Goodbye, Mr. Regret

Vince crossed his legs and smirked. "So all that talk was for nothing, then."

"You'd better go home and find out exactly why your sister is so set on this divorce. And after that, maybe you should consider letting her marry me."

Vince shot him a look. "So that's your angle, huh?"

"Unless you want her to end up with Herbert instead?"

Vince raised an eyebrow. "And if she actually likes Herbert, why not?"

Yates chuckled. "Marriage isn't as simple as you make it sound. Both families need to agree, and as far as I know, Herbert's mother doesn't exactly have much standing. It was only after Mrs. Wheeler passed away that Chairman Wheeler took over the Wheeler Group and made Herbert's mother his official wife. Even if Herbert were to leave the Wheeler family, do you really think his parents would approve? A marriage without blessings is doomed to be unhappy."

Vince felt as if he were being forced into something he wasn't ready for.

"So you're saying you're the better choice?"

"Why not? At the very least, I'd treat her well. Plus, my parents would adore her. They're wonderful people—they'd dote on Jessy just like your family has. And if she married me, would Timothy dare barge into my house and try to take her away?"

"You and your ridiculous schemes," Vince shot back. "You make it sound like our family would just let Timothy waltz in and steal her away."

Vince didn't want Jessy to feel pressured into anything when it came to marriage.

"That's not the point," Yates said, shaking his head. "The problem is, as long as she's single, Timothy still thinks he has a chance. You saw today-he's not giving up. If you want peace in your family, you're not going to get it as long as he keeps lingering around."

"You make it all sound so perfect, like you're some knight in shining armor. But you and Timothy, you're both experts at setting traps. This isn't my decision to make. We'll see what happens."

Vince didn't give Yates a straight answer. He watched him for a moment, then asked, "Weren't you the one who told me it was wrong to go after a friend's girl? That it would ruin the friendship? What are you doing now?"

Yates arched a brow, visibly annoyed. "Timothy stole my fiancée first. He started this. Why shouldn't I fight fire with fire?"

"So this is just a vendetta for you?"

"Whether I'm doing this out of spite or for real, I think you know the answer."

Vince fell silent for a moment, then sighed. "Let's go. Time to eat."

"Thanks, brother-in-law," Yates teased.

"Don't call me that. I don't like it."

When Vince and Yates got back to the Zimmerman house, Jessica had already gone upstairs to rest.

They ate a light meal downstairs. Vince excused himself and headed to Jessica's room to check on her.

Meanwhile, Zachary and Mrs. Zimmerman realized they still hadn't had a proper conversation with Yates, so they invited him into the study for tea.

Vince knocked on Jessica's door just as she was lying down.

"Come in," she called.

He entered quietly, sat by her bedside, and looked at her with gentle concern. "Feeling any better?"

"Much better," she said with a small smile.

Vince couldn't help but sigh. "I'm sorry. I should've found you sooner."

Jessica reached out and took his hand. "You have nothing to apologize for.

Meeting you is the happiest thing that's happened to me. Actually, Sheila warned me once, too."

Vince looked surprised. "What did she say?"

"She told me that for a man to treat

another woman so well, there's

always a price to pay. If it's not because of love, it's because of something deeper. That stuck with me, so I went back home and started asking the neighbors about my family. They all told me I was my parents' real daughter."

"That's why you asked me if you were really part of the family?"

Jessica nodded. "Yeah."

Vince let out a long breath. "It's such a shame, all that time lost. I

album to the Gilded Whispernoveldrama

remember bringing that old net

Estates, wanting to show it to you, and Timothy took it away. He probably knew the truth by then and was afraid we'd figure it out if we saw the pictures. I bet he took your family album too. Judging by the timing, he must have known before the divorce trial even started. I can't say exactly when, but it doesn't matter now."

He paused, then continued, "But from this, we can see Sheila was in on it too.

Timothy probably doesn't know she knows, which makes her even more suspicious. Jessy, tell me the truth-was Sheila the real reason you wanted out of your marriage with Timothy?"

Jessica hesitated, then nodded. "At first, yes. I found a sheet of paper at home covered in Sheila's name, and a whole box of things connected to the two of them. That's when realized he'd always had someone else in his heart. Not long after, he told me to go to the school for a parent-child event, but then he took Sheila instead. That was the beginning. But then, as you know, he started threatening me with Herbert, and even used you as leverage. I felt trapped, like I couldn't breathe. He never once thought about how I felt. Our marriage was nothing like I imagined it would be."

She used to think that if she loved him enough, their marriage would survive

anything.

But a marriage built on one-sided love isn't a marriage at all.

Love needs to go both ways.

She kept pouring her heart out, giving more and more, but eventually, she was left

empty.

"So, you'll never choose him again, will you?"