Chapter 790

Chapter 790:

“Denver,” Hadley said gently, stepping closer.

“Hadley.” Denver lifted his gaze and rose. The faint curve of his smile didn’t reach his eyes—he looked sad, not angry.

They stood there, eyes locked, their silence stretching on.

At the archive room’s threshold, Linda’s lips curled into a smirk. So it really was Denver! With a flick of her wrist, she whipped out her phone, snapped a quick photo of the pair, and sent it off.

“You…”

“Hey…”

Both Hadley and Denver spoke at the same time but froze, awkwardly falling silent for several seconds. Suddenly, laughter broke through as they realized they’d spoken at once.

“You go first.” Denver motioned gently towards Hadley.

Hadley studied his expression carefully before saying softly, “How are you holding up? You’re not too upset, are you?” Of course, she was asking about Astrid’s betrayal.

“I’m fine,” Denver answered calmly, his lips curving into a slight smile. “Really.” Truthfully, he felt hesitant to admit it, but the pain he’d anticipated wasn’t there.

Rather, an odd sense of freedom filled him instead.

The truth was, Astrid had always been his mother’s choice, not his own. Wilma had pressured him endlessly until he finally agreed to date Astrid just to appease her.

Logically, he should have felt betrayed by Astrid’s deception, but strangely, he didn’t.

Extr@ ch@pt3rs f0und at g𝒶lnoνels.𝓬o𝓶

His feelings for Astrid had always hovered somewhere between friendship and mild affection. Therefore, he didn’t feel heartbroken or betrayed.

Yet, a deeper sadness lingered—but not for Astrid; it was meant for someone else.

“Hadley.” Denver’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears as he hesitated before whispering, “Forgive me. I was wrong.”

Hadley froze, stunned, confusion evident in her eyes.

Why was he suddenly apologizing? Hadn’t he come here upset about Astrid? But clearly, Astrid wasn’t the reason he’d appeared in front of her now. Eyes reddening slightly, Denver struggled to keep his voice steady, words catching painfully in his throat.

“I know everything now, Hadley.”

What did he know? Hadley was utterly confused.

“What really happened that day in Blathe…” Denver slowly continued. “You were innocent all along. It wasn’t you—it was my mother who hurt you!”

All at once, tears filled Hadley’s eyes, streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably. Trembling, she raised a hand to cover her mouth, overwhelmed by a wave of anguish. Denver finally knew!

After all this time, he finally discovered the truth!

She’d assumed the painful secret would stay buried forever beneath layers of silence and shame.

But how on earth had he found out?

“Hadley…”

.

.

.