Chapter 7 "Because you've done nothing to hurt me." For the past few days, I had been asking myself the same question. Why did I save a fiance I had barely known for a month? Perhaps it was because he had let me sleep and rest well while I was wounded and in pain. Perhaps it was because his every smile warmed my heart up. During the next few days, Aaron's underlings all became shocked. The formerly ruthless mafia don had rejected all his social obligations to stay in the ward with me. He would read poetry to me and clumsily peel apples for me. He even gave me a brooch with an iris on it, symbolizing that I was family. On the day I was discharged, Aaron brought me to the beach. The sunset painted the surface of the water a crimson gold. He suddenly dropped to one knee and held out an heirloom ring to "Willow, I married previously out of a sense of duty to my family, but now I want to marry you from the bottom of my heart. I know you were forced to come here to marry me, but I swear that the Prentiss family will never hurt you from now on. My life is yours." The sea breeze caressed his soft hair. This supposed demon was, in truth, more like a child fearful of rejection. I recalled how anxious he had been while he held me that night during the storm. I remembered how he clumsily helped me apply ointment. In the end, I reached out my hand and said, "I do, Aaron." The next days I spent with Aaron were peaceful and happy. He returned to the estate more frequently. He had moved to my room to handle his work, and he looked at me occasionally. Even the sound of his fountain pen on paper seemed to be soft and tender. "Madam, there's a Mr. Gordon at the door looking to see you. He says he's your... ex." Aaron's second-in-command suddenly burst in. While he made his report, he was eyeing Aaron carefully. I paused while turning the page of my book. My peace had been disrupted by a sharp sting in my heart. I turned to look at the front doors in the distance. Connor was wearing a high-end suit out there, his hair ruffled. It had been two months since I last saw Connor. Aaron closed his document, his expression turning cold. "Make him leave." "Hold on." I held Aaron's hand comfortingly. "There's something I need to work out with him." Connor was allowed inside after being patted down. When he saw me, his eyes lit up. However, when he saw my hand in Aaron's, the look in his eyes shattered. "Come home with me, Willow," he said with a raspy voice. He ignored the warning from the bodyguards and took two steps 1/3 forward. "Wendy is in prison now because of me. I have wronged you. Please don't be mad at me anymore, okay? "I see clearly now. I love you and you alone, Willow. I have always treated you like a sister, but I feel bereft after you left. I can't lose you. Stop being mad at me, alright? I know you used to like me." "I've thought about the life I've lived," I said, interrupting him. "From ages thirteen to twenty-five, I loved you. That's twelve years. Now, I want to live for myself." Connor's eyes were filled with sadness. "Willow, I can't leave you. You can't turn me away now." Seeing him like this, I could not help but let out a bitter laugh. I had once longed for him to love me with such intensity. But by the time he truly confessed his love for me, everything had already changed. "You had me thrown into the depths of hell because of one word from Wendy. Why didn't you give me a chance to explain then? Had you ever considered that I was your fiancee while you doted on Wendy in front of everyone?" Aaron snaked an arm around my waist, but he was already holding a gun. The action seemed to say that I belonged to him. But Connor ignored all that. "Willow." Connor suddenly dropped to his knees. "I apologize to you. I will make everything up to you. I can give you anything you want. Give me one more chance, please?" The bodyguards around us gasped. No one would ever think that the powerful Connor Gordon would do such a thing to belittle himself. I suddenly laughed, feeling a sense of release. "You'll make it up to me? Do you know how much I loved you? I loved you so much that I couldn't eat or sleep. Just one frown from you would make me worry for days. When you were with Wendy, I pretended that I didn't care. "I lived that kind of life for more than ten years. I don't want you to make it up to me, but I'm really tired of all that." I pressed Aaron's gun-toting hand away. He looked at me as if he had been wronged. After that, he took a shawl from an attendant and lovingly covered my shoulders with it. "It's getting windy here. Let's go inside." I turned to leave and did not look back at Connor even once. Connor watched as Willow and Aaron left. Aaron ducked to whisper something into Willow's ear, making her laugh delicately. The smile Willow wore was the brightest Connor had ever seen. He felt like he was being cut by a knife by the sight. The bodyguards dragged him out. As they did, he saw Aaron kissing Willow on a second-floor balcony. It looked as though he were worshiping her. He howled, but the sea breeze drowned him out. Perhaps he could not let go of the past, but for Willow, the past was nothing but a dream. Aaron's second-in-command made sure Connor left. 2/3 "Inform the docks. Ready the fastest ship to send Mr. Gordon home. Also, make sure all his cards are useless in Hurac." In the car, Connor was still pounding at the car window in a frenzy. But he could only watch as the estate grew smaller as he departed. The woman he had pushed away had found a true admirer in the arms of another. It was then that he realized that some hurts could never be made up for. There was not even a chance for it. Everything was swept away like clouds on a breeze. Nothing would be left. As for him, he was left in a dark, lonely place of ignorance.