Sweetheart, Do You Still Love Me

CHAPTER 620 LEAVE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

"First of all, I need to apologize to you, Callum. I'm sorry."

Joella's voice was trembling. She wasn't prepared for what she was about to share.

"I don't know what came over me five years ago. It was like I had been possessed. That was why I decided to do it. I used that to get pregnant with Cam. At first, I was so excited. I thought that since I couldn't have you, I could at least have your child. Then… as time went on… I realized just how outrageous my actions were. But… by then, the baby was too big and it was too late for an abortion. I had no choice but to give birth to him. It was hard for me to raise him as a single mother. I had no means of supporting us. I cut off all ties with my family because I was afraid to let them know I had done such a shameless thing. As Cam got older, I found that he began to resemble you more and more. That made me both happy and afraid. Whenever Cam asks me who his father is, I can never give him an answer. I don't know how. I'm afraid that if he finds out you're his father, it will disrupt your life. I don't want that. It's what I'm most afraid of. I'm also worried that you'll take Cam away from me."

As Joella spoke, her emotions settled, and by the end, it sounded as if she were simply regaling a story.

"It turns out that Damoria is still too small of a city after all. You two ended up seeing us. When I first ran into you, I still harbored hope that you wouldn't care about this. I didn't expect you to be so determined to get to the bottom of things."

When she got to this part of the story, her voice became a little fearful. "That's why I had no choice but to stay in a place like this with Cam. I didn't think you'd still manage to find us."

Once she finished, she felt like a burden had been lifted off her. "This is the truth and the whole story. I'll accept whatever punishment you give me."

Joella kneeled in silence like a criminal awaiting her sentencing.

Elspeth and Callum both were conflicted. They never thought the truth would turn out like this.

Even though they were furious, they didn't know how to make the woman in front of them pay for what she had done.

"I destroyed your family."

Joella's eyes were squeezed shut. She looked as if she were prepared for a death sentence.

The room was silent for a very long time.

In the end, Joella opened her eyes and looked at Elspeth. "Have you decided how you wish to punish me?"

She knew what Elspeth was capable of.

If she wanted, she could even make me disappear for good. And… Cam as well.

The thought of Cameron made Joella's heart squeeze in pain.

She won't be that cruel, right? She can't be so heartless that she won't even spare a child's life, right? But… if the child's existence has an extremely negative impact on their relationship, why would she keep him around?

The longer it took for Elspeth to decide, the more afraid Joella became.

Joella took Elspeth's silence as a sign that the latter was still weighing the options, so she chose to make a compromise. "If you're willing to take Cam, I'll never show up in front of him again. If you don't want to see us ever again, I'll leave with him."

She fervently hoped that Cameron's life could be spared.

Elspeth knew she couldn't make the choice. The woman in front of her wasn't just someone who did something terrible. She was also a mother.

"Leave with your son." In the end, that was the decision she landed on.

Callum had been silent the whole time while Elspeth was making a decision. It was because he felt he had to bear some of the responsibility for this situation.

Thus, he had no right to give any input.

However, when he heard Elspeth's decision, he looked at her in surprise.

Although he had predicted the outcome, he still felt an inexplicable wave of emotion when he heard the words coming out of her mouth.

He put his arms around her shoulders and said softly, "I'm sorry."

Elspeth wasn't having an easy time dealing with this. Her heart felt tight and uncomfortable, but after hearing his humble apology, she couldn't get mad at him. "It wasn't your fault in the first place. This whole thing has nothing to do with you."

At most, he had simply been used.

"Don't worry. I don't feel anything for him."

This was Callum's promise.

Joella exhaled in relief when she heard the final decision. She wobbled as she stood back up.

Elspeth wanted to lend her a hand, but she pushed it away.

"Thank you. I never thought you'd be this kind."

Joella's eyes were glistening with tears. She was finally able to let go of the weight she had been carrying around with her all these years. "If I had known you would be this kind, I wouldn't have had to live in fear for so many years."

Elspeth was unsmiling as she said curtly, "I hope you will keep your promise not to appear in Damoria ever again."

Joella nodded vehemently. "Don't worry. I'll never appear in front of the two of you again."

She took out her phone and began looking for tickets to book.

Elspeth sighed at the sight of Joella's frantic actions. "There's no rush. I'm not forcing you to leave right away."

"No. I'll leave as soon as possible."