Filed To Story: The Broken-Hearted She and The Icy He Book PDF Free
He was alive. James was still in this world.
Over the past four years, she’d imagined so many worst-case scenarios.
She had been afraid-truly afraid-that something terrible had happened to James and that he had disappeared from the world forever.
But he was alive. Her dear friend was still alive.
Lily was still dazed when another message from him came in: “I didn’t mean to stop talking to you.”
“Over four years ago, I ran into some really bad stuff… that’s why I cut off contact. Things are better now. I won’t disappear again.”
“Leila, how have you been all these years?”
How had she been… all these years?
Lily didn’t reply right away.
Her thoughts drifted far, far away.
The four and a half years she’d lost contact with him… had not been kind.
The Ginger family had found their biological daughter. The adoptive parents who once cherished her began belittling and resenting her.
The brothers who had once fiercely protected her now treated her like an enemy and led the charge in bullying her.
At her lowest point, John had pulled her out of the dark. She had run to him with everything she had, laid her heart bare-only to be repaid with betrayal.
These past four and a half years felt like she had lived through several lifetimes of hardship.
Still, Lily wasn’t the kind of person to spread negativity. After a moment’s hesitation, she typed, “I’ve been doing okay these past few years. How about you?”
After sending the messages, James-usually composed and unshakable-found himself strangely nervous.
He knew how much it hurt to disappear without a word.
And he was scared-scared that Leila wouldn’t want to talk to him anymore.
But seeing her reply, those two simple sentences, he finally felt his tense heart settle.
The cold around him seemed to melt in a rush of spring wind.
As if frost on a mountaintop thawed in an instant, and spring bloomed across the landscape.
And that spring light poured into his eyes. The chill in his usually distant gaze began to soften.
What he really wanted to know was… had she gotten married? Started a family?
Four and a half years was a long time. Anything could have happened.
All his life, he had always been brave-fearless, even.
But when it came to feelings, even the brave hesitate. A few simple words suddenly became so hard to say
He clenched his phone tight and stood frozen for a long while before finally typing, “Did you… already get. married?”
Huh?
Lily froze for a moment.
She hadn’t expected James to ask something like that out of the blue.
But thinking about it, it wasn’t strange at all. They were old friends who hadn’t talked in years-asking about school, work, love… it was totally normal.
Even at class reunions, everyone talks like they’re trying to do background checks.
She instinctively started to type that she was married.
But then she remembered what James had said earlier-he didn’t want anyone outside the Luke family to know about their relationship-so she deleted the words she had typed and wrote something else instead: “No.”
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t really a lie.
After all, her relationship with James was just a marriage on paper. In six months, they’d be getting a divorce.
Besides, he’d just said that even during those six months, they wouldn’t interfere in each other’s lives. Which clearly meant he could go find other women if he wanted.
As long as they both acted like the other was single, that was enough.
Out of courtesy, she asked, “What about you?”
Seeing those delicate little words appear on the screen, James’s pale fingers trembled slightly.
In business, it was easy to blur truth and fiction-no need to get sentimental with partners.
But Leila was the only woman he’d ever wanted to marry. He didn’t want to lie to her.
Back when they barely knew each other, he’d given her a fake name-and he had regretted it ever since. He didn’t want to keep piling on lies.
But the Leila he remembered was someone who drew clear lines between love and hate.
He was afraid that if she found out he was married-even if it wasn’t his choice-she might never want to speak to him again. Still, he wasn’t going to touch Lily during the marriage, and she had promised they’d divorce in six months. So, he replied:”Not planning on getting married.”
Lily understood.
He was probably still happily single.
She remembered when they first met, he’d told her he didn’t believe in marriage.
But it didn’t really matter to her anymore.
They were just friends who clicked-nothing romantic. They might never even meet in person. If he was single, she’d exchange the occasional greeting with him. If he was married with kids, their chats would still stay within the boundaries of friendship.
She didn’t keep the conversation going. Instead, she typed, “James, it’s getting late. I’m heading to bed. You should rest too.”
James had been asleep for four and a half years-and now that he was finally awake, he wasn’t tired at all.
He actually wanted to ask her if she had a boyfriend now, if she was seeing anyone.
In front of his family, friends, employees, and business partners, he always chose his words sparingly. But with her, he had endless things to say.
He wanted to ask her what job she took after college, if anyone had bullied her, if she’d been happy lately…
So much he wanted to ask.
But seeing her say she was going to bed, he could only end the conversation for the night.
He stared at the phone screen for a long time before carefully typing two words:”Good night.”
The days ahead were long.
And for the rest of his life, day after day, night after night, he hoped to always say
Good morning. Good night.
“Good night,”Lily politely replied, then grabbed her change of clothes and headed into the bathroom.
James truly didn’t care for her.
But she was still happy he’d woken up.
The Luke family had been so kind to her, and she sincerely wished them all the happiness in the world.
She had once considered staying with the Luke fatnily forever. But ever since being kicked out of the Ginger family over four years ago, she had learned to take life as it came-and she no longer tried to force anything.
Six months from now, she would go through with the divorce, just as they’d agreed, and leave the Luke family’s home with peace of mind.
With that acceptance in her heart, Lily showered and, even in the completely unfamiliar bed, quickly drifted off to sleep.
She slept soundly.
But that night, John was destined for sleeplessness.
Because he didn’t want Elsa’s final days to be filled with regret, and she had said she wanted to be confessed to, he had arranged a drone show to give her a grand romantic moment.
But after giving Elsa romance… all he felt was emptiness.
It was his birthday, and what he truly wanted was to spend it with Lily.
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.