Breaking Free, Loving Again -The Flash Marriage with Mr. CEO

At Quinn Mansion,

Catrin had returned home earlier than Idris. She had a frown on his face.

When the butler saw her entering the house, he politely approached her. "Madam, you have arrived early. The lunch is almost prepared. Just a little while more and I will ask someone to serve it to you."

Catrin waved her hand to dismiss the butler. "I arrived for something else. Go, do your job." With that, she walked past him. Heading straight towards the stairs.

Just as she had taken the first step, she halted with some thought and turned to look back over her shoulders. "And yes, later, Ryan would be coming," she said, her voice sounding sure. "When he is here, let me know."

Before Mr. Cole could respond, Catrin was already on her way, upstairs. Behind her, the butler could only nod to her departing figure.

He didn't know what was going wrong, but recently nothing at home felt right. First, it was the young lady who left the house and then it was the master. The more he stayed away from home, the more this place looked abandoned. It felt like the mansion was no longer the home it used to be.

"Mr. Cole," a servant appeared while the butler was still staring towards the staircase. "The lunch is ready. Should we serve it to Madam?"

Mr. Cole shook his head. "Madam, won't have it now. Pack the lunch for Master and send it to the company first," he said, and nodding to him, the servant left to complete the order.

After a while, a familiar Mercedes stopped at the mansion's entrance. Knowing that Ryan would be coming later, the butler was there to receive him at the door.

"Mr, Foster, good afternoon. Madam had been waiting for you," he said, and Ryan simply nodded to him as he walked further inside.

"Please wait here," Mr. Cole spoke again, gesturing towards the living area. "I will go and notify Madam of your arrival."

Saying that, he turned and swiftly walked upstairs.

Soon after, Catrin came down with him. They descended together, with her walking in front and butler following after. As she walked down, her eyes met with Ryan and soon a hint of disappointment flickered in her gaze that she didn't even try to hide.

She glanced back her shoulders and gestured to the butler.

Mr. Cole understood her. Nodding, he bowed slightly and then left the scene immediately.

"You came here today?" Catrin sneered. "And I almost thought that once again you would find a reason to avoid my call."

Ryan didn't like her tone but didn't show his disapproval. He remained calm and slowly said, "Aunt Catrin, I made my intentions very clear to you the last time I met you … after the hospital. I don't want to disrupt Arwen's life if that's truly what she wants."

"Ryan," Catrin began, her voice sounding more and more self-deprecating. "...you know when I chose you for my daughter, I was so sure that who I chose was the right choice. But hearing you last night and then today, I feel like, somewhere I went wrong. Not only did you disappoint my daughter, you also disappointed me today."

Ryan frowned at her choice of words. "If what I decided makes you disappointed, Aunt Catrin, I don't think I can do anything to help you out of it. I have done something that I regret. I truly do but …" he paused and his expression got more solemn, "... I don't want to do something that would make me regret more later." Experience new stories on My Virtual Library Empire

"And you think what you are doing now won't make you regret later?" Catrin asked, almost losing her calm. She had been on the brink of losing it from the very beginning. Only she knew how hard it had been to keep herself sane since she had heard Ryan reconsidering about their decision before.

It was like she could already see her defeat near …

And if it's her daughter … her Arwen at stake … then there is no way she could bear to accept the defeat. She has to win it so that she can get back her daughter back.

"Ryan, you did things in the past and you regret it," Catrin said as if she was reminding him exactly where his regrets were coming from. "But trust me, if you don't do anything now, you will regret it too. Do you think the guilt will leave you easily when in future you would see Arwen regretting the decision that she took just because you forced her into taking it?"

"..." Ryan couldn't bring himself to answer her. Maybe he wouldn't be able to unburden himself from the guilt … and he already knew it.

"You won't be able to forgive yourself, Ryan. so why not be daring now and make a move? So that that future possibility never appears in the future." Catrin tried to make Ryan understand when she sensed him halting in his thoughts. She might not have been sure before, but now, she could already see and tell that Ryan had feelings for Arwen —one that was making his resolve weaken in response to her words.

And exactly was what she wanted. She wanted him to change whatever sh*t he has decided.

Ryan was having a hard time. Only he knew how much strength he had to muster up to finally agree to let Arwen go. But Catrin's words were making him weak again.

"Arwen never considered our arrangement serious," he said, and every syllable of the words he uttered twisted his heart painfully. "Although she did everything to make the arrangement become a success, it was never what she had desired. And if I have never been who she had desired and loved, I have no right to make her choose me when she has chosen someone else."

Catrin frowned. "Who told you that?" she asked as if she couldn't understand from where that was coming.@@novelbin@@

Ryan glanced at her and a mocking smile curled her lips. "Does that even matter when she clearly chose someone else over me?"