The cruelest thing wasn't that she had long been buried in that shipwreck, but that she was still alive.
Still living well, living well and no longer remembering him, and already having a daughter with another man, and that man was even his...
***
Falling in love with him at eighteen, marrying him at twenty, giving birth to his son at twenty-one, and divorcing at twenty-four, Naomi Shaw had never imagined her love and marriage would end up in such a shattered state.
She had always thought she would love one person, bear his children, and then grow old with him hand in hand.
Only later did she realize that dreams and reality could never be compared after all.
He had his unforgettable first love, yet she loved him to death. After falling into utter despair, she was finally able to leave everything behind.
***
When they met again, she was with her daughter, who had been diagnosed with mild autism, and he mocked her coldly,
"Naomi Shaw, the daughter you had with some other wild man is indeed not sound!"
She replied indifferently,
"And you are?"
***
He had always been fond of those cold, glamorous, and enchanting women, and had little interest in a sweet and innocent girl like her.
He never thought that one day, after the hurt he had inflicted and the hardships of life she had endured, she would finally become the woman he desired, only to no longer belong to him.
***

Before she could say anything else, Tyson slammed the door shut. She could only sigh and turn to leave. But as she turned, she saw Julian Donovan standing in the hallway not far away. He lived with Tyson in the small building next to the main house of the Shaw Residence.


Naomi Shaw was mortified. Julian Donovan was watching her from a distance with an expression of pure scorn and impatience. 'He must have heard my conversation with Tyson,' she thought. 'He heard me say that all I wanted was to love him in secret.' Lacking the courage to face his mocking gaze any longer, she lowered her eyes in despair and ran past him with her head down.


In all these years, Naomi Shaw had never hated herself as much as she did in that moment. She hated her own stubborn obsession. She desperately wanted to let him go, but the more she tried, the more frequently she found herself thinking of him.


Chapter 17 - Chapter 17: The One Who Loves Her and The One She Loves