Love's New Bloom by Simone Hastings

Chapter 85 Painful Memories

Ian was not angered by Matthew’s words. Instead, he simply laughed it off as Matthew stared at him

coldly.

The thought that Erin was leaving in such haste because of this man brought a hint of sharpness to

Matthew’s amber eyes.

Erin was also astonished by Ian’s response. She was surprised that he hadn’t flown into a horrible

rage.

“Let’s go, Erin.” lan reached out and placed his arm around her waist.

His sudden intimacy repulsed her. But she remembered how he told her that paparazzi were lying in

wait outside, so she did. not struggle to free herself.

A coldness crept into Matthew’s eyes when he saw Erin’s compliance with lan’s actions. He couldn’t

hold back from asking, Erin, aren’t you divorced already?” It was just an offhanded question, but

somehow, it gave Erin a sense of condescension.

It was as if she had become a foolish woman who was going back to her cheating ex–husband. She

wanted to explain herself, but the thought of the paparazzi out there, as well as her relationship with

Matthew refrained her from doing so. In the end, she chose to keep quiet. Furthermore, she was not

obliged to explain anything to him.

“Mr. Burgess, you are just a friend of Erin’s. You are in no position to poke your nose into whatever’s

going on between us,” Ian said icily as he stared straight into Matthew’s eyes.

Matthew ignored his gaze and looked at Erin earnestly. He lost his cool when he saw Erin stay silent.

“He doesn’t deserve you!

“That’s enough, Matthew. Go in. We’ll be leaving now.” Erin did not bother to explain anything to

Matthew. Since the very beginning, it had not been her intention to get involved with a celebrity.

She was just an ordinary woman. She might have been in close contact with Matthew in the past, but

that had been more than a decade ago.

Mathew inconspicuously clenched his fists and quickly released them again. In the end, he only

managed a weak response. I’ll be in town for the rest of the month. You can meet me whenever you

want.”

Erin smiled and bade him farewell. “Okay. Goodbye.”

Then, he could only watch as Ian led Erin out of the mansion with his arm still around her waist.

The paparazzi lying in wait were greatly disappointed.

”

Five minutes later, Ian drove towards his mansion. Erin was displeased. “If you’re not sending me

home, Ian, I’ll get a taxi back myself!”

He slowed down and pulled up by the roadside. Then, he said in all sincerity, “Listen, Erin. My mother

fell sick after you refused to have a meal with her. She actually felt really bad for reprimanding you last

time and would very much like to apologize to you for it. But you never gave her a chance to do so.

She’s been beating herself up over it so much the past few days, and it pains me to see her like that.

Since you’re already here, can you please pay her a visit?”

Erin’s expression softened. Mary had fallen ill because of her?

“Has she really fallen sick because of me?” she wondered aloud.

Ian sighed. “Do you think I’d lie to you about something like this?”

Erin kept quiet. She really did not wish to be entangled with lan anymore. But when she thought of how

old Mary was, she could not bring herself to refuse him.

Ian started the car again when he saw that Erin was no longer turning him down.

Ten minutes later, both Erin and Ian entered the mansion.

The moment he entered the living room, lan told her, “I’ve changed none of the furnishings in the house

since you left. This

way, I can pretend that you’re still living here and that nothing has changed.”

His words sent ripples through Erin’s heart, but still, she kept mum.

Jan turned to look at Erin, but her gaze was cast downwards.

“Erin, I’ve gotten a locksmith to change the locks back to the old ones. If you need anything, you can

come back for them anytime.”

Erin looked up at him in astonishment. Ian was speaking so nicely and gently that she almost felt like

she didn’t know him at all. His sudden change made her reminisce about their newly–wed days…

Back then, lan had just bought the mansion after he got a loan, and she was in charge of all the

furnishings. He had agreed to everything she liked, so the interior of the house was very femininely

decorated.

Erin directed her gaze at a vase in the corner. She felt a pang of emotion when she saw her favorite

white lilies in them. She knew that Mary hated white flowers because she felt that they were bad luck,

so it was a surprise to her that Ian would still choose to put white flowers in the vase.

“Come with me to the guest room upstairs, Erin.”

Erin felt a wave of emotion come over her. She did not wish to be reminded of the past anymore. That

would only make her feel even worse.

“Is Mary in the room? Is she asleep? I’ll come some other day if she’s asleep…” Erin already had

thoughts of leaving.

Her subtle resistance and the redness that crept up around her eyes caused Ian to lower his gaze and

say, “Mom should still be awake. I’ll go upstairs and check on her. Wait for me in the living room. I’ll be

quick.”

“Okay.”

Ian hurried up the stairs to find Mary dressed up and standing at the guest room door. She had gone

out to the hallway to eavesdrop on Ian and Erin’s conversation when she heard them return.

Ian pointed to the room and Mary immediately got the message, so she silently sneaked back into the

room. Ian followed her in, and they had a quick conversation.

By the time lan returned to the living room downstairs, Erin was nowhere in sight. His first thought was

to find her on the terrace. As expected, he found her standing by a wooden crib on the terrace.

A glimmer of hope flickered in his eyes as he slowly approached her. “You ordered this online eight

months ago. They took a long time to send it over. By the time customs cleared it, we had already…”

Ian left his sentence hanging as he stood by Erin’s side.

She hung her head low and intentionally turned to the side when she felt him approach.

He caught sight of her shoulders trembling ever so slightly. She seemed to be crying…

Ian swiftly stood in front of her and coaxed her to lift her head with his palms. Erin stubbornly tried to

resist, but lan pulled her into a tight embrace.

He guided her to lean her head on his shoulder and softly said, “Let it all out. It was all my fault…I’m

sorry.”

The sight of the intricately crafted crib touched the most delicate spot within Erin, and all of a sudden,

all her defenses came down, and she broke into tears.

Had she not found out that Ian had cheated on her, and had lan decided to have a baby with her then,

she might already be with child by now…

The thought of such a perfect life before them destroyed in an instant because of lan’s betrayal

infuriated Erin so much that she vented all her anger on him by punching his arm. The force of her

punches were strong, but lan took them all without a word.

It wasn’t until her fists hurt that Erin pushed him away abruptly and said, “I’ll be leaving now. I’ll come

visit Mary some other day.”

Her tear–streaked face and the obvious strain on her voice brought an ache to lan’s heart. He grabbed

her arm tightly, refusing to let her go.

“I was wrong, Erin! Can you please give me a chance to redeem myself? I promise I’ll be good to you. I

really love you! I can’t ever forget you…” lan tugged forcefully and pulled her into a hug again.

“It’s too late,” Erin sobbed..

“No, it’s not too late! It really isn’t! Just give me a chance,” Ian pleaded.