Chapter 12: The Price of Coming Back

The next morning, I received an unexpected visitor.

When my assistant told me Hollis Lombardi was waiting downstairs, I didn't even look up from my laptop.

"Tell him I'm busy."

She hesitated.

"He says it's important."

"Everything becomes important after people realize they've lost something."

She left without another word.

Five minutes later, my phone vibrated.

[I know you're there.]

I smiled faintly.

[Then you know I'm busy.]

His reply came almost immediately.

[I want to apologize.]

I stared at those four words.

For years, I'd imagined what it would feel like to hear Hollis apologize sincerely.

I used to think I'd cry.

Instead, I felt nothing.

[You already apologized. Many times.]

[You just never changed anything.]

There was a long pause.

Then he sent:

[Give me one chance to explain.]

I closed the chat.

My assistant returned a few minutes later.

"He's still downstairs."

"Let him wait."

She looked surprised, but nodded.

***

Hollis waited for almost two hours.

When he finally left, he didn't send another message.

I thought that would be the end of it.

I was wrong.

That afternoon, one of our largest clients called to cancel an upcoming order.

The reason was vague.

Their purchasing director simply said they'd received another offer from a competitor and needed to reconsider.

I frowned.

"Which competitor?"

There was a brief silence.

"A Lombardi-affiliated supplier."

I leaned back in my chair.

So this was how Hollis planned to bring me back.

Not by asking.

By reminding me how much influence his family still had.

I immediately called Adrian.

"Did you know Lombardi is targeting one of our accounts?"

"Yes," he said calmly. "I heard about it this morning."

"And?"

"And I told my legal team to prepare."

I blinked.

"You're not worried?"

"About the Lombardis? No."

His voice remained completely relaxed.

"They have influence, Willa. So do we."

I smiled despite myself.

"Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. I haven't done anything."

"You just made me feel better."

"Then I'll accept that as payment."

I laughed.

The call ended a few minutes later.

But before I could return to work, another message appeared.

It was from Hollis.

[I didn't authorize the supplier to interfere with your contracts.]

I stared at the screen.

[Then stop them.]

His answer came after several minutes.

[I will.]

[And Willa... this wasn't how I wanted to get you back.]

I typed slowly.

[You don't get to get me back.]

This time, there was no response.

***

That evening, Hollis confronted his grandfather.

"Why did you authorize the supplier to approach Willa's client?"

The old man didn't even look up from his newspaper.

"Because you're too weak to make her understand that the Lombardi family is still willing to support her."

"I don't need to control her."

"No?"

His grandfather finally looked up.

"Then why have you spent the last three weeks watching every move she makes?"

Hollis's expression darkened.

"Because I made a mistake."

"A mistake?"

His grandfather laughed bitterly.

"You humiliated the woman who stood beside you for ten years. You let another woman take her wedding dress, her entrance, her ring, her ceremony, and then told her she was overreacting."

"You didn't make one mistake, Hollis."

"You made hundreds."

Hollis stood silently.

For once, he had nothing to defend.

His grandfather folded the newspaper.

"If you want Willa back, stop trying to corner her."

"Then what should I do?"

"Become someone she would have a reason to choose again."

The words followed Hollis long after he left the room.

***

The next morning, something unexpected happened.

Hollis personally withdrew every Lombardi supplier from the contracts that had been targeting my company.

He also sent a formal letter to the affected clients stating that Cross & Crumb had no connection to any disputed business arrangements and should be evaluated independently.

I read the letter twice.

My assistant looked at me.

"Should I respond?"

"No."

She nodded.

Then she hesitated.

"There was something else."

"What?"

"Mr. Lombardi also returned the original wedding deposit to your account."

My hand froze.

That deposit had been paid from Hollis's personal account.

I hadn't asked for it back.

Along with the transfer was a short note.

[You paid for the wedding yourself. You should get every dollar back.]

I stared at the message for a long time.

It was the first thing Hollis had done that wasn't designed to make me return to him.

He wasn't asking for forgiveness.

He wasn't asking me to meet him.

He was simply returning something that belonged to me.

For the first time, I wondered whether he was finally beginning to understand.

But understanding was not the same as forgiveness.

And forgiveness was not the same as love.

I closed the message and returned to work.

Outside my office window, the city moved beneath the afternoon sun.

My life was moving with it.

And this time, I wasn't waiting for Hollis to decide where I belonged.