Elodie never imagined Jarrod would say something like that.


    His expression hadn''t changed-stillposed, distant, and dignified. Yet beneath that calm exterior, was there a flicker of...hurt? She couldn''t quite tell, and that confused her. Jarrod was never someone to show vulnerability like this.


    And that line-"I''ve minded it for nearly three of our four years of marriage..."


    It left her stunned for a moment. She pressed her lips together and lifted her chin to look at him. "What exactly do you know?"


    There had been good times between her and Jarrod, once. Later, when he changed suddenly, she''d chalked it up to his self-restraint, believing that''s why he''d been so attentive that first year. When things cooled off, she assumed he''d simply lost interest. Even long after what she considered their "divorce," she''d held onto that exnation.


    But now...


    Jarrod was saying he''d always cared about Ivan.


    Yet in all those years, Jarrod had never once mentioned Ivan. Not a hint, not a slip. After all, once she married Jarrod, she''d devoted herself to their marriage, drawing a clear line between past and present. She''d never even thought of Ivan during those years.


    She had no idea how, or when, Jarrod had learned about Ivan—or why he''d started to care.


    Jarrod kept his eyes fixed on her, watching her every reaction. He didn''t try to hide anything now. "I know you two grew up together. I know you once had feelings for each other. I know you married me because of Ivan-not just because of that one night. Even when you agreed to marry me, it wasn''t really what you wanted."


    He was just stating facts.


    Elodie had no way to refute him; what happened in the past was true. But even so, she hadn''t spoken Ivan''s name once since they married. Malcolm and the others all tacitly understood not to bring it up.


    "How did you find out?" she asked softly.


    Jarrod exhaled and looked up at her again. "You remember thatptop you kept asking about? The one I told you I''d lost? I didn''t. It''s been in my study this whole time."


    Elodie''s eyes widened in shock.


    Suddenly, she understood exactly what he meant.


    She''d had thatptop for years, ever since high school. It was filled with


    fragments of her life-including traces of Ivan.


    She met Jarrod''s gaze, lips pressed tight.


    Now, finally, she understood why Jarrod had changed so abruptly back then.


    All he saw in her eyes was a flicker of surprise, nothing more. She didn''t seem to care what he''d seen, or what he might be feeling.


    "So, was it me that ruined your chance at happiness?" Jarrod''s voice was soft, almost casual, but his eyes were shadowed with something dark. "Is that why you wanted to marry him instead? Is that why you changed yourst name to his—so it would all make sense?"


    He finally asked the question he''d been holding back.


    There was so much on thatptop-so much about Ivan. Back then, Jarrod had only known that Malcolm had forced Elodie to marry him, but not who she''d done it for. It was onlyter, after overhearing a conversation between Elodie and Malcolm, that he realized she''d given in to help reduce Ivan''s sentence, that Malcolm had used


    that as leverage against her.


    He''d even found a line in one of her journal entries: "Today Ivan asked if I''d just change myst name to Thorne. think it''s a good idea." She hadn''t written the rest, but it wasn''t hard to guess. If Elodie never changed her name, she''d always be his sister in name, but if she left the Harcourt family and took the Thorne name, things would be different.


    Hearing Jarrod''s words, Elodie''s face grew distant for a moment, as if she was remembering that day. She finally understood what Jarrod had been resenting all this time. But...


    She still didn''t bother to exin.


    Jarrod''sshes lowered, a faint,


    bitter smile touching his lips. "And our house. He filmed you once,


    asking how you pictured your future. You described it in detail, and it was exactly like the home we ended up buying. Every inch of that ce was just your dream with hime to life. Even if it was only those two things, they told me enough-how much you cared about him."


    That''s why, when he bought the house, he''d torn everything out and started over from scratch.


    Except for the bedroom he''d shared with Elodie for three years. That, in the end, was the one thing he couldn''t bring himself to destroy.