Winning Her Heart Back (Emelie and William) novel Chapter 913

Elias's POV:

Elias was the first to know when Ashley broke up with Beathan.

Hence, when Ashley turned down the Undvike family's marriage proposal, Elias was convinced it was because she still wasn’t over Beathan. He furiously stormed around his house, pacing for hours.

He had to admit that first loves were hard to forget, that the feelings from his school days were engraved into his heart, and that a relationship of seven years wasn't easy to move on from.

However, the problem was Beathan was a scumbag, the ultimate scumbag.

He had cheated, and not just with anyone, but with his intern. What a total lowlife!

What was wrong with Ashley's judgment? How could she still be hung up on a scumbag like that? What did Elias lack compared to that jerk?

Elias was fuming as he stormed around his home for another few hours again the next day.

He called his mom. "Go and ask her again! Maybe she was just caught off guard yesterday and didn't have time to process it. After a night of thinking it over, she should have come to her senses. Go propose again!"

He just couldn't believe he'd lose to Beathan. Hence, Maya went again.

She was gone long enough for a full meal before coming back to tell Elias that Ashley had refused again.

Elias struggled to form a response and collapsed onto the sofa with one leg and one arm dangling lifelessly off the side. He laid there for a long time, looking like a zombie, exuding an air of tragic despair.

Then, suddenly, he sprang up and went straight to find Ashley. He needed to ask her face-to-face why she wouldn't marry him.

In her office, Ashley calmly flipped through a legal document and said, "You're too young for me."

Was that it?

Without warning, Elias marched over and scooped Ashley right out of her chair.

He acted so impulsively that Ashley hadn't even processed what was happening. Thus, she lost her balance.

As she dangled mid-air, her arms instinctively wrapped around his neck, her eyes wide with shock. "What are you doing?"

Elias spun her around, hopping and half-jogging in circles.

"Are you crazy? Put me down!" Ashley snapped.

Elias pinned her against the wall, looking down at her. "I'm only younger in age. In every other way, I'm ten times better than the men your age. What else are you not satisfied with?"

Ashley coldly replied, "You. I'm not satisfied with you in your entirety."

That felt like a stab to Elias's heart, bringing with it a sharp and lingering pain. Even after Ashley eventually changed her mind and accepted the Undvike family's proposal, Elias couldn't get that sentence out of his head.

When his friends William and Jayden congratulated him on the upcoming wedding, he sulkily blurted out, "What's there to celebrate? I'm marrying an older woman."

The second the words left his mouth, he regretted them.

What he didn't expect was that, when he looked up, he saw Ashley with a client not too far away. Judging by her expression, she had definitely heard what he'd said.

Elias shot to his feet, wanting to run after her and explain. However, the cold look on Ashley's face and the way she turned to leave made him realize there was no point. He had only made things worse.

As that wasn't what he meant at all, Elias smacked himself in the face. What was wrong with his big mouth?

Later, he did find a chance to apologize to Ashley, saying that he hadn't meant it the way she thought.

Ashley had never been the type to hold back her thoughts. She was blunt as ever and said flatly, "The reason I rejected marriage at first was that I don't like you. And to be clear, I still don't."

Elias didn't know what to say to that. It was the second stab to his poor heart.

She continued, "I agreed to the marriage now because it's mutually beneficial. I need you to help me protect my inheritance. Not that I can't handle it on my own, but I'm tired of dealing with the leeches constantly trying to get a piece of it. It's a waste of my time.

"Having a husband in name means I'll have kids to inherit everything. It also means that if my relatives ever push me too far, I'll have a husband's family to back me up. The Undvike family is big and powerful, which is a good deterrent.

"Also, having a new man in my life will help me move on from my last failed relationship and let me focus on work again."

That was the third stab to Elias's heart.