Callie chuckled softly, “It’s not in vain. Knowing he’s fine puts my mind at ease.”
The dinner party ended, and after seeing off the leaders one by one, the event concluded successfully.
After the evening, Callie stood by the roadside, watching the cars drive away, her smile almost frozen. Eliza asked cautiously, “Callie, shall we go?”
Callie restrained her smile, “You go ahead.”
Eliza hesitated for a moment. Just then, a cold male voice came from behind, “Yusuf, escort her.”
Yusuf was a young man who had been following Jamir all day. They had met before in Anbusea; he was likely Jamir’s secretary.
Yusuf nodded, “Contact me when you’re ready, and I’ll come to pick you up.”
After speaking, he walked to Eliza’s side, gesturing for her to proceed. Eliza was worried about Callie and looked back repeatedly but eventually got into the car.
Once everyone had left, Callie turned around and walked step by step to Jamir. She threw her bag at him, “Why did you come to Ylosea!”
She was genuinely angry, having held it in all evening before finally exploding.
They stood by the roadside amidst the bustling traffic, blending into the crowd like an ordinary couple.
Jamir grabbed her hand, “I studied in Ylosea for four years. It’s practically my second home. Can’t I come to help build it?”
“Does it need your help?”
“Those leaders just agreed.”
Callie pulled her hand away, “Wasn’t it three years, not four?”
She remembered Jamir completing his university courses in just two years.
“I also spent two years here for my graduate studies,” he said with a faint smile. “It was during that year that I met you.”
With Jamir’s words, Callie instinctively recalled the scenery of blooming peach blossoms on the mountain that year.
She took a deep breath, “Only those who are unhappy reminisce about the past.”
She expected Jamir to argue but was surprised when he suddenly reached out, using the chain on her bag to pull her closer and embrace her. “I’m unhappy.”
Callie stiffened and then struggled frantically, “Jamir!”
“So I miss you. I can’t live without you.”
“But I don’t miss you!” Callie shouted, pushing him away. “I told you, our past is my shame!”
His eyes glistened with unshed tears. Standing opposite her, he looked at her with near pleading guilt.
“I’ve been abandoned by countless people in my life. I thought you wouldn’t, but you did.”
“I was young then! What about Nelson? He abandoned you too. Can’t you forgive him either?”
Jamir blurted out.
At the mention of Nelson, Callie’s heart skipped a beat but remained resolute. She shook her head, “No.”
Jamir opened his mouth.
“I won’t even rekindle old feelings with my ex-husband, let alone with you.”
Callie averted her gaze, “Let me go.”
With that, she left without looking back.
It felt like something was blocking her heart, making it hard to breathe.
Since discovering the secret of her lineage, the feeling of being abandoned had grown heavier. She had nightmares repeatedly that one day the Ellison family would learn her true identity and reject her.
Under such pressure, she increasingly felt that Jamir’s abandonment back then was an unforgivable weight!
Jamir stood there for a long time until Callie disappeared from sight. He remained motionless like a statue.
The only difference was that the vulnerability in his eyes gradually turned into determination.
While he was watching Callie, someone else was watching him too.
In a car across the street with a half-lowered window, a woman’s eyes were filled with deep affection and hopelessness.