Kaden sneered. "What did you expect? Rachel, your love is too heavy for me. I've tried to placate you, but if you're going to keep making a scene, I have nothing more to say."

"This is your idea of placating me?"

Kaden chuckled twice, clearly dismissing my words. After he left, I bent down to pick up the shards, cutting my hands in the process.

Lily Barton came over with gloves and was startled by the sight of me. "Rachel, are you okay?" She handed me a tissue and went to get the first aid kit. "Don't do anything rash. You…"

I looked at the cuts from the glass. "Lily, you're misunderstanding. I didn't mean to do anything drastic. I just… I just wanted to clean up the mess."

Lily, who had been with me since the Parker family, was one of the few who called me Rachel rather than Mrs. Wilson. It was a reminder of how things used to be. Kaden used to call me Rachel, too, but now he was someone else entirely, and we couldn't go back.

Kaden hadn't been home for half a month. He'd been staying at the office or elsewhere, never coming back. Seeing me in such a state, my friend Rebecca Johnson dragged me away on a trip.

We booked tickets to visit a friend's orchard. It was huge and filled with pear trees. I climbed up and picked a bunch of fruit, following Rebecca's lead.

In the car, Rebecca glanced at me. "Are these for Kaden?"

I stayed silent, afraid of her reaction.

When we got back to Oakland, I went to Kaden's office.

Standing outside the building, I called him. "I went to a friend's orchard a few days ago. They had a lot of sand pear trees, and I picked a bunch. I thought you might like to try them. The staff said you haven't been home lately and are probably busy, so I won't come up. I'll have the receptionist send them up. Come home when you're done."

I added softly, "Don't you miss me?"

I knew Kaden was more responsive to a softer approach, and I admit I was trying to butter him up.

His assistant, Zach Stone, told me that Kaden and his female secretary were nothing more than a show—Kaden was just trying to get under my skin.

I wasn't even sure what I was doing, only that I wondered if there was still a chance for us to make things right.

I took one more step forward—that was all I could do.

Rebecca followed me home, frustrated. "Rachel, has this guy saved your life or something? Can't you take a page from my book and be a bit more carefree?"