Mafia Lord's Mute Sweetheart

Chapter 157: Chapter 157 I don’t want to stay with someone who doesn’t want me

Daisy looked at him quietly.

She reached for her phone again and typed another sentence. When she finished, she showed it to him.

Because you don’t love me.

Cedric’s eyes stopped on those words.

Something uncomfortable moved through his chest.

Daisy continued typing.

And I don’t want to stay with someone who doesn’t want me.

She paused.

Then added one final line.

You should be able to marry the person you love.

Cedric stared at the screen.

For once, he had no immediate response.

He had always thought Daisy was trying to keep him trapped. He had believed she had entered his life because she wanted something from him. Yet now she was the one offering him freedom. The freedom he had thought he desperately wanted.

Jessica. The woman he had always claimed to love. The woman he had defended countless times. The woman he had told himself was the only person who could truly have his heart.

So why did the thought of Daisy actually leaving make something inside him feel strangely hollow?

Daisy stood quietly in front of him, waiting for his answer.

"No." He answered coldly.

Daisy blinked.

He lowered the phone and looked directly at her, his blue eyes hard and unreadable.

"I can’t divorce you right now."

Her expression fell. The hope that had flickered in her chest dimmed.

Cedric’s voice became harsher as he continued.

"Not until Grandpa’s health gets better. Do you actually want him to die after hearing something like this?"

Daisy’s eyes widened.

She immediately shook her head, her hair swaying with the motion.

Of course not.

She would never want anything to happen to Grandpa James. He was the only person in this family who had ever shown her kindness.

But that wasn’t what she meant. She had never intended to tell Grandpa about the divorce. She had already decided to keep it from him, to protect his health, to let him believe everything was fine.

She reached for her phone again, wanting to explain but Cedric spoke before she could type anything.

"Look, if it weren’t for Grandpa, I would’ve already divorced you."

Daisy slowly lowered her hands.

"I’ve told you before. I love Jessica."

His words were firm, almost cold, as if he was reminding himself as much as her.

"And you don’t have to keep worrying about the divorce. I’ll give you one very soon."

Daisy stared at him silently.

Cedric glanced at the phone still in his hand.

"And you don’t want alimony?"

A short, humorless laugh escaped him.

"Is this some new trick?"

Daisy’s brows furrowed. Her lips parted slightly.

He continued before she could respond.

"Are you trying to make me feel guilty? Trying to make me think you’re different from what I assumed?"

His eyes narrowed.

"Fine."

His voice carried a strange mixture of irritation and wounded pride.

"It worked."

Daisy looked at him in disbelief.

Cedric gave her a cold smile.

"But don’t think I’m going to fall for it. I’m a rational person, Daisy. I’m smart enough to understand what you’re trying to do."

Her expression became completely still.

She hadn’t expected him to misunderstand her so badly. She had just offered him exactly what he claimed to want. Freedom. She hadn’t asked for money. She hadn’t threatened him. She hadn’t even told Grandpa James the truth.

Yet somehow, even that had become another accusation against her.

Daisy looked down.

Cedric stood there for another moment, his jaw tight.

Perhaps somewhere inside him, he had expected her to stop him. To deny everything. To tell him that she didn’t really want a divorce.

But she didn’t.

She simply stood there quietly, her eyes lowered.

That silence irritated him even more.

"Forget it."

He threw her phone onto the bed. It landed with a soft thud against the blanket.

He turned toward the door.

Daisy tried to stop him by following him. Her footsteps were quick and urgent. She made sure she made sound as she followed him, hoping he would turn around.

He stopped for half a second. His back was still to her. She could see the tension in his shoulders, the way his hands had curled into fists.

But he didn’t turn around.

Then he opened the door and walked out.

The door slammed shut behind him with a loud bang.

Daisy flinched.

The room became completely silent again.

She stood there for a few seconds, staring at the closed door.

She had thought that if she gave him the freedom he wanted, perhaps both of them could finally move forward. Instead, he had somehow turned even her decision to leave into another reason to misunderstand her.

Daisy slowly sat down on the edge of her bed.

She hugged her phone against her chest and stared blankly at the floor.

She didn’t cry.

She simply felt tired.

Very, very tired.

Outside the room, Cedric walked down the hallway with his jaw clenched.

He was angry at everything.

Her words kept repeating in his mind.

I don’t want alimony.

You should be able to marry the person you love.

He had wanted freedom for so long.

So why did the thought of actually getting it make his chest feel so strangely heavy?

❀┈┈┈┈❀

Crazy Night Bar

"What’s wrong with you?"

Naomi placed her hands on Cedric’s thigh as she looked at him, blinking in confusion. Her red nails stood out against the dark fabric of his trousers. Her eyes, however, looked at him with something deeper than simple concern: obsession, hunger and possessiveness that she had never quite been able to hide.

Cedric barely reacted. His gaze remained fixed somewhere in front of him, his expression unusually tense. He looked as if his mind was somewhere completely different.

Naomi studied his face for a few seconds before asking again, "Cedric?"

He finally glanced at her, his blue eyes meeting hers briefly. Then, suddenly, he remembered. While drunk, he had accidentally spent the night with her. Without much reaction, he simply looked away again.