Dear Ex-wife Marry Me novel (Maja) novel Chapter 2172

But the moment he stepped outside and the cold night air hit his face, Tyler sobered up instantly.

Everything that had gone down in the private room had already left him feeling embarrassed; now, chasing after Athena on the street with the reclaimed gift in hand only made things worse.

Clutching the watch tightly, he hesitated for just a moment before hurrying to his car.

He barely gave a thought to the alcohol he’d consumed as he started the engine and headed home.

But Athena hadn’t gone back to his place—she must have gone to her own apartment.

Tyler quickly called for a ride to Athena’s building, but no matter how hard he knocked, she never came to the door.

Inside, Athena sat on the bed in her master bedroom, clutching a photo of Kerwin.

In the picture, Kerwin wore his school uniform, the tiny beauty mark on his nose standing out in a way that seemed almost heartbreakingly youthful. The energy of his younger self practically radiated from the photograph.

Athena slowly slid down to the floor, holding the picture tight as she began to cry.

Even as she wept, she was careful not to grip the photo too hard, terrified of damaging it.

Outside, Tyler’s voice echoed in the hallway, accompanied by the insistent chime of the doorbell—both sounds grating on Athena’s nerves.

She decided to simply pretend she hadn’t heard a thing.

Tyler kept calling her name, pounding on the door for a while. Eventually, memories of his actions that night came flooding back, and in frustration, he slapped himself.

What the hell is wrong with me? He knew full well the watch had cost Athena half her savings, yet he’d thoughtlessly given it away to another woman.

If the roles were reversed, if his girlfriend had done something like that, he would have walked out without looking back.

Still, Tyler pressed the doorbell, calling out, “Athena! Open up!”

An hour passed with no answer, and he couldn’t be sure if Athena was even home.

Desperate, he pulled out his phone and called Doris.

Doris tried calling Athena too, but got no answer.

Out of options, Tyler rang up Fitch and asked him to help track her down.

Fitch responded quickly—the phone signal showed Athena’s cell was nearby, which meant she was inside.

Tyler contacted the building manager, explained the situation, and soon enough, they helped him unlock the door.

He rushed through the living room, but there was no sign of Athena.

Grinding his teeth, Tyler yelled, “We’re not breaking up, you hear me? I’m sorry for tonight, it was my fault. I’ve already ordered you five new watches—if you want, I can get you any style you like, one for every day of the week if that’s what you want. You’ll never have to wear the same one twice.”

Athena tuned him out completely, as if there were nothing more than a stray dog barking outside her door. All this time, she’d struggled to understand why she kept trying to make it up to Kerwin by being good to Tyler.

But Tyler wasn’t Kerwin. Kerwin was long gone. She was the one stuck in the past, unable to move on, always thinking about how Kerwin’s heart had ended up in Tyler’s chest, how they both had that same little beauty mark, and maybe…

But no. That was just wishful thinking—her own delusion.

She gently cradled the photograph in her hands and, at last, drifted into a restless sleep.

Tyler was never known for his patience with women. After five long hours, as dawn began to break outside, he stifled a yawn and knocked again.

“Athena, it’s morning. Surely you’ve cooled off by now.”

He almost never lost sleep over women, but last night, he hadn’t slept a wink.

Still, Athena didn’t answer.

Tyler let out a cold laugh. “Fine. You’re not coming out? You really want to break up? Well, go ahead. Don’t come crying to me later!”

With those final, bitter words, he turned and walked away.