Her Scissors Cut My Hair, But His Betrayal Cut Deeper - Chapter 19: Chapter 19
You are reading Her Scissors Cut My Hair, But His Betrayal Cut Deeper, Chapter 19: Chapter 19. Read more chapters of Her Scissors Cut My Hair, But His Betrayal Cut Deeper.
The moment Melody landed, she spotted a man who appeared to be a butler waiting outside. After confirming his identity against the photo, she walked directly toward him.
"Miss Monroe," the butler recognized her immediately.
Melody nodded. "I'm the person you're here to pick up. Please take me to meet Jackson."
Though slightly surprised by her directness, the butler led her to the car.
In the luxurious estate in Monaco, Jackson observed her arrival without surprise. After inquiring about her preferences, he instructed his staff to prepare her favorite coffee.
Melody studied the man in the wheelchair, mentally questioning the rumors she'd heard. He seemed gentle, not at all the cold, unapproachable person people described.
He wore a mask that obscured his features, but Melody didn't mind. After her experience with Nathan, she'd learned that appearance meant nothing compared to character.
Noticing her gaze, Jackson assumed she was curious about his wheelchair and preemptively explained.
"Just a minor incident recently. Nothing wrong with my legs."
"Oh... okay," Melody quickly waved her hands. "That's not what I was thinking..."
Jackson didn't seem bothered. He got straight to the point: "Are you certain you want to marry me in Emma's place?"
Melody nodded.
"Let's be clear—we both know this marriage is essentially a transaction," Jackson said. Though she couldn't see his expression, Melody felt his analytical gaze behind the mask. "So I won't make things difficult for you."
"If someday... certain circumstances arise, I'll terminate our engagement and provide you with appropriate compensation."
Melody remained silent, understanding perfectly what "certain circumstances" meant.
"Of course, the decision is entirely yours," he continued.
"If you're having second thoughts, I could—"
"I don't regret my decision."
"I want to marry you," Melody replied seriously.
Jackson paused, somewhat taken aback. He didn't continue, just nodded and simply said, "Good."
Her phone vibrated—just spam. Melody deleted it without a second thought.
She'd been in Monaco for a week now, and hadn't received a single message from Nathan. She knew what that meant.
She'd thrown out everything that reminded her of him in their apartment and left him a note. If Nathan had seen it, he would have contacted her immediately. But he hadn't.
Which could only mean one thing: Nathan hadn't been home all week. He'd been at the hospital, taking care of Claire.
Nathan, do you really love her that much?
It doesn't matter anymore, Melody thought with bitter amusement. It doesn't matter, because she and Nathan would never cross paths again.
When Jackson approached, he found Melody sitting by the window, staring at her phone, lost in thought.
He knocked on the doorframe, and she looked up. Her profile momentarily overlapped with a small figure from his memory.
"I've had several wedding dresses designed for you. See if any catch your eye," Jackson paused. "I also looked at the one you brought. The designer made some adjustments—tell me what you think."
Melody didn't particularly care about the wedding details, but Jackson insisted on doing things properly.
"This is still a significant life event for you," he explained. "It deserves to be treated with respect."
"Will you still wear the mask on our wedding day?" Melody asked thoughtfully.
Jackson spent most of his time at the office, so Melody rarely saw him in the villa where she lived with just the butler. But whenever they did meet, he always wore the mask. Imagining their wedding with him still masked struck her as absurdly funny, and she couldn't help laughing.
Jackson watched her, guessing her thoughts. He started to remove his mask, but Melody stopped him.
"It's fine," she reassured him. "Even if you wear it on our wedding day, no one would dare comment."
It was natural for a man his age to be conscious about his appearance, and Melody was understanding enough not to pry into his private matters. If Jackson wasn't comfortable showing his face, she wouldn't force him.
But Jackson gently took her hand and removed his mask anyway.
A flesh-colored scar ran from behind his ear down to his jaw.
"You..." Melody's surprise was obvious on her face.
Jackson maintained his polite smile. "Some things did happen in the past, but fortunately, it's all behind me now."
Melody had heard rumors about these "things."
When the Sinclair family first arrived in Monaco, Jackson's grandfather had built his business from scratch, establishing himself through reliability and competitive pricing. Local rivals, resenting their approach, had hired thugs to kidnap Jackson while he was still in high school. They'd used him to force his grandfather to withdraw from the market. But after getting what they wanted, the kidnappers changed their plans and doused an abandoned garage with gasoline.
Emma had always sighed heavily when telling this part: "Such a promising young man, burned just like that. I heard when they rescued him, he was completely blackened. It took three days of emergency care before he was out of danger."
"If you're afraid, you can cancel our engagement," Jackson offered.
"I'm not afraid," Melody quickly explained. "At first I thought... you know, based on the rumors... I thought your face had been burned to a crisp. That's why I was shocked—it's not what I imagined. I wasn't afraid of your face."
"Burned to a crisp?" Jackson repeated her words with a soft laugh. "The rumors were somewhat exaggerated."
"They did set the place on fire," Jackson continued, seeing Melody's unasked question. "But when they stepped out, they forgot to take their knife. I managed to reach it, cut my restraints, and escape through another exit."
Surprised by this version of the story, Melody felt awkward as Jackson dismissed such a harrowing experience so casually.
In truth, Jackson had handsome features, and the scar hardly detracted from them. The mark seemed almost like a gentle hand cradling the side of his face.
With this thought, Melody unconsciously reached out. When her fingers touched the warm skin, she suddenly realized what she was doing—but Jackson just gazed at her quietly.
"If you survived something that dangerous, it means you're destined for better things in the future," Melody said with conviction.
Jackson nodded. "I believe you."
Whether it was her imagination or not, Melody thought he looked almost happy.
"Miss Monroe," the butler recognized her immediately.
Melody nodded. "I'm the person you're here to pick up. Please take me to meet Jackson."
Though slightly surprised by her directness, the butler led her to the car.
In the luxurious estate in Monaco, Jackson observed her arrival without surprise. After inquiring about her preferences, he instructed his staff to prepare her favorite coffee.
Melody studied the man in the wheelchair, mentally questioning the rumors she'd heard. He seemed gentle, not at all the cold, unapproachable person people described.
He wore a mask that obscured his features, but Melody didn't mind. After her experience with Nathan, she'd learned that appearance meant nothing compared to character.
Noticing her gaze, Jackson assumed she was curious about his wheelchair and preemptively explained.
"Just a minor incident recently. Nothing wrong with my legs."
"Oh... okay," Melody quickly waved her hands. "That's not what I was thinking..."
Jackson didn't seem bothered. He got straight to the point: "Are you certain you want to marry me in Emma's place?"
Melody nodded.
"Let's be clear—we both know this marriage is essentially a transaction," Jackson said. Though she couldn't see his expression, Melody felt his analytical gaze behind the mask. "So I won't make things difficult for you."
"If someday... certain circumstances arise, I'll terminate our engagement and provide you with appropriate compensation."
Melody remained silent, understanding perfectly what "certain circumstances" meant.
"Of course, the decision is entirely yours," he continued.
"If you're having second thoughts, I could—"
"I don't regret my decision."
"I want to marry you," Melody replied seriously.
Jackson paused, somewhat taken aback. He didn't continue, just nodded and simply said, "Good."
Her phone vibrated—just spam. Melody deleted it without a second thought.
She'd been in Monaco for a week now, and hadn't received a single message from Nathan. She knew what that meant.
She'd thrown out everything that reminded her of him in their apartment and left him a note. If Nathan had seen it, he would have contacted her immediately. But he hadn't.
Which could only mean one thing: Nathan hadn't been home all week. He'd been at the hospital, taking care of Claire.
Nathan, do you really love her that much?
It doesn't matter anymore, Melody thought with bitter amusement. It doesn't matter, because she and Nathan would never cross paths again.
When Jackson approached, he found Melody sitting by the window, staring at her phone, lost in thought.
He knocked on the doorframe, and she looked up. Her profile momentarily overlapped with a small figure from his memory.
"I've had several wedding dresses designed for you. See if any catch your eye," Jackson paused. "I also looked at the one you brought. The designer made some adjustments—tell me what you think."
Melody didn't particularly care about the wedding details, but Jackson insisted on doing things properly.
"This is still a significant life event for you," he explained. "It deserves to be treated with respect."
"Will you still wear the mask on our wedding day?" Melody asked thoughtfully.
Jackson spent most of his time at the office, so Melody rarely saw him in the villa where she lived with just the butler. But whenever they did meet, he always wore the mask. Imagining their wedding with him still masked struck her as absurdly funny, and she couldn't help laughing.
Jackson watched her, guessing her thoughts. He started to remove his mask, but Melody stopped him.
"It's fine," she reassured him. "Even if you wear it on our wedding day, no one would dare comment."
It was natural for a man his age to be conscious about his appearance, and Melody was understanding enough not to pry into his private matters. If Jackson wasn't comfortable showing his face, she wouldn't force him.
But Jackson gently took her hand and removed his mask anyway.
A flesh-colored scar ran from behind his ear down to his jaw.
"You..." Melody's surprise was obvious on her face.
Jackson maintained his polite smile. "Some things did happen in the past, but fortunately, it's all behind me now."
Melody had heard rumors about these "things."
When the Sinclair family first arrived in Monaco, Jackson's grandfather had built his business from scratch, establishing himself through reliability and competitive pricing. Local rivals, resenting their approach, had hired thugs to kidnap Jackson while he was still in high school. They'd used him to force his grandfather to withdraw from the market. But after getting what they wanted, the kidnappers changed their plans and doused an abandoned garage with gasoline.
Emma had always sighed heavily when telling this part: "Such a promising young man, burned just like that. I heard when they rescued him, he was completely blackened. It took three days of emergency care before he was out of danger."
"If you're afraid, you can cancel our engagement," Jackson offered.
"I'm not afraid," Melody quickly explained. "At first I thought... you know, based on the rumors... I thought your face had been burned to a crisp. That's why I was shocked—it's not what I imagined. I wasn't afraid of your face."
"Burned to a crisp?" Jackson repeated her words with a soft laugh. "The rumors were somewhat exaggerated."
"They did set the place on fire," Jackson continued, seeing Melody's unasked question. "But when they stepped out, they forgot to take their knife. I managed to reach it, cut my restraints, and escape through another exit."
Surprised by this version of the story, Melody felt awkward as Jackson dismissed such a harrowing experience so casually.
In truth, Jackson had handsome features, and the scar hardly detracted from them. The mark seemed almost like a gentle hand cradling the side of his face.
With this thought, Melody unconsciously reached out. When her fingers touched the warm skin, she suddenly realized what she was doing—but Jackson just gazed at her quietly.
"If you survived something that dangerous, it means you're destined for better things in the future," Melody said with conviction.
Jackson nodded. "I believe you."
Whether it was her imagination or not, Melody thought he looked almost happy.
End of Her Scissors Cut My Hair, But His Betrayal Cut Deeper Chapter 19. Continue reading Chapter 20 or return to Her Scissors Cut My Hair, But His Betrayal Cut Deeper book page.