Chapter 344
“We’ve always been perfect together. If you just say yes, if you agree to be with me, I swear nobody will ever mention Jasper’s past again. He’ll be my son, and my son alone. For Jasper’s sake, you should really think about it, shouldn’t you p>
Camilla let out a laugh, but there was nothing happy about it. The sound was pure sarcasm.
Looking at Barnard’s face right then, all she could think about was how she’d wasted five years married to him and how the memory of it made her skin crawl.
Five years.
Five whole years, and she had never seen Barnard for who he truly was. Even now that they’d been apart for so long, he was still reciting all that talk about love, but there wasn’t a trace of real feeling. Every move he made was just another trick to keep her trapped by his side.
Barnard reached out, trying to pull her close by the waist. Camilla sidestepped him, and his hand froze in midair. It didn’t even seem to faze him. He just forced another smile and said, “The Charles family isn’t easy to deal with. You’re smart, Camilla. You know being with a guy like Lance is asking for trouble. Even if you somehow managed to marry him, his family would always make life hard for you.
But with me, it’s different. We have history. Five years of marriage. My parents adore you. If you come back, I’ll tell them it was all just a misunderstanding and that Jasper is our son. See p>
“Are you done?” Camilla cut in, ice in her voice. “Do you really know me, Barnard? Or Lance? Everything you just listed is just your own imagination. Lance isn’t like you. He doesn’t play games, and he didn’t want to marry me just to use me for something. He’d never let his family treat me badly. What you’re saying makes no sense at all.
So don’t look for me again, and don’t bother making these ridiculous suggestions. No matter what you say, my answer will always be the same p>
Barnard’s eyes burned with anger, but even more obvious was his refusal to accept her rejection. He scowled at her. “You think you know him so well even though you’ve barely known him? Camilla, you always say I’m manipulative—what about you? When you were with me, were you ever sincere? Did you ever love me p>
“No.” Camilla’s answer came quickly and without hesitation. “Before I learned what you’re really like, I felt grateful to you, and I put up with you and your family, but that’s all it ever was. Just gratitude. That’s the truth you wanted, right? We never had love between us. So don’t contact me again. I mean it p>
No love.
Barnard had always told himself he didn’t really love Camilla either. But hearing her say it out loud, so calm, so cold, was like a punch to the chest. His heart felt squeezed, his throat tight, his vision blurry with the sting of tears he would never admit to. He realized he’d been wrong. He did love her—he just never realized it. And by the time he figured it out, Camilla had already taken a place in his heart.
That was why her request for a divorce had felt so unbearable.
That was why he felt nothing but emptiness at the thought of marrying Davina.
He wanted to tell Camilla how he really felt, but when he looked up and met her bitter, mocking eyes, the words came out all wrong. “You really want to cut things off so cleanly? Aren’t you even a little scared? Aren’t you afraid that people will find out about you, that the story about you and Jasper will make it back to the Charles family? Maybe Lance likes you now—but would he really accept that you had a kid with some vagrant, some p>
Before he could even finish, Camilla’s hand swung up and landed hard across his face. The slap cracked in the air, and Barnard’s head snapped sideways, her handprint angry and red on his cheek.
Camilla’s voice was cold and steady. “Barnard, stop trying to tear me down with your filthy words. I won’t believe anything you say from now on. Insulting me doesn’t make you a good guy. It just reminds me that every awful thing I went through was because of you. I only find you more revolting p>
She fully expected him to go back to his old ways: the sarcasm, the threats. After all, Lean was still stuck living in some place Barnard arranged. She knew he only showed up today because he wasn’t ready to let things go.
But after her words, Barnard just stood there, stunned. He looked at her as if holding something back, silent for so long that it became uncomfortable.
His stare made Camilla uneasy. She added, “Let me make myself clear. If you try to threaten me like this again, you won’t get another chance. I won’t see you at all. And don’t forget, you still owe me money. Pay up p>
With that, she turned and walked away while Barnard just stood and watched her go—completely lost.
Disgusting.
She called him disgusting.
But really, what did that even matter?
He loved her. That was enough. He’d had her once before, and he could do it again.