Chapter 487 Thatâd Be Degrading to You The woman was doing a crappy job of hiding her lack of confidence. âWeâre not, like, speaking anymore!â
âBut you didnât say the two of you are divorced, did you? Why wouldnât you answer the question?â
The womanâs indignance turned into rage. âWho the f*ck are you? Why are you getting in between our business?â
âNo, Miss McKinnonâs completely right.â Hoyt suddenly spoke up. Frigidness had shadowed his face.â
Selma, are you and Mr. Sach split?â
Selma could not answer him. As her silence grew, Hoytâs cold suspicion turned into a scowl undergirded by quiet disappointment. âNow, what? You just want to have it both ways, donât you? Make me your side- chick, or whatever the h*ll you call it?â 1 âIâm not trying to make you a side-anything!â
âThen explain why youâre asking us to start over when youâre not completely split from Mr. Sach!â
âI just want to be with you, okay?â Selma cried in frustration. Her eyes were red. âYes, we arenât divorced, so what? We were supposed to be together! The thing that stopped us was your poverty. My parents wouldnât let me marry you because youâre poor, so we didnât!
âDo you really think Iâm happy to be some 50-year-old manâs wife!? If only you could be an entrepreneur, industrialist, orâ¦â
Î She burst into frantic tears. Hoytâs indignance and ire slowly subsided into helpless guilt. âLook, Iâm sorry I wasnât a better man for you. But all that is in the past now, okay? The only thing we should do now is to look forward and move on.â
âYouâre asking me⦠to move on? Why, because of her!?â She snapped, exasperated, and trained a finger at Deirdre. âYouâre unbelievable! Did she charm you with voodoo, or are you that down-bad, huh? Youâre not honestly thinking Iâm anywhere lesser than her, are you!?â
âEnough, Selma!â Hoyt cast his eyes to the floor. âYou donât understand. I think⦠I think we should never see each other again.â
Selma showed no sign of backing down or disengaging. She was about to throw another tantrum when Deirdre suddenly broke her own silence. âExcuse me, but where were you when Hoyt was kneeling outside your house that day and night?â
The young woman froze.
âYou must have been at home when it happened, right? Maybe even in the living room, watching him scraping his knees outside, waiting and waiting for you to come to see him. You saw him faint from fatigue and didnât even feel anything about it.
Then, when Hoyt finally gave up, you got to marry the wealthy man just as your parents wanted you to.
In other words, youâre the one who gave up on him, not the other way around. So, why are you pretending that he was the one who abandoned you?â
Selmaâs expression darkened. âThe f*ck do you know!? If it werenât for-â
âFor him being poor, you mean?â Deirdre cast her eyes low to the floor. âI get it. His financial status isnât the best. But you know he has the capability to provide you a decent, happy life. It was your greed that killed this relationship. Your insatiable greed. Youâre the one who wanted to be a rich manâs wife, so donât blame it on him at all.
âAnd now, you feel lonely and ignored. Suddenly, you want him to start an affair with you if it means someone will love you. Donât you see? Youâre degrading yourself. Youâre degrading the love between the two of you.â
Selmaâs eyes were beet red. Livid, she raised her hand. âHow dare you, b*tch!?â
Hoyt caught her wrist in mid-air.
âHoyt?â
He took a deep breath. âDonât, Selma. Stop embarrassing yourself already.â
âWhat the hell are you saying?â
âWere you at home? That day when I was outside. Were you?â
Selmaâs eyes shifted. âI was locked inside.â
âBut then again, while I was lying in the hospital for a week, you never came to see me.â
âIâ¦I wanted to, okay? But⦠But Iâ¦â
She could not even finish her own sentence, so Hoyt said the quiet part aloud for her, âYou were afraid that Iâd hold onto you and tell you to stay with me? Afraid that Iâd hinder your life as a wealthy manâs wife? Was that it?â
Selmaâs silence was deafening.
Weariness settled deep into Hoytâs bones. âSelma, I know how much you went through when you were with me. For that, Iâm always thankful. I felt indebted and guilty to the young woman you used to be for falling short of your standards.
âIf youâre coming to me for help, and itâs something I can provide, then Iâll do what I can. But youâre asking me to rekindle our past relationship⦠Then, letâs never see each other again.â