The CEO’s Hidden Bride: Leaving After 2555 Days - Chapter 24: Chapter 24
You are reading The CEO’s Hidden Bride: Leaving After 2555 Days, Chapter 24: Chapter 24. Read more chapters of The CEO’s Hidden Bride: Leaving After 2555 Days.
For convenience, Evelyn rented a penthouse apartment downtown. The very next morning, she heard movement across the hallway.
It was Lucas.
Over the following weeks in Jeston, she kept encountering him everywhere—by the organic produce section, outside her favorite coffee shop, even on her usual jogging route through the park. Given his high-profile position, these weren’t spots he’d normally frequent.
Evelyn knew he was tailing her.
Occasionally, when their paths crossed, they’d exchange pleasantries like old acquaintances. Otherwise, he lingered just out of sight, a silent presence shadowing her steps.
Eventually, absorbed in her own routine, she stopped paying him much attention. She joked to herself that it was like having an unpaid security detail.
Once they became neighbors, their run-ins multiplied. Lucas’s smiles grew warmer, his invitations more frequent—dinners, weekend getaways, even just casual walks.
Every time she declined, his expression dimmed.
"Sorry," she’d murmur, watching disappointment flicker in his eyes.
She assumed he’d eventually take the hint. But without fail, the next day, he’d reappear with the same hopeful energy, as if her rejection had never happened.
His persistence reminded her of the way he’d chased Isabella in college—desperate to please, terrified of disapproval, bending over backward to keep her happy even when it cost him.
But Evelyn wasn’t Isabella.
She had no interest in exploiting his devotion or playing emotional games. She wasn’t the type to revel in someone’s unrequited affection. All she wanted was simplicity—a life lived on her own terms.
Seasons shifted.
Spring blossoms gave way to summer heat. Then autumn’s gold faded into winter’s first frost.
Her year-long project neared completion, the contract ending precisely on her 25th birthday. She booked a one-way ticket back to Falverton for that evening.
Packing late into the night, she glanced outside to see snowflakes spiraling past her window. At midnight, a knock interrupted the quiet.
Lucas stood at her door, holding a small cake dotted with candles. His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
"Happy birthday," he said softly.
She hesitated before forcing a polite thank-you. Cupping her hands, she closed her eyes and made a wish.
When she looked up, his gaze burned with quiet hope.
"What did you wish for?" he asked.
"The same as last year," Evelyn answered.
A shadow crossed his face.
He swallowed hard. "Evelyn… that night you left, when you walked me out—what did you say? I never caught it."
She frowned. Those final, rain-soaked words had blurred with time, buried under brighter memories that still warmed her when she let them surface.
Now, standing at the threshold of another year, all she wanted was peace—for him, for herself, for every tangled thread between them.
On impulse, she offered two new sentences instead.
"I wished you happiness."
She met his eyes.
"And I wished for mine."
It was Lucas.
Over the following weeks in Jeston, she kept encountering him everywhere—by the organic produce section, outside her favorite coffee shop, even on her usual jogging route through the park. Given his high-profile position, these weren’t spots he’d normally frequent.
Evelyn knew he was tailing her.
Occasionally, when their paths crossed, they’d exchange pleasantries like old acquaintances. Otherwise, he lingered just out of sight, a silent presence shadowing her steps.
Eventually, absorbed in her own routine, she stopped paying him much attention. She joked to herself that it was like having an unpaid security detail.
Once they became neighbors, their run-ins multiplied. Lucas’s smiles grew warmer, his invitations more frequent—dinners, weekend getaways, even just casual walks.
Every time she declined, his expression dimmed.
"Sorry," she’d murmur, watching disappointment flicker in his eyes.
She assumed he’d eventually take the hint. But without fail, the next day, he’d reappear with the same hopeful energy, as if her rejection had never happened.
His persistence reminded her of the way he’d chased Isabella in college—desperate to please, terrified of disapproval, bending over backward to keep her happy even when it cost him.
But Evelyn wasn’t Isabella.
She had no interest in exploiting his devotion or playing emotional games. She wasn’t the type to revel in someone’s unrequited affection. All she wanted was simplicity—a life lived on her own terms.
Seasons shifted.
Spring blossoms gave way to summer heat. Then autumn’s gold faded into winter’s first frost.
Her year-long project neared completion, the contract ending precisely on her 25th birthday. She booked a one-way ticket back to Falverton for that evening.
Packing late into the night, she glanced outside to see snowflakes spiraling past her window. At midnight, a knock interrupted the quiet.
Lucas stood at her door, holding a small cake dotted with candles. His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
"Happy birthday," he said softly.
She hesitated before forcing a polite thank-you. Cupping her hands, she closed her eyes and made a wish.
When she looked up, his gaze burned with quiet hope.
"What did you wish for?" he asked.
"The same as last year," Evelyn answered.
A shadow crossed his face.
He swallowed hard. "Evelyn… that night you left, when you walked me out—what did you say? I never caught it."
She frowned. Those final, rain-soaked words had blurred with time, buried under brighter memories that still warmed her when she let them surface.
Now, standing at the threshold of another year, all she wanted was peace—for him, for herself, for every tangled thread between them.
On impulse, she offered two new sentences instead.
"I wished you happiness."
She met his eyes.
"And I wished for mine."
End of The CEO’s Hidden Bride: Leaving After 2555 Days Chapter 24. Continue reading Chapter 25 or return to The CEO’s Hidden Bride: Leaving After 2555 Days book page.