Lyra stared at Joel, his face twisted like he was the victim here, and let out a dry laugh.
“Why would I want anything from you? I said I never wanted to see you again–did you think I was kidding? Wasn’t it your dream to marry Renee and pop out kids with her? Congrats, the coast is clear. Go chase your fantasy.
Then it hit her–while she was playing nurse during his injury, he’d still been wiring money to Renee overseas.
Touching. In a twisted, pathetic way.
Joel’s eyes lost their usual spark. He stepped closer like that would undo everything.
“It was all Renee,” he said, voice shaky. “She tricked me–said she was Vesper. That’s why I treated her like that. But I know now. It’s always been you.
“I made her get an abortion. I made her pay. We can still fix this, Lyra. We were good once, right?”
His voice cracked. “Just think about it… we had something real.”
Lyra drifted for a second, caught in the past.
Joel’s mom never liked her. Thought she wasn’t good enough. Kept pushing him toward someone more “suitable.
But Lyra tried. Over and over, because she loved him.
It was never easy.
She lived with the fear–of not being enough, of him running back to Renee, of never being truly accepted by his family.
Lyra stepped back, dodging his touch, eyes cold. “Renee lying isn’t the point. You were never loyal. I spent five years taking care of you–every damn day.
“I didn’t have some flashy job, but I gave you everything. And the second you got better, the moment Renee showed up sick back in Khelmark? You went behind my back and handed her my bone marrow like it was NOTHING. Didn’t even ask.
“That wasn’t a mistake. That was straight–up BETRAYAL. You used me, then proposed like you could have BOTH of us. You’re selfish. Heartless. You never even saw me as a person. Just something convenient.
“How could I love someone like that? You’re NOT even a real man.”
Joel opened his mouth but nothing came out. Shoulders dropped. Totally wrecked.
Lyra didn’t even flinch. She turned and walked off with Weston, heading inside to take their wedding photos.
That night, Lyra’s phone lit up with a video call from Poppy.
On screen, Poppy spun her laptop around. “Girl, you need to see this! The Slutz family just blew up the news.”
X
