tension. She leaned over curiously, her eyes landing on the screen before he could react.

A flicker of satisfaction crossed her face. Quick as a flash, she snatched the phone from his hand and tapped out a single word: "Okay." Then she shoved it back at him, the movement so swift he barely had time to stop her.

"You... " Aiden frowned.

Iris immediately clutched her stomach, her voice pitching into a whimper. "Aiden, my stomach suddenly hurts so much… Maybe it’s from the scare earlier…"

He had no choice but to swallow the irritation rising in his throat. He took a deep breath, slipped the phone into his pocket, and said nothing more.

Meanwhile, Evelyn returned to the cold, lifeless house and began packing.

The truth was, she didn’t own much. Most of the space was filled with Aiden’s things, his clothes, his books, his presence. When she picked up the shattered wedding photo, her fingers trembled just slightly.

It had been broken not long ago. An accident, Iris had called it.

In the photograph, a c***k now ran straight between them, an unbridgeable divide. Evelyn stared at it for a long moment, then dropped it into the trash bin without a second thought.

She was dragging her suitcase toward the door when it swung open. Aiden stood on the threshold, Iris clinging to his side.

His gaze landed immediately on the stark white bandage wrapped around Evelyn’s head. The sight tightened something in his chest, though he couldn’t explain why.

He stepped forward before he could stop himself. "Your head… what happened?"

There was concern in his voice. Once, that might have meant something to her. Now, she felt nothing.

Before she could answer, Iris pressed a hand to her stomach, her voice thin and urgent. "Aiden, my stomach hurts again… I can’t stand it… Can we go inside?"

He hesitated, just for a moment. Then he bent and lifted Iris into his arms.

As he carried her toward the bedroom, he called over his shoulder, "Zoey, bring Miss Smith a glass of hot water."

Evelyn didn’t linger. She turned and walked out, pulling her suitcase behind her.

She rented a small apartment, modest, but clean and tidy.

Three days later, outside the civil affairs office.

Aiden arrived on time, Iris in tow. Evelyn was already waiting.

She wore a simple white blouse, her hair pulled back to reveal a pale, smooth forehead. Her face was still drawn, but her eyes held an unsettling calm, so calm it made Aiden uneasy, as though he were looking at a stranger.

He searched her gaze for something, regret, sorrow, anything. But there was nothing. The eyes that had once looked at him with adoration were now empty, still waters.

His voice came out rougher than he intended. "After the divorce, I’ll transfer the west-side apartment to you, along with ten million dollars. It should be more than enough to—"

"No need." Evelyn’s voice cut through his words, calm and final. "I don’t want anything."

Aiden blinked, caught off guard.

All the speeches he’d prepared suddenly felt foolish, unnecessary. Was she severing every last tie?

"Why?" The question slipped out before he could stop it.

Evelyn didn’t answer. She simply handed her documents to the clerk, as if she hadn’t heard him at all.

The paperwork was processed quickly, though the mandatory cooling-off period meant they’d have to wait a full month before the divorce was official.

Receipt in hand, Evelyn turned and walked away without a backward glance. Not at Aiden. Not at Iris. She simply disappeared into the crowd beyond the office doors.

Aiden stared after her, that hollow ache settling back into his chest.

Iris clutched his arm, her voice laced with jealousy. "Aiden, do you regret it?"

He looked down at her pouting face and was silent for a long moment.

Regret? He wasn’t sure.

All he knew was that somewhere inside him, something had crumbled when Evelyn walked away with that quiet, final look in her eyes.

But in the end, he only shook his head, burying the unfamiliar ache. "No."

Whether he was convincing Iris, or himself, he couldn’t have said.