Chapter 22

Dylan closed his suitcase and set it by the door. Luna hurried over and asked, “Do you remember Archer?”

Dylan came to a halt. Archer? It had been forever since he’d even heard that name. The last he remembered, Archer had headed back to Marion with Holly. He didn’t bother following up on what happened next.

Luna tapped on her phone, pulled up Marion’s entertainment news, and showed it to him. “Archer’s dealing with a disability now.”

Dylan’s eyes went wide. After reading the news, he realized that Archer hadn’t had it easy after returning to Marion with Holly. Despite Holly having his back, the Hunts weren’t pleased with what he’d done. With their constant judgment weighing on him, he was so down that he slipped and tumbled down the stairs.

Just then, rumors started spreading about Holly being with another guy. With everything piling up, Archer and Holly ended up arguing again. No one really knew what happened after that. Luna tucked her phone away.

With the connection between the Farrows and the Hunts, and knowing Luna thought of Dylan like a little brother, Archer had asked her to pass along his apology to Dylan. Dylan didn’t say a word after she spoke. Actually, he and Archer shouldn’t have anything to do with each other.

By the time Dylan tied the knot with Violet, Archer had already gotten married and moved overseas. If Violet hadn’t kept flipping back and forth between Dylan and Archer, their marriage wouldn’t have crumbled like it did. In the end, it was all Violet’s fault.

When Dylan’s friends heard he was moving back to Ivalis for good, they threw him a farewell party. They booked a private room and polished off bottle after bottle of wine. Still feeling unsatisfied, they thought they’d extend the night by hitting a club. Not wanting Luna to worry about him, Dylan chose to skip the next round.

After saying goodbye to his friends, he stood by the side of the road, getting ready to call a cab home when a car horn honked beside him. “Dylan, hop in!”

When he saw it was Violet behind the wheel, he instinctively frowned and stepped back a bit. Violet wasn’t going anywhere until he got in. Cars were stacking up behind her, honking in annoyance.

In the end, Dylan slid into the backseat. Violet flashed him a smile and quietly started the engine. They drove in silence all the way to the Farrow villa.

Dylan thanked her and reached for the door handle.

“Dylan,” Violet called out.

He paused and turned to her, confused.

“Dylan, if it weren’t for that repayment agreement and if Archer hadn’t come along, do you think we’d still be together?” There was a hint of hope in her voice. Dylan laughed like he’d just heard a great joke. Then he stressed each word as he said, “You’ve been hung up on Archer all these years. We were never meant to be a thing.” Violet could see the indifference in Dylan’s eyes reflected in the rearview mirror.

“And honestly, we wouldn’t have made it even without all that. You were my wife, but you never really knew me. You didn’t know what foods I avoided or my phone number.”

“You never bothered to get me a gift. You never cared about me at all. To you, I was just an afterthought. You’re only feeling bad about me leaving because I’ve given you my all for the past five years.”

“But that’s not what real love is. Do you even know what love means? It’s a heart that never wavers, connects with mine honestly, and remembers every little thing about me.”

“It’s about getting rid of anything that might block our path so we can grow old together. Love means being there for me, believing in me, having my back, and really listening to me.” “Love means you wouldn’t simply stay quiet when we have misunderstandings. It means that when something happens to me, you’re there for me without a second thought.” “Have you ever done any of that?”

Violet had been raised with such care that she was used to receiving love. She never really stopped to think about how to love someone else. If she had, she wouldn’t have kept flying overseas to see Archer even though she was married. Plus, she wouldn’t have secretly gone to comfort Archer while he was already married, which only led to misunderstandings between him and Holly.