Chapter 396: A love that went sour

The room fell into a silent beat. Ronan arched his brow at me and didn’t say a word. He reached for the glass of scotch beside him. I beat him to it, of course.

He was always the hardest person to read. No matter how I tried, I could never figure out what was going on in his mind. I sat before him and downed the glass. The alcohol burned my throat. I placed the glass on the floor with a gentle clank.

Ronan was still wearing the shirt from earlier. His gaze was locked on me like he was searching for something. Next, a deep chuckle filled the room. The low tone sounded a bit eerie. I stared at him, dumbfounded, wondering if he had truly lost his goddamn mind.

Ronan’s laugh stopped immediately, and he shot me a harsh glare. “You are an annoying prick. I don’t have the energy for you now,” he groaned. “Even if you don’t like Raphael, give him some respect and allow me to mourn.”

“Second, I can’t hate the dead. He didn’t kill my mother. And lastly, don’t blame me for being annoying. Now we clearly know where the trait comes from.” I listed, watching his stoic face go through several emotions.

He was staring aimlessly at the ceiling, as if trying to go back to memory lane. “It’s been a long time. I might not remember the detailed details because for the past 29 years I have been trying to forget her, but I can’t…” he muttered.

“It wasn’t love at first sight, but it felt perfect…” his voice trailed off. “After she was found, I took her to the nearest hospital, and days later, after being unconscious, she finally woke up. I went to the hospital immediately after I got the call. I wasn’t a saint, but from the moment I saw her on that beach, something drew me to her…”

He laughed as if remembering something. “Now I think about it, she was running from something and, by chance, hid her identity. I don’t know for sure, but her amnesia act was flawless. After she died, I looked into Nadia. It turned out the reason she was on that beach was because of a failed assassination attempt. She probably wanted to hide her identity while recovering…”

“Because she lost her memories, I let her stay with me. She was completely clueless and couldn’t do a thing. It felt like I was staying with a child at a point, but it made my place warm knowing clumsy Nadia was there.” He laughed. I wondered how she was back then.

His expression changed for a second. I knew he couldn’t say everything, but from the way he spoke, I was certain he loved her.

A tear rolled down his cheek, and his fist clenched. “I was scared of how much I loved her, but the more I resisted, the deeper I fell. So when she confessed, it took everything in me to reject her. Then she cried and ran off…”

“It was the best days of my life, and I never wanted it to end. I wanted Nadia to be the one by my side, so I decided to go home and tell my parents. What I didn’t expect was an arranged marriage. I tried fighting it, but it was clear the more I fought, the more dangerous it would be for Nadia…” he paused, then dragged himself to his feet.

He sighed, pressing his head against the glass. “What I had no idea was that she was pregnant with you. If I did, I would have fought or even disappeared with Nadia, but I didn’t know. The worst day of my life was when she showed up on my wedding day with Gregor. Before then, I had heard rumours of my father’s pregnant mistress…”

“God, I hated her.” His voice trembled.

I asked because, if I were in a similar situation, I would have fought to the end.

“I don’t even bloody remember the night details. I remembered being upset and taking a few drinks. Next, I woke up naked with Natalia. I couldn’t face your mother after defiling our love, so I let her go. What I never imagined was that Natalia had actually drugged me with sleeping pills and, with the help of my mother, forced herself on me…”

“For years, I blamed myself until tonight. Natalia told me the truth. I never betrayed Nadia, but I was played by the ones I trusted. And my gut tells me Dad manipulated Nadia to lie that day she said you were his…”

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