Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion
“Hey, all things considered, she was still your first love.’ Danika couldn’t help but tease Eustace, smiling as she looked at him.
Eustace was speechless upon hearing her words and quickly explained, “She and I never got together! How can she be considered my first love? If I think about this whole first love thing carefully, you’re my first love! You have to take responsibility for me.”
“How am I supposed to take responsibility for you? You’re my first love, too, ” Danika defended herself.
‘ Really? But didn’t you like Evan before you liked me?” Eustace purposely mentioned Evan again in hopes of making Danika understand what kind of relationship he and Quinn had.
Upon hearing him saying that, Danika fell silent, as Eustace had expected.
“Alright, Quinn was just his crush back when he was still young and didn’t know better,” Danika concluded inwardly.
“Hear me out, Danika. I just thought she was pitiful, so I gave her a place to stay. If you don’t like that, I’ll get her to move out tomorrow.’ In Eustace’s opinion, it was just a villa that was sitting around and not utilized.
However, if Danika was unhappy and unwilling to let Quinn stay, he wouldn’t go against her wishes.
The moment he said that, Danika hurriedly waved her hand to show that there was no need to go to that extent. “No, you don’t have to do that. I’m not that petty. It’s not like we don’t have one ourselves.”
‘Right? That’s what I thought, too,” Eustace agreed with a smile. He knew that Danika wasn’t really concerned about material things. She only cared about whether he still had feelings for Quinn.
Fortunately for Danika, he didn’t have any feelings for this “first love” of his at all.
The two of them didn’t dwell on the issue regarding Quinn any longer. For the rest of the night, they chatted casually. Eustace asked Danika why she returned ahead of schedule, and she told him about her overseas conference. And so, that night passed just like that.
They had a calm and peaceful night, but Quinn tossed and turned, unable to sleep no matter how hard she tried.
She’d never intended to cause a conflict between Danika and Eustace. In fact, she’d deliberately said those ambiguous words as a joke. Now, she lay in bed wide awake because of the intense feelings of guilt that she felt.
Quinn heaved a sigh as she turned in bed once more. “Damn it. I’d better go clear the air with her tomorrow.”
This time around, she’d come to find Eustace for a reason. Her real intention was to provoke that man, not because she was hoping for something to ignite between her and Eustace. However, looking at how things had progressed so far, she guessed that her efforts were probably futile.
“Well, I should stop holding out for him. If he doesn’t come to find me and doesn’t take any action, I guess it’s better we part ways like this. I’ll just take it that I’m cutting losses,” Quinn reasoned internally.
That night, she thought about many things. After she made the decision to explain everything to Danika tomorrow, she no longer felt burdened and quickly drifted off to dreamland.
The next day, Danika went to the hospital to work as usual. When Quinn came to find her, she’d just seen a patient. Danika was surprised and a little displeased at her unexpected appearance.
“Could she be here to provoke me?” Danika wondered. Silently, Danika decided that if she truly did that, she would make her leave using any means possible. She wouldn’t allow Quinn to stir up trouble on her turf.
“What’s the matter, Miss Blue?” Danika asked bluntly.
Quinn could sense Danika’s animosity toward her; nevertheless, she brushed it off and didn’t mind it.
“I came here to explain that nothing is going on between Eustace and me. He just gave me a place to stay because he felt sorry for me. All those things I said yesterday were just to poke fun at you both-l wanted to see your reactions. But it seems like you two are way more loving toward each other than I thought. I envy you guys.”
After listening to Quinn’s explanation, the first thought that came to Danika’s mind was, “How ridiculous! How could she think this was fun in any way? She’s so ridiculous! Was it fun for her to see me and Eustace argue because of her?”
Danika’s expression became glum. Quinn noticed right away, so she hurriedly continued, “I really don’t have any bad intentions. That’s why I came to explain to you immediately today. I don’t wish for any misunderstandings between you and Eustace because of me.”
“You’re overthinking it. Something so trivial won’t cause any misunderstandings between us,” Danika replied humorlessly.
Hearing that, Quinn breathed a sigh of relief. “Really? That’s great. I’m so relieved.”
“Well, now that you’re done explaining, you can leave now.” There was nothing more for them to talk about. Quinn’s presence there would only delay Danika from attending to her patients.
With that, Quinn nodded. She got up and made to leave.
She’d barely taken two steps before Danika spoke up. “Though I don’t understand your logic, I have some advice for you. If you want a man to marry you, tell him your feelings. If he knows how you feel and remains indifferent, then you should contemplate whether this man reciprocates your feelings or not.”
Danika didn’t want Quinn to continue seeking help from Eustace for her private matters, so she gave Quinn some words of advice.
Quinn paused, understanding what Danika meant. “I know. I just couldn’t swallow my pride.”
She was waiting for that man to give in, believing that he would make his move and come for her once he saw she had another man by her side. Unfortunately, it seemed everything was just her naive and wishful thinking. Even until now, that person hadn’t contacted her at all.
‘When it comes to matters of the heart, there’s no need for pride. If you really like him, you shouldn’t give up so easily,’ Danika advised kindly.
Quinn didn’t argue with Danika on that. Perhaps she found that Danika’s words did make sense. After giving it some thought, she said, “You’re right. I’ll go find him.” She should communicate her feelings with him directly. No matter what the outcome, she had to accept reality.
At long last, Quinn left the hospital, and Danika didn’t think much about her after that. As long as Quinn didn’t bother or interfere with her and Eustace, Danika didn’t care what she was up to.
For some time after the incident with Quinn, Danika and Eustace enjoyed a relatively peaceful life. This was probably the last of their unmarried yet not quite single life together before they officially got married.
On the eve of the wedding, Danika returned to Zellweger Castle. Tomorrow, she would be departing from here to get married.
Due to the joyous occasion, Zellweger Castle was adorned with wedding decorations. Lynette and Graham had beaming smiles on their faces mixed with a hint of longing and slight reluctance. Their only daughter was about to be married, and they were a little saddened to see her leave home though they were very happy for her at the same time.
“Danika.” Lynette took Danika’s hand. She then removed a bracelet she’d been wearing all the while and put the bracelet on Danika’s wrist. ‘I’ve worn this bracelet for decades. It’s not exactly valuable, but having it accompany you gives me some peace of mind.”
In fact, Lynette and Graham had prepared lots of wedding gifts for Danika, but those were mere material possessions that didn’t carry any special meaning to Lynette. They couldn’t compare to the sentimental value of the bracelet she’d worn on her wrist for such a long time.
Danika looked at the bracelet on her wrist and said with a sigh, “This is such a precious item. You should keep it for yourself. There’s no need to give it to me.”
“No matter how precious this bracelet is, it’s far less valuable than you, Danika.” Indeed, nothing could compare to her daughter’s worth.
During this period, Lynette visited Danika almost daily. When Danika was working at the hospital, Lynette would bring her meals. Her warm gestures immensely touched Danika.
She realized that back then, Lynette didn’t have a choice; it wasn’t that she voluntarily chose to leave her. If she had the opportunity to stay, she would have been an excellent mother.
Thus, Danika accepted Lynette’s goodwill. She looked at Lynette and said, Thank you, Mom.”
Upon hearing that, Lynette was stunned, and her eyes reddened with tears of joy. “W-what did you call me?”
Danika smiled and said the word once more, “Mom.”
‘Oh!’ Lynette was so happy that she was almost jumping with joy. She got up and went upstairs to find Graham while excitedly exclaiming, “Graham, did you hear that? Danika called me Mom! She called me Mom!”
“I know. I heard it too,” Graham replied, embracing his beloved in his arms. He knew she’d been waiting for this day for a long time.
Lynette started crying.
Danika watched them from downstairs with a faint smile on her lips. She thought, “I guess this is the best ending for us.’
She then went back to her room and received a call from Eustace. “Danika, I feel so freaking excited right now.”
‘What are you all excited about?” Danika was puzzled. She wasn’t all pumped up like Eustace. On the contrary, she was quite calm. To her, although she and Eustace weren’t officially married yet, they’d been living together all the while like a married couple. In reality, it didn’t make much difference to her other than having an additional ceremony to make their union official.
“After tomorrow, you’ll be my wife! Not just a girlfriend or a fiancee, but my wife!” He’d been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Danika listened, still not finding anything particularly exciting about the whole thing. “Calm down, Eustace. You’re so excited now, but who knows if you’ll still be this excited in the future?”
Feelings tended to fade over time, after all. That was the norm.
“That won’t be the case for me! Being able to marry you is enough to keep me excited for a lifetime!’ Eustace exclaimed earnestly.
Danika pursed her lips and teased him for being such a sweet talker, but deep down, she was actually over the moon. Although she wasn’t overly excited like Eustace, she was still overjoyed.
“We’ll definitely be happy together for a lifetime,” Eustace said. Right then, he was still at the wedding venue, stomping out all possibilities of anything unexpected that might occur tomorrow.
Danika replied with a simple “Yeah” and didn’t say anything else before hanging up. As she lay on the bed, she tossed and turned but was unable to fall asleep. With a wry smile, she realized she wasn’t as calm as she had imagined.
The next day, the stylist and makeup artist started dressing Danika up early in the morning. Danika wore a lightweight red gown that Eustace had chosen for the daytime. She looked exceptionally beautiful after putting it on.
Just as her makeup was done, Eustace arrived with his entourage to pick her up.
Zellweger Castle bustled with excitement. The bridesmaids made a show of blocking the entrance, but
Eustace quickly led his entourage upstairs to the bedroom, where Danika was sitting on the bed, smiling and watching everything unfold.
“Wait a moment, Mr. Quincey. The bride isn’t wearing any shoes! Your first challenge is to find her shoes.” Stephanie stepped forward to stop Eustace, who was about to carry Danika away. She wouldn’t let him take her away so easily.
Eustace didn’t refuse and began to search for Danika’s high heels with his best man in the room. Stephanie and the bridesmaids didn’t intentionally make it difficult for Eustace, so they quickly found the shoes. But it didn’t end there.
Stephanie had prepared a second challenge for Eustace.
‘ Mr. Quincey, please say ‘I love you’ to Danika in eight different languages.”
“Woah!” Everyone watching cheered along.
Faced with the cheering crowd, Danika felt a little embarrassed, so her cheeks flushed slightly.
On the other hand, Eustace remained unruffled. He looked at Danika and steadily proclaimed, n.ov毛x.o “Danika, I love you!”
Then, he continued to say “I love you” in seven foreign languages in one go.
As the words fell, everyone applauded, and Eustace successfully carried Danika away in his arms. He carried Danika step by step out of Zellweger Castle. The bridesmaid and groomsmen threw confetti over the happy couple as they made their way out, and the crowd cheered vigorously. Lynette and Graham looked at Danika and Eustace’s receding figures from behind, silently wiping away the tears at the corners of their eyes.
“This is great! Our daughter is married now. After this, we can live the life that we’ve always yearned for in peace,” Graham said with a mixture of emotions. They’d planned to go on a global trip but still had yet to get to it. After Danika’s wedding, they could finally begin with their first destination.
At the wedding banquet hall, Danika was changing into her wedding gown in the private room upstairs, while the emcee downstairs welcomed all the guests. Old Mr. Quincey was also there greeting everyone, and even Zeke showed up at the scene.
Eustace was now a member of the Quincey family, so it was only natural for the former head of the family to be present at his wedding, regardless of the circumstances. If Zeke declined to show up during such an important occasion, outsiders might think there was discord within the Quincey family.
It had been many years since the two brothers had seen each other. Now, they no longer had the same tenacity and vigor as before. After exchanging a simple smile, they each went to greet the people they knew.
The wedding started soon. With the emcee’s announcement, the doors opened. Danika walked gracefully down the aisle, holding Graham’s arm. She made her way step by step toward Eustace. Meanwhile, Eustace didn’t stand still in his spot. He walked steadily toward his bride and finally took her from Graham’s hands.
“Eustace, you better see to it that Danika is well taken care of. If not, her mother and I won’t let you off easily,” Graham warned.