Chapter 17

Dylan flinched slightly, barely getting a chance to turn around before he was enveloped in a tight hug. The cloying scent of Violet's perfume overwhelmed him.

She held onto him, shaking. "Dylan, Dylan, you're finally back."

Dylan was about to push her away when someone else intervened, pulling her aside.

"Dylan, you okay?" Callum asked.

Dylan nodded.

Callum shot Violet a sharp glance. "Violet, I can't believe you still have the nerve! Leave Dylan alone!"

The moment he saw Violet, all he could think about was the five years of pain Dylan had endured. It fueled his anger.

Violet opened her mouth to explain, but Dylan cut her off. "Cal, let's take this somewhere else." He was determined not to let Violet ruin the art exhibition he and his friend had worked so hard on.

In the call room on the second floor, Callum stood before Dylan and Luna like a shield, facing Violet. "Dylan's already divorced you! Why can't you just leave him alone?" Violet's eyes darted to Dylan, standing behind Callum with a distant look. A sudden ache pierced her chest, leaving her struggling to catch her breath. Dylan had never given her that kind of look before.

The second she laid eyes on Dylan, a flood of questions rushed through her mind. But all she ended up asking was, "Dylan, why did you divorce me?"

Luna rolled her eyes, wondering what kind of silly question that was.

Dylan met her gaze without flinching. "I paid what I owed and had no reason to stick around."

Since Violet signed the divorce agreement, he knew it was only a matter of time before she realized he had stayed to settle the debt.

Violet's fists tightened, her voice shaking as she questioned, "So, all that kindness you showed me over these five years was just to settle a debt?"

"Yeah." Dylan kept his voice steady.

A thought flickered in his mind, and he added, "Since Ms. Padlen had me sign that repayment agreement, that's all our relationship was about. I reminded myself of that every moment. So, as soon as I signed, I got the divorce agreement ready."

Violet was his first real relationship. They got married before he even had a chance to figure things out.

Dylan was pretty immature back then and was scared of getting trapped in a lie that could drag on for five years, so he kept the divorce agreement handy.

Whenever he felt himself falling for Violet, he'd pull out the divorce agreement to remind himself of their real relationship and how different their lives were.

Did Dylan ever try to fall in love with Violet? Maybe he did. But whenever he was ready to take the plunge, she'd ditch him for Archer, again and again.

Anyone would have felt exhausted eventually, especially Dylan, who was only stuck there to pay off his debt. Honestly, it was a miracle he hadn’t ended up resenting her.

Five years was long enough for Dylan to believe this was how his life would always be. But somehow, it felt like everything happened in the blink of an eye as he broke away from Violet and left the country.

Dylan's harsh, straightforward words came out one after another, leaving Violet looking paler and paler with each one.

"Violet, whether it was back then, now, or ever—I never loved you and never will. What we had was nothing more than me paying off a debt."

Dylan didn’t care how she would react. He just wanted to wrap this up and get back downstairs to focus on the art exhibition.

Violet wanted to stop him from leaving, but Callum blocked her path. All she could do was stand there and watch as Dylan walked out the door.

The art exhibition went off without a hitch. The brief interruption didn’t affect its success.

Callum and Luna had booked a table at one of Dylan's favorite restaurants to celebrate. But before the food arrived, a stunning bouquet of fresh roses was brought to their table.

"Excuse me, is Mr. Cloudaround here? Ms. Padlen sent you these flowers to celebrate your art exhibition's success."

Dylan didn’t take the bouquet. He told the waiter to send it back. "Please let Ms. Padlen know that roses aren't my thing."

Red roses were Archer's favorite. Dylan only ever liked the thorny burnet roses.