Married To My Ex's Brother, Reborn Miraculously
Chapter 46: I let you go.

Chapter 46: I let you go.

"What good is love?" Denis scoffed with cynicism. "Can it bring your father back to consciousness? Can it pay his medical bills? Love doesn’t exist, Anne. It’s all just a transaction—give and take. You do something for me, and I return the favor. That’s how the world works."

He took a step closer, his gaze dark and insistent. "Where is love in any of that? Come back to me. Be mine like before, and I’ll give you everything you want. Money, power—name it, and it’s yours. That’s the only thing that really matters."

Anne sneered to herself. A storm of emotions raged inside her—anger, regret, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal. She had wasted ten years loving a man who saw emotions as nothing more than leverage, a game to manipulate. Every word he uttered only fueled the disgust curling in her chest.

She despised herself for being so blind, for not recognizing his true nature sooner. She wanted to know how he was planning to live with two women in his life.

"What about Tania and her baby?" she demanded, tilting her head as if trying to see through the mask he wore. "Are you planning to abandon her?"

"Don’t concern yourself with Tania," he said dismissively. "Just focus on yourself. I will take care of your happiness."

Anne let out a cold laugh, shaking her head in disbelief. Unbelievable.

"You’re disgusting," she spat, stepping back as revulsion twisted in her gut. "You want to juggle two women like some kind of sick game? You got Tania pregnant, yet you still want me? Do you actually think I’d accept that? Never. I will never come back to you."

She turned sharply, striding toward the door. But before she could reach it, his hand shot out, gripping her arm and pulling her back with brutal force. She stumbled backward, crashing into his solid chest.

A startled gasp escaped her lips as she struggled against his hold, but his grip tightened, his breath hot against her ear.

"I have never met anyone as ungrateful as you," he seethed. "I helped you—I made sure Becca paid for what she did. Yet you don’t even have the decency to thank me." His fingers dug into her arm, making her wince. "It was your carelessness that allowed Becca to access your laptop, and now, thanks to you, the project is in jeopardy."

Anne’s breath hitched. ’So that’s what this is really about.’

"And despite that, I haven’t taken any action against you," he continued. "Instead, I’m giving you a chance—to fix your mistakes, to make things right, to come back to me."

His voice dropped into a sinister whisper. "Are you not afraid of what might happen if you defy me?"

Anne’s composure shattered, her patience finally snapping. She lashed out, "You only see my mistakes—you never appreciate my efforts."

She had given him everything—cooked his meals with care, tirelessly handled every detail of his life, and ensured his world ran seamlessly. His clothes, his handkerchiefs, his watch, belt, tie, files, pens—every little thing, she had arranged them all so he never had to lift a finger.

And yet, not once had he acknowledged her efforts. All he ever did was point out her faults, his voice sharp with criticism, his gaze cold with disappointment. He had never noticed the sacrifices she made, never seen how hard she worked to ease his burdens.

"How naive I was," she muttered bitterly. "I spent every moment trying to make your life easier, molding myself to fit your expectations, yet you always found something wrong with me."

Her voice cracked with overwhelming emotions, but she refused to let the tears fall. "I truly believed I wasn’t good enough for you. I felt ashamed, thinking I had failed to bring happiness to the person I loved the most."

She took a shuddering breath, her heart aching with the weight of it all. "I kept changing myself for you—bending over backward to please you, to be everything you wanted. Three years, I spent three years trying to make you happy, but in the end...I was nothing more than a fool."

For the first time, Denis felt a sting of guilt. The raw pain in Anne’s eyes unsettled him in a way he hadn’t expected. His voice softened as he murmured, "Anne... I’ll treat you with more care. I promise." He reached out, intending to wipe away her tears, but she slapped his hand away.

Her glare was sharp, filled with years of suppressed frustration. "You’re always like this," she bit out, taking a step back as if his touch repulsed her. "Every time we argue, you change your tone, you hold me, you say things to calm me down. And I believed you. But it never lasts, does it? The sweetness fades, and you go back to treating me like I’m nothing."

She let out a bitter laugh. "I used to think it was my fault—that I was the one upsetting you. I blamed myself, thinking if I just tried harder, if I just became better, you’d finally see me."

She swallowed hard, forcing herself to remain steady. "But now, I see the truth. You never truly cared about me. I was nothing more than a tool—something convenient, something easy to control."

Her eyes turned cold, void of the warmth that once pleaded for his love. "Be a man, Denis. Face reality. And don’t look for me after this."

"Really?" he sneered. "It’s you who have been chasing after me all these years."

Anne stared at him in stunned silence. Her eyes shimmered with fresh tears, but she refused to let them fall.

He was right.

She had been the one who chased him, the one who clung to him like he was the only light in her dark world. She had followed him, devoted herself to him, all because of a single moment when he had shielded her from her mother’s wrath. That moment had been enough to trap her in a decade-long illusion, making her believe that if she just loved him enough, he would love her back.

"Yes, you are right," she admitted, her voice faltering. "I have been following you for ten years. I thought I gained everything I desired in those three years with you. But now...I realized I was foolishly clinging to the hope that someday you would love me back."

She took a shaky breath, steeling herself. "Denis, I won’t trouble you again. I let you go. Accept it."

"That will never happen," he roared. Any trace of softness in his gaze disappeared. "Even if you’re a thorn in my side, I’ll keep you where you belong—with me. I’ll never let you go."

Before she could react, he yanked her toward the sofa, pinning her beneath him.

Panic clawed at her chest as she struggled beneath him. "Denis, stop!" she pleaded with desperation. "Please don’t do this. I’ll hate you."

But her words meant nothing to him. His grip on her wrists tightened as he pinned them above her head. "You’ve forgotten who you belong to," he murmured darkly, his lips grazing the curve of her neck. "I’ll remind you."

She thrashed beneath him, her breath coming in frantic gasps. "Let me go, please..." she sobbed, twisting her body in a desperate attempt to free herself.