Chapter 480 William and Hayden （81）
After the shower and tidying himself up, William ordered breakfast to his room.
Yet, as he sat at the breakfast table, his appetite was nonexistent. His mind was consumed by memories of the tender mornings he had spent with Hayden in their apartment in Southern. Smiling at these recollections, his dull eyes lit up with warmth.
Even lacking an appetite, William forced himself to eat a little. Just as he was about to check his emails after a call from Finley, his phone vibrated in his hand.
It was a message from Hayden.
She wanted to meet him at the Sunset Haven Resort's fourth-floor café.
William immediately replied with: [Sure] and changed his clothes.
His wardrobe, brought from Southern, had been carefully picked out by Hayden from head to toe, inside and out.
Every accessory he wore, from his wristwatch and cufflinks to his tie pin and sleeve garters, was a symbol of Hayden's affection.
Dressing up, William recalled Hayden's words: "William, for the rest of your life, I'll be in charge of everything you wear." His deep eyes sparkled with contentment and sweetness, and his lips and brows were adorned with a smile of pure joy.
Once dressed, he made his way to the café downstairs and ordered Hayden's favorite cake and coffee.
After placing the order, William suddenly felt the warmth of two adoring eyes on him. He lifted his gaze and immediately saw Hayden standing at the café's entrance.
Although scarcely a week had passed since he last saw her, she appeared thinner. Her already petite face seemed even smaller, yet retained its striking beauty, captivating William's soul so profoundly that he couldn't tear his gaze away.
Their eyes met, and in that brief moment of connection, Hayden couldn't hold back, her eyes brimming with tears as they fogged her vision.
But in the next second, she smiled brightly and approached William.
Watching Hayden approach, William stood up swiftly and crossed the distance between them. When they were just a few steps apart, he eagerly stretched out his long arms to scoop her into his embrace, holding her tight.
Back in the arms, she had missed every moment of that warm, broad, and immensely strong chest. Only heaven knew what Hayden's emotions were at that moment. She inhaled the scent that was distinctly William's, fighting the tears threatening to surge forward uncontrollably.
However, remembering the purpose of her visit that day, she gathered all her strength to keep her emotions in check.
"Hayden, have you been okay these past few days?" Clinging to Hayden, William wished he could merge her into his very flesh and blood, never to be parted from her even for a second.
She let him hold her tightly, her brows furrowing as she bit her lip and shut her eyes tightly. She mustered a great effort to steady her emotions before taking a deep breath to reply, "William, I came to see you because I want to break up."
—Break up?!
William's expression twisted harshly. The next second, as he looked down into her red, tear-moistened eyes, his heart trembled fiercely, and the words he meant to say were suddenly halted.
Seeing the woman before him, William immediately understood—if Hayden truly didn't love him anymore or wanted to break up, she would not look like this.
The longing and reluctance in her eyes were so intense that they couldn't possibly signify a genuine wish to separate.
She was being compelled by unavoidable circumstances, which were due to the stark disparity in power between the Bennett and Smith families.
"Hayden, is there really no other option?" William asked, despite knowing the reason for her proposed breakup.
Facing him, Hayden struggled to hold back tears but managed a composed, graceful smile before posing a rhetorical question, "To give up everything with the Smith family for you?"
—To give up everything with the Smith family for you?
William's dark pupils sunk abruptly as he looked at her.
"I'm sorry, I can't do it." Hayden looked at William, and before he could speak, she continued with a faint smile, "The Smith family is everything to me; I won't give it up." In her heart, she added silently, 'William, I won't give up on you either. You and everything that should be mine with the Smith family—I won't let any of it go.'
Observing him, Hayden naturally refrained from voicing these latter thoughts. If she decided to surrender now, who would shield twelve-year-old Jocelyn following her mother's passing? Wouldn't it be a cruel irony? It would imply that home-wreckers could prosper without repercussions, living lavishly and without concern.
Watching Hayden, whose face clearly showed her affection yet whose words were so resolutely final, William instantly understood.
Hayden was not a woman who gave in easily or shied away from a fight. It was for this very strength that he loved her and wanted to spend a lifetime with her, wasn't it?
Now, realizing he couldn't help her, he knew he shouldn't become a hindrance, bringing her trouble and pain. This was the least his pride as a man would allow.
"Okay, I understand," William said, a warm, indulgent smile spreading across his deep-set eyes that were as gentle as ever. "Hayden, give me five years."
He bent down, aiming to kiss her on the forehead as he had done countless times before. However, as he drew nearer, Hayden stepped back.
William quickly reached out and grabbed her hand.
Tears glistened in Hayden's eyes as she fought to free her hand, but she couldn't muster the strength to do so.
"Hayden..."
"Take care!"
As he started speaking again, Hayden couldn't contain herself any longer. She bowed her head, interrupting him, and in the next moment, she forcefully pulled away from his grasp and turned, striding away.
Because she was afraid, afraid that one more look, one more scent of him, one more second would change her mind, and she would abandon everything to be with him.
But she couldn't. She absolutely couldn't do that!
She couldn't abandon Jocelyn at twelve nor let Finn direct all the blame on William. Because of her, the thriving Bennett family fell, plunging them all into a nightmare.
The Bennett family would hate her for it.
