Chapter 18 - A Bitter Break and a Silent Summons
"Where I live is no longer your concern, Julian," I replied firmly, gripping the phone tighter. "I just need to know if you'll agree to my terms. The money for my share of renovations, nothing more."
This had to be a clean break. No strings attached, no property binding us together. Just the money I desperately needed to buy back my mother's bracelet.
"Fine," Julian sighed. "I'll transfer the renovation costs. But we should meet to sign the formal property transfer documents at the Civil Affairs Bureau tomorrow morning. Nine o'clock."
"I'll be there." I hung up without saying goodbye.
The next morning, I arrived at the Civil Affairs Bureau fifteen minutes early, dressed in a sleek navy pantsuit that gave me confidence. I needed every ounce of it to face Julian again. When he walked in wearing the charcoal suit I had bought him last year, I felt a twinge of something—not longing, but a hollow ache for the time I'd wasted on him.
