Delete My Love for You novel Chapter 27

This pendant—he’d given it to Shortie all those years ago. How on earth had it ended up in Charlotte’s hands?

Unless… Charlotte was Shortie!

Every cell in Darren’s body trembled as he clutched the pendant with a white-knuckled grip.

Suddenly, Xena spoke again.

“Mr. Harrington, I thought you were asking about another necklace just now. If you mean this black onyx pendant, it’s not Charlotte’s!”

Her words made Darren’s face darken.

In an instant, he yanked the still-shaken Xena up from the sofa, his grip so strong she nearly lost her balance.

“Take a good look. This black pendant—where did it come from, exactly?”

Intimidated by his piercing gaze, Xena’s voice faltered. “This pendant… it’s always been under my pillow. But after my head injury, I really can’t remember where it came from…”

“Under your pillow?”

Darren narrowed his eyes. “So it’s yours? No, that can’t be right. You don’t look anything like what I remember.”

He needed a plausible explanation that could connect all these tangled clues.

Xena’s mind raced as she tried to steady herself. “Mr. Harrington, my face was badly burned and I had reconstructive surgery. I lost a lot of my memory because of brain trauma…”

Burns? Plastic surgery? Amnesia?

Darren shoved her back onto the sofa and barked a command over his shoulder. “Look into it. Find out if she’s really had surgery.”

Xena’s hands twisted in her lap. “Mr. Harrington, you don’t believe me?”

Darren looked down at her, his gaze sharp.

Then, unexpectedly, he softened, leaning in so close she could feel his breath. “If you’re telling the truth, I’ll spend my life protecting you.”

“But if you’re lying—even a single word—I’ll personally put you on a plane out to international waters.”

Everyone knew what happened out there. It was a no man’s land for outlaws.

Terrified, but with nowhere left to retreat, Xena pressed on, her voice trembling. “Mr. Harrington, does this pendant mean something to you? Why would I lie?”

He strode over, cupping her cheek with a surprisingly gentle hand. “That’s Charlotte’s dress. Take it off.”

Xena’s face fell. “I’m sorry, Mr. Harrington. I… I didn’t know. I’ll take it off right now…”

“In your own room.”

He’d given her the guest bedroom.

Until he could be absolutely certain that Xena and Shortie were the same person, he would protect her—but that was all.

After Xena left, Darren retreated to his own bedroom, his steps heavy as he entered the walk-in closet.

His eyes lingered on the ties, slacks, and shirts—each piece custom made for him by Charlotte, each one carefully folded by her hands.

He felt as if something was choking him.

His gaze shifted to the corner, where several of Charlotte’s uniforms still hung. Memories flashed through his mind like an old film reel—vivid, fleeting, impossible to hold on to. His vision stung as his eyes reddened.

Charlotte had loved Herbert, yet she’d spent three years enticing Darren, sharing with him every intimacy two people could know.