Fading Memories, New Beginnings

Chapter 9

"All of it?" Emma asked, unable to hide her regret. "The gifts, the clothes, the shoes? Mr. Lindsey traveled all over the country picking those out for you."

'Yes. Jayden had chosen every one of those things for me himself...'

'So how had his heart changed so quickly?'

"I don't want any of it."

Rivka's throat tightened, but in the end, those were the only words she said.

She watched as her belongings were carried out of the villa piece by piece. By the time the last trace of her was gone, she felt something she had not expected—relief.

She was about to leave when her phone rang, and a breaking headline flashed across the screen.

"Breaking: New York's Golden Heir Jayden Lindsey Divorces Wife, Plans Lavish Wedding with Another Woman Tonight."

Rivka froze. She stared at the wedding photo of Jayden and Willow on the screen, and a bitter ache spread through her chest so quickly that she could barely breathe.

The comments underneath were even worse. People were tearing into her from every direction.

A: [Mr. Lindsey is such a catch. Rivka had no idea how lucky she was!]

B: [She must have done something awful to him. Maybe she cheated, and that's why they got divorced!]

C: [Mr. Lindsey deserves better. Good riddance to that trashy ex-wife!]

Rivka tightened her grip on the phone until her fingertips turned white.

There had been a time when all of New York envied her. Now those same people despised her.

And none of it was true. Jayden was the one who had handed her the divorce papers.

Anger and humiliation surged through her. She called him immediately, needing to know what the hell he thought he was doing. He declined the call.

A second later, a text appeared.

Jayden: Don't take the article too seriously. Someone is clearly trying to stir things up. I'm out right now, so I can't talk.

The cold detachment in his voice made her heart sink.

She let out a laugh that held no amusement at all. 'Can't talk? Or are you simply too busy preparing to marry Willow?'

There was nothing left to protect now. Nothing left to endure.

Rivka decided to confront him in person.

At Lindsey Group's flagship hotel, she spotted Jayden and Willow almost the moment she stepped inside.

She was about to call out to him when their voices reached her first.

"Jayden, are you sure Rivka won't be upset?" Willow asked, her voice carefully laced with uncertainty.

"Don't worry about her." Jayden leaned over and kissed Willow's cheek with quiet tenderness, completely unaware of the pair of devastated eyes fixed on him from a short distance away. "Sooner or later, I'll make Rivka step aside. You'll be Mrs. Lindsey."

Nausea rose in Rivka's throat.

So the "someone" behind the article was Jayden himself...

She bit down on her lower lip until she tasted blood, pressing a hand over her mouth as her throat burned.

Then, under her breath, she whispered with exhausted bitterness. "Jayden... You could've just told me!"

Her voice shook with hurt and disbelief.

"If all you wanted was to give her my place, you could've said so. I would've stepped aside. Why go this far? Why lie to me like this?"

Her heart began pounding so hard that it hurt. This time, she was done waiting another minute. She went straight to the hospital.

She was going to erase her memories now.

*****

At Aventine Hospital, Rivka had already changed into a hospital gown and was waiting for the procedure to begin.

"Ms. Woodard, are you absolutely sure you want to do this?" the doctor asked one last time. "Memory erasure is irreversible."

"I'm sure."

Rivka's voice was hoarse but steady. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her nails had dug into her palms, yet she felt none of it.

"Would you like us to notify your husband so he can be here after the procedure?" the doctor asked gently.

"I'm divorced. I don't have a husband anymore." Her voice caught, but she forced the rest out anyway. "When I wake up, please tell me that."

Every word felt like she was carving something out of her own chest.

Once everything was ready, Rivka lay down on the procedure table.

Under the harsh glare of the overhead lights, the anesthetic began to enter her system, and a heavy drowsiness spread through her body. Her thoughts blurred.

Just before consciousness slipped away, her memories began rewinding on their own.

"Rivka, be mine... Marry me, Rivka..."

She heard the faint electrical hum of the machine. Then her mind went blank!

'Jayden, I'm letting you go. In this life or the next, we will never meet again.'