Chapter 9
That afternoon, Beckett insisted I join him in the bedroom to watch a movie.
But he had no real interest in the movie-ever since our first time, he couldn’t get enough. All he thought about was
getting in bed with me.
I shot him a glare and turned to head to the dance studio to rehearse.
Just then, my phone rang.
It was Nolan.
His voice on the other end was broken, filled with desperation. “Maren, why… why did you burn everything we had? All of our memories-gone. Are you really that heartless? Is this how it ends? Don’t you know I can’t live without you?!”
“I swore I’d only ever marry you! Maren, if you won’t give me another chance, I swear I’ll jump off the roof of this house!
Whether you come or not-it’s your call.”
I hadn’t expected Nolan to spiral this far-to threaten suicide.
Beckett and I rushed to his estate.
As soon as we got out of the car, we saw two figures standing on the edge of the rooftop.
Emergency responders had arrived before us. A safety cushion had already been inflated below. Nolan’s grandmother had collapsed, screaming and sobbing on the ground.
We pushed through the rooftop doors, and both Nolan and Sienna turned to look at me.
One of them looked hopeful. The other looked devastated.
I walked slowly toward the ledge, stopping just short of it. I extended a hand to Sienna.
I held that gesture for three whole minutes. She didn’t take it.
I slowly withdrew my hand and spoke, my voice steady.
“Nolan wants to kill himself-fine. But do you have to go with him? He’s a rich boy from a prominent family. Even if he jumps, whether he dies or ends up crippled, someone will clean up the mess. But what about you? You’re just an ordinary woman. You’ve got family. Friends. Have you even thought about what they’d go through?”
The words hit them both like a sledgehammer.
I looked quietly at Sienna, tears pouring down her face, and continued.
“He’s not doing this because he loves you. And if you throw yourself off this roof, what does that prove? That someone who never loved you is worth your life? Do you really want to leave this world just to make a point to a man who never chose you in the first place?”
My voice wasn’t loud, but every word slammed into Sienna like a thunderclap.
Chapter 9
Because she knew-deep down, everything I said was true.
But truth, as always, was cruel. She broke down, sobbing so hard she couldn’t breathe.
And then, in a hoarse voice, she turned to Nolan and asked, “Did you… ever love me?”
Nolan’s gaze never wavered from mine. “It was a moment of weakness. Not love.”
Each word landed with the weight of a sledgehammer.
Sienna closed her eyes, a bitter smile spreading across her face.
She stepped down from the ledge, her feet landing on the small platform.
A few paramedics rushed forward, helping her back to safety.
Watching them bring her down, I finally exhaled in relief. Then I turned to face Nolan.
Our eyes met in the empty space between us.
I asked only one question.
“You coming down, or not?”
Nolan shook his head, stubborn to the end.
I let out a long sigh and sat down on the rooftop. My whole body relaxed, and my voice took on a lighter tone.
“This isn’t the first time you’ve tried to use suicide to threaten me. What-do you think your life’s that cheap? Or do you
think I’m just like Sienna, ready to throw myself off a roof for you?”
My two questions left Nolan dazed.
Panic crossed his face as memories flooded his mind.
Tears welled up as he screamed, “You promised me! You said you’d give me another chance! You signed your name on that promise, Maren! And now I went to find it and the housekeeper told me-you burned it! Why? Why did you go back on
your word?”
He was talking about that birthday wish-when he turned fifteen. He’d made me promise that no matter what, if we ever fought, I’d always give him another shot.
I agreed. Even wrote it down. Signed it.
But over the years, we never needed it. I’d forgotten it even existed-until I burned everything that reminded me of him.
And yet, he still remembered.
But I had no intention of keeping that promise anymore.
I looked up at him, my tone calm.
“I did promise. But before I made that promise, we set conditions. One of them was if you ever stopped loving me, the Chapter 9
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promise would be void. Can you really stand there and say you didn’t fall for Sienna? That when you kissed her, you were still thinking about our promise?”
His face drained of color.
He sank to his knees on the floor, clawing at his hair like a man drowning in regret.
I rose to my feet, turned, and didn’t look back.
As I turned around, I came face to face with another pair of eyes.
Beckett had dragged himself all the way up with a swollen leg. No idea how long he’d been standing there. But his face
was cold-like he was there to collect a debt.
I knew it wasn’t the time to smile-but I couldn’t help it.
I looked down at our shadows, then up at the sky, my voice light, free.
“Nolan, I don’t love you anymore. Whether you jump or not, my answer won’t change. And if the only way you think you can keep me is by dying, then let me be clear-I’m not responsible for your life. Whether you live or die, that’s your own
choice. It’s not mine.”
I didn’t hesitate. I walked away. Straight toward Beckett.
Watching me leave, Nolan finally realized-he’d lost.
Not today, not at the wedding, but the night he got drunk and kissed the wrong girl.
If time could rewind, he would’ve smashed those wine bottles and caught that flight to Italy with a ring in his pocket.
But the world doesn’t offer rewinds.
And he was out of chances.
Nolan opened his arms wide-and fell.
Like a moth finally free from its cage, diving straight into the fire that would consume him.
As he plunged from the roof, his grandmother suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital with him.
After a full day and night of emergency treatment, the results came in: one dead, one paralyzed.
His grandmother passed from cardiac arrest. Nolan survived-but was paralyzed from the waist down.
News of the tragedy spread fast, and what remained of the family rushed to his company, eager to carve up what was left of the empire.
The only one left outside the ICU was Sienna.
She, in her frail state, planned the funeral and kept vigil outside his room for three long months. She signed all sixteen critical condition notices.
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When Nolan finally woke up, the family infighting was over.
But he couldn’t accept what had happened. He begged for death every day.
That’s when Sienna handed him the stack of hospital bills.
“You owe me a child. And you blew through the money you promised me. So if you’re gonna die-why the hell should I let
you?”
Looking into her bloodshot eyes, Nolan couldn’t say a word.
And that… was the last time I ever saw them.
In all the decades that followed, Beckett never left my side.
And when we grew old, he held my hand with a smug little grin and said, “Stealing you? Best damn decision I ever made.”
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