Heartstrings on Fire (Agnes and Jared)
Chapter 941

"I don't hate you. I even explained the whole shebang to you, so you wouldn't harbor any hard feelings when the time came. Truth be told, getting engaged was just a strategy for me, like playing the home field advantage. I thought you had vanished off the face of the earth, and that if I just tried hard enough, someday Jared would notice me. Even if he didn't, it was okay. I'd still be his best buddy, his most trusted wingman. For two people like us, having a marriage-even a sham one-as an alliance, well, it's not too shabby, right? As long as you didn't show up, I was fine with that kind of life."

Agnes said, "But I did show up."

"When you came back, I saw things more clearly. Jared's calm exterior, the way he 'healed'-it was all a front. I used to think time could heal all wounds, or at least help them scab over, but it didn't. That's when I knew the wounds in his heart about you were still raw and bleeding-they'd never healed. So I couldn't use a non-existent marriage to trap him. I chose to let go. Like I said before, if I can't have it all, then I'll walk away. I can't stand the never-ending fights, the suspicions, the breakups between lovers. Life should be more dignified, more refined-we should part on good terms."

Agnes smirked, "Not many can be as cool about it as Ms. Thomas."

Valeria continued, "If you two were meant to have a fairy tale ending, I'd gracefully step aside. But that's not the case. The pain you've brought Jared even surpasses those four years. The longer I stay by his side, the more I see that you two just don't mesh. Love alone just isn't enough for a marriage. My understanding of it is a union of interests-emotional, intellectual, knowing each other's needs without words, unconditional trust. Not this endless torment."

Agnes had to admit Valeria had a point.

Her relationship with Jared seemed to bring more pain than joy.

She had become someone she didn't recognize anymore, and so had he.

But where did it all go wrong?

There had been explanations, sure. Yet four years apart had made them both overly cautious.

So many things bothered them, but they still pretended to be magnanimous.

Over time, these small grievances piled up, becoming the last straw that broke the camel's back.

In the end, it wasn't about Ryder, nor was it about Valeria.

It was about the pattern of their relationship.

Valeria added, "Ms. Pritchard, I've said what I have to say. The choice is yours. But let me make one thing clear-I won't change my actions based on Ms. Pritchard's decisions. I will still stand by him, help him conquer the business world. Jared is a commercial prodigy; he shouldn't be stuck in an emotional quagmire. In this world, interests always form more solid bonds than feelings. I will build such a relationship with Jared. If Ms. Pritchard is bothered, perhaps it's best to bow out sooner rather than later."

Agnes suddenly laughed, "Ms. Thomas, with your Ivy League education, don't you recognize that what you're describing is stepping into someone else's marriage? You can't use clever tactics and claim it's not interference. Even if you haven't slept with him, emotional affairs can be just as damaging as physical ones—sometimes even more so. You talk about building 'that kind' of relationship with Jared, yet you expect me not to mind? Well, if one day you do end up with Jared, and when I tell you I don't want to ruin what you have, but I've slept with him-please, don't mind that either, okay?"