Filed to story: I Got Married Without You
Jayden’s face became increasingly grim.
“That’s because I’ve been too busy…”
“It’s not because you’re busy, it’s because when you don’t see her, you can’t remember her. But when you do see her, you think she’s not bad, and that stirs up the feelings of our younger days.”
In reality, Jayden’s love for Eva may not be as strong as Paul’s, but Anthony couldn’t say that out loud. After all, Eva was now Jayden’s girlfriend. If Eva and Jayden had a falling out, Jayden could use this against her, causing Eva unnecessary trouble.
Anthony’s criticism left Jayden speechless.
“You’re a lawyer, I can’t argue with you.”
Jayden said this and walked away. After leaving the hospital, he looked at the candy in his hand for a while, then threw it in the trash.
Once he got in the car, he called Eva on his phone.
No matter what Paul’s friends said about him, he didn’t care.
But he needed to explain the incident with Ryan provoking Andrew to Eva as soon as possible.
At least before Eva found out everything, he needed to be proactive so that she would believe him.
Eva, who was absent-mindedly eating her meal, heard his call but didn’t really want to answer. However, he kept calling several times in a row, so she had no choice but to answer.
Jayden asked her where she was, and she said she was eating out. Jayden wanted to go see her, but Eva said Stella and Rosalyn were with her, and if there was anything he wanted to talk about, he should wait until she gets back.
When Jayden heard Stella’s name, he seemed to have already guessed what she would say. His eyes flickered, but he didn’t say much, just reminded Eva to eat well.
After hanging up the phone, Jayden drove straight to Eva’s villa and sat in the garden waiting for her. He waited for a long time, until it was dark, before Eva finally came back in her car.
As soon as Eva entered the house, she noticed that Jayden seemed nervous, standing up as if he had done something terribly wrong, looking completely lost.
“Eva, did Stella explain everything that happened today to you?”
Eva thought he would act as if nothing had happened, but she didn’t expect him to bring it up first.
“Yeah.”
She nodded and walked towards Jayden.
“You’re waiting for me here, is there something you want to talk to me about?”
Eva wanted to hear Jayden’s explanation.
Jayden didn’t explain much, just said, “Everything Stella said is true. I provoked Andrew with Ryan.”
Seeing him like this, Eva stayed silent for a long time before speaking up, “Andrew coming to find you wasn’t about getting involved in our business. It was because his brother was wrongly accused and ended up in the emergency room. He made it clear from the beginning. He even let you come up with a solution on your own. He did all this just to get you to apologize to Paul. But instead, you used Ryan as a weapon to retaliate against Andrew.”
Jayden lowered his gaze and asked, “Paul was the one who started bothering you first. He should be the one apologizing, not me. Why should I apologize to Andrew?”
Eva looked up at him and said, “Yes, you’re right. Paul was in the wrong initially, but you could have stood your ground. When Andrew asked for a solution, you could have used that opportunity to demand an apology from Paul first. I believe Andrew is not unreasonable. Even if he is, he would agree for my sake. But you chose to provoke Andrew with Ryan. Do you think that’s going to convince Andrew to stop seeking justice for his wrongly accused brother? And you still want to stand on a moral high ground and condemn the three of them for their past actions!”
Jayden opened his mouth but couldn’t find words to refute. He really did want to condemn Andrew from a moral high ground.
Seeing him silent, Eva calmed down and said, “Senior, do you know that Ryan and Rosalyn are the only family I have in this world? We’ve spent many years together, but because of misunderstandings, we missed out on each other for a long time. It’s indeed a regret. But now that Rosalyn and Andrew are married, it means their situation has reached a conclusion. Yet you still mock Rosalyn’s husband using Ryan. Have you ever considered how difficult it is for me being caught in the middle?”
At this point, doubt appeared in Eva’s eyes. “Senior, do you really love me?”
If he truly loved her, he would have stood up for her when his friends spoke ill of her, right?
If he truly loved her, wouldn’t he consider her feelings before doing or saying anything?
But… Jayden seemed to have never done that. He had always been at odds with Paul.
Upon hearing her questioning tone, Jayden’s heart skipped a beat. He quickly grabbed Eva’s shoulders and said, “Eva, I really love you. Don’t doubt my feelings for you because of this. I admit that my actions were selfish, driven by a desire to challenge authority. But I never considered the difficulties it would cause you, or how you would feel. It was my mistake.”
He took Eva’s hand and placed it on his cheek. “How about this? You can slap me a few times to vent your anger.”
Last time, Eva forgave him after he showed weakness. But this time, Eva remained indifferent. “Senior, how did you know that Paul was harassing me?”
Except for that time in the capital, when Paul mistakenly thought they were in a hotel room and barged in, causing a scene, he hadn’t come to find her again. This time, they encountered each other at the golf course and Paul went crazy after seeing Eva and Jayden kissing. But Jayden wasn’t there this time. How did he know?
When Eva asked this question, Jayden awkwardly avoided her gaze. The kiss at the golf course was intentional. He knew Paul wouldn’t have left, so he kissed Eva to prove himself and anticipated that Paul would cause trouble afterwards.
Sure enough, Paul got into a car accident the next day. Jayden felt jealous of Eva’s concern for him, but he had to show magnanimity and urged Eva to go visit Paul at the hospital. Jayden followed closely behind, wanting to provoke Paul. After all, when they were in the capital, Paul made it difficult for Jayden to find him in court. They already had a grudge, so Jayden knew Paul wouldn’t let him off easily.
But how could he explain these thoughts to Eva? Jayden found a random excuse, saying, “I accidentally saw it…”
Eva persistently asked, “Where did you see it?”
Jayden couldn’t come up with an answer, so he quickly changed the subject. “Paul loves you so much, he must be bothering you all the time. Even without seeing it, I can guess.”
Eva’s eyes, filled with complex emotions, gradually took on a disappointed hue. “Since being with you, there have only been two occasions. Once in the capital, and now. Otherwise, Paul has always kept his promise, avoiding me whenever he sees me. But you speculate that he is constantly bothering me, which means that in your heart, you also see me as someone who can’t settle down, is that what you mean, senior?”
The word “senior” sounded heavy, hitting Jayden’s heart and making him feel guilty instinctively. “It’s not like that. I trust your and I know that you have always rejected Paul. It’s Paul’s own fault for persistently pursuing you even when you have a boyfriend. I also made a mistake by speculating about you. I’m sorry, I spoke out of line and disappointed you.”
Eva stared at him quietly for a while, then calmly spoke, “Senior, I’ve realized… you’re not suitable for me. Let’s break up.”
Upon hearing these words, Jayden panicked. “Eva, don’t say that. My parents know that you’re the girl I’ve had a secret crush on since high school. They value you a lot, which is why they postponed everything and took a long vacation to come see you. Please don’t break up with me because of your ex-boyfriend’s actions. I can’t bear it, and neither can my parents…”
Orphans like Eva hold great respect for their parents. It’s because of their involvement that Eva feels guilty about breaking up with Jayden, especially when he traveled a long distance just to see her… While Eva was struggling, Jayden grabbed her hand and suddenly it started bleeding. The bright red blood soaked through the bandage, staining his own hand and dropping onto Eva’s hand. Jayden released her hand, then lifted the blood-stained hand and presented it to Eva. “Eva, do you know that I’ve never kneeled down to anyone before? But Andrew forced me to kneel to help his brother. Faced with such tyranny, I could only resist him with Ryan…”
Even though Andrew didn’t say anything, it was Jayden who provoked Ryan first. It wasn’t just once, but twice, that Andrew forced him to kneel. It had nothing to do with helping Paul. Jayden just wanted to twist the facts. If Stella were here, she would definitely expose his true intentions.
But Stella wasn’t there, and Eva didn’t know the exact sequence of events. She only knew what Jayden said, and now, Jayden’s words made it difficult for Eva to respond.
Noticing that she was silent, Jayden said in a voice tinged with a hint of grievance, “Eva, my wound on my hand started bleeding again. It was when Andrew forced me to kneel down and I used my hand to support myself on the ground. To be honest, I have already paid a painful price for falsely accusing Paul. It’s enough, so… please don’t punish me anymore by breaking up with me. It’s too cruel for me…” Eva looked at his bloody hand and for a moment, she didn’t know who was right or wrong. In the midst of her chaotic thoughts, Jayden pleaded with her, begging her to forgive him one more time for the sake o their parents.
After staring at his hand for a while, Eva didn’t say anything about forgiveness. She simply asked Mandy to bring the first aid kit and help him stop the bleeding and change the dressing.
After wrapping the bandage, Eva used the excuse that it was too late and told Jayden to go back first. She wanted to think things through before having a conversation with him the next time. Jayden had no choice but to leave with heavy steps.
Jayden didn’t sleep well that night. He believed that it was Stella meddling in their affairs that led Eva to break up with him, so he shifted all his resentment to Stella.
The next day, Jayden came to the hospital feeling listless. As soon as he sat down in his office, he saw Henry carrying a stack of documents, excitedly approaching him. “Mr. Sherwood, the drug I developed is a success!”
Upon hearing this, Jayden felt that the gloom he had the previous night suddenly dissipated. He quickly reached out and took the documents that Henry handed to him. “These have received high praise from international experts!”
“I’m not surprised. Even our hospital will give recognition.”
