Chapter 602

Chapter 602:

Cade stiffened. “Hadley…”

There was an uneasiness in his voice, a flicker of hesitation.

Truthfully, he hadn’t wanted to come here.

If it weren’t for his son—if it weren’t for his wife Noreen relentlessly pushing him—he never would have swallowed his pride and sought out the daughter he had abandoned.

Deep down, he had known Hadley wouldn’t agree. He knew she would refuse him.

And now, seeing the raw amusement on her face, watching her laugh as if his very presence was a joke, Cade immediately regretted coming.

Grinding his teeth, he forced the words out. “I’m sorry, Hadley. Just… forget I said anything.”

“Hmm?” Hadley’s laughter halted abruptly. She tilted her head, regarding him with cold eyes. “What’s this? Not desperate to save your precious son anymore?”

Cade exhaled sharply and shook his head. “I’ll find another way!” he muttered. “Hadley, I—I shouldn’t have come. Just act like I was never here today.”

With that, he turned on his heel and strode toward the door.

As his fingers brushed the handle, instinct made him glance back. Hadley hadn’t moved. She still sat in the same place, eyes locked on a distant point, lost in thought.

In that moment, she looked so much like her mother.

A pang of something stabbed through Cade’s chest. But instead of lingering, he forced himself to step through the doorway and leave.

Hadley remained seated and laughed freely again, her laughter slowly fading. The hollow echoes of it still rang in her ears. Gradually, it melted away, replaced by something deeper—something far heavier. Sadness.

𝓕𝓲𝓻𝓼𝓽 𝓾𝓹𝓵𝓸𝓪𝓭: gⲁⳑ𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⍰𝓬𝓸𝓶

Back at the dance troupe, the trainees’ session that she supervised…

The session ended at 4:30 PM.

With no further obligations for the day, Hadley changed into her casual clothes and left the studio.

She needed air. Without much thought, she made her way to a small flower shop nearby.

She absentmindedly browsed through the arrangements, reaching out to touch the soft petals. Just then, her phone buzzed in her pocket.

“Hey, Hadley!” Eric’s voice was light, almost cheerful, as if he were in an unusually good mood. “Where are you? I’m at your dance studio.”

Hadley blinked in surprise. “You are?” It was still early—wasn’t he supposed to be neck-deep in work right now?

“Yeah,” Eric replied casually. “I finished early today. There was a meeting, but nothing major, so I decided to skip it. Phillips can handle it.”

His tone softened slightly, turning almost playful. “I wrapped up early to spend time with you. Are you happy?”

Hadley scoffed quietly. Not at all.

She forced a smile, effortlessly dodging the question. “I’m not at the studio anymore—I already left.”

“What?” The surprise in Eric’s voice was evident. “Where did you go?”

“Out to buy flowers,” she answered flatly.

Before he could respond, she continued, her tone brisk and detached, “I have other plans today. You should go back to work—we’ll meet another time. Bye.” And with that, she hung up.

“Hello? Hadley?” Eric stared at his phone, stunned.

She hung up. Just like that. His jaw tightened, irritation bubbling to the surface. “That woman is really getting out of hand.”

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