Chapter 12

Aurora glanced at the list before speaking slowly and deliberately.

“On November 8, 2022, I took care of you when you had a high fever, so the standard caregiver rate is $120."

“On November 23, I made three round trips to deliver urgent documents for you. It’s twelve kilometers in total, which comes to $60."

“From 2022 to 2024, I cooked and delivered homemade meals and nutritious soups for you every single day for three years. That comes to $16,600.”

Her expression remained calm as she read each line aloud, but in her mind, flashes of the past three years played out. She had wasted three years on a man who was never worth it. She had poured time and effort into him, learning to cook, making soups, delivering meals day after day, all for someone who never truly appreciated it. And now, here they were – settling old debts in front of an audience.

At first, Joseph listened with an air of indifference. But as Aurora continued listing item after item, his brows furrowed, his expression darkening with every word. Since when had she done all this for him? More importantly, was this whole spectacle just her way of making him see everything she had done for him? A desperate attempt to guilt him into taking her back?

How calculated.

“Enough!” Joseph snapped coldly, cutting her off. “Aurora, what’s the point of this? You did all of that willingly, didn’t you? Admit it – this is just your way of avoiding returning the gifts I gave you! Even after we’ve broken up, you’re still trying to hold onto them. You really are nothing but a gold digger!”

“Exactly,” Judy chimed in, her voice soft, almost pitying, as if speaking to someone hopelessly clinging to love. “Miss Walton, you did all of this willingly because you wanted to please Joseph. No one forced you.”

“Willingly?” Aurora repeated, her lips curling into a smirk.

She let the word sit in the air for a moment before laughing lightly. “If I remember correctly, Mr. Hunt, those gifts you gave me were also given willingly. I never once asked for them.”

Those so-called gifts had been nothing more than afterthoughts, handed to her like scraps. And yet, she once loved the man in front of her. But it was him who asked her if she wanted to be with him. She never once forced herself on him, never clung to him, and was never a burden.

However, Joseph had completely lost his patience. His expression twisted with irritation as he shot her a disgusted look. “After all that talk, you just can’t stand to part with the gifts I gave you, can you?”

“Relax.”

Aurora pulled out another list, her tone indifferent. “I don’t care about your so-called gifts.”

Joseph’s brows furrowed. Aurora, unbothered, began reading off the list at a steady pace.

“In March 2022, you gave me a few counterfeit designer scarves for $0.38 each.

“On April 5, you gifted me a heart-shaped chocolate box for $3.78.

“On Valentine’s Day, you got me a discount makeup kit for $6.78.”

The moment she started, the entire restaurant erupted.

“A rich kid giving knockoff gifts? Wow, are all wealthy guys this cheap?”

“And here I thought she was some gold digger trying to bleed a rich guy dry, but it turns out he’s the one manipulating a gorgeous woman while being an absolute cheapskate.”

“No wonder he was so willing to give her those gifts – do they even add up to fifty bucks? And she actually kept them all this time?”

As murmurs and laughter spread through the restaurant, Joseph’s face darkened, turning an ugly shade of red. Furious, he shot to his feet, pointing a finger at Aurora.

“Enough! I never thought you’d be this manipulative! Not only are you refusing to return what I gave you, but you’re twisting the truth? I had my assistant pick out those gifts! There’s no way they were counterfeits! Do you really think someone from my background would give out fake luxury goods?!”

“Oh?”

Aurora scoffed, gathering up the pile of worthless trinkets before flinging them straight at Joseph. “Do me a favor, Mr. Hunt – open your damn eyes and take a good look. Recognize your own handwriting on these gift tags?”

Joseph had a habit. Every time he gave a gift, he attached a handwritten card. Aurora, foolishly treasuring them at the time, never removed them. Now, they were perfect evidence.

Joseph stared at his own handwriting, his face shifting from anger to a deep shade of red, then slowly darkening to an ashen gray. The weight of dozens of judgmental stares bore down on him, suffocating. He had never been this publicly humiliated in his life. Even Judy, standing beside him, looked visibly embarrassed and caught off guard.

However, Aurora didn’t spare either of them a second glance. She lifted her gaze, expression sharp with mockery.

“Since you’re so obsessed with settling accounts, I’ve got everything right here. This is the total cost of the gifts I gave you and my labor fees – $22,704.60. As for your so-called gifts, they’re all here. Accounting for depreciation, you still owe me…”

She glanced at the final number, her lips curling, “…$3.78.”

She raised a brow, taking her time as she added, “So, Mr. Hunt, that leaves you with a balance of $22,700.82. Cash or bank transfer?”