Chapter 682
“Once the time is up, regardless of the outcome, I can walk away with zero strings attached.
“He agreed to take over the executive authority, promising to shield me from all the pressure. But what exactly did you do p>
Jarred swallowed hard, his throat suddenly completely locked up.
Sienna let out a cold scoff, continuing, “You knew exactly what I was struggling with, yet you publicly announced at the press conference that you absolutely would not take over the authority p>
Jarred’s breathing grew heavy.
“Even Marcus understands exactly what I’m afraid of and respects my boundaries p>
Sienna looked at him calmly, her words a cold plunge of reality. “Other people actually consider what I want first.
“But you? From beginning to end, you never once cared about the position I was in p>
Jarred involuntarily took a step back.
Her words hit him so hard that the fierce anger boiling in his chest became completely lodged in his throat.
He wanted to fight back, to argue, but he couldn’t formulate a single sentence to defend himself.
He had no choice but to admit that every word Sienna said was the absolute truth.
When he had come to find her, his mind was entirely consumed with saving Maloney and forcing her to stay.
His immediate instinct had been to use whatever remaining emotional leverage he had to chain her to him.
He had completely ignored the fact that what she feared most in this world was being imprisoned by guilt and obligation.
Marcus had zeroed in on the exact thing she cared about most, while Jarred had personally stomped on every single one of her boundaries.
Jealousy was still violently burning a hole through his chest.
But he no longer had the right to lash out in anger. All that was left was an endless, suffocating wave of regret.
Refusing to waste another breath, Sienna turned to leave.
But Jarred couldn’t let it end like this. A twisted, desperate shred of hope dug its claws into him.
He took a step forward, blocking her path one last time.
His heart felt like it was being shredded alive as he clung to a final, pathetic delusion.
“If… if I had been the one to offer you that contract in the beginning p>
“If I had given you a deadline, given you an escape route, would you have stayed p>
All the color drained from his face as his arrogant armor completely shattered.
The desperate fragility he had been hiding beneath his hardened exterior was laid completely bare.
He leaned in slightly, his eyes softening into something that looked entirely like begging.
This was his final, pathetic attempt at self-deception.
If she just said ‘yes,’ he could at least comfort himself with the lie that his execution had simply been Hawed.
Sienna’s answer was razor-sharp, leaving absolutely zero room for hesitation: “No p>
That single syllable hit Jarred’s chest like a block of solid ice.
His entire body jerked rigidly, the very last flicker of light in his eyes dying out completely.
“So what you’re saying is… no matter what I did, I never stood a chance?” he asked, his voice so raw and broken it was barely a whisper.
“Correct,” Sienna stated flatly, her tone refusing to soften even a fraction.
The mountain of damage built up between them over the years formed an impenetrable wall.
This was never just about a contract; it was about the endless, exhausting erosion of her soul.
It wasn’t something a piece of paper could magically fix.
Jarred stared at her blankly, a dull, agonizing ache in his chest making it nearly impossible to draw a breath.
On pure instinct, his foot twitched, a primal urge driving him to chase after her.
But the second the thought crossed his mind p>
He remembered the look of pure disgust on her face just moments ago.
If he kept pushing her now, it would only amplify her revulsion; it wouldn’t change a damn thing.
It would only push her further away.
The hand he had half-raised froze in mid-air before dropping completely limp to his side.
Jarred stood entirely alone on the sprawling, empty second floor.
He didn’t chase her. A bone-deep agony washed over him in waves, torturing him from the inside out.
He logically understood everything she had said.
But the emotional torment continued to rip him apart. He couldn’t accept it, he couldn’t let it go, and yet… there was absolutely nothing he could do.
The night wind swept down the long corridor, leaving him with nothing but an empty, suffocating silence.