Too Late, Mr. Billionaire: You Can't Afford Me by Thedora Birnir

Chapter 129 Not Fit

Denver froze, his smile caught mid-bloom like a flower in sudden frost.

So, this was the sting of rejection after all.

With a wry chuckle, he murmured, “Is this your gentle way of givingthe cold shoulder?”

“No...” Hadley paused, her words teetering on the edge of uncertainty. “You've always been a gem of a person.”

“But not the one who has stolen your heart.” Denver's smile turned bitter. “Am | right?”

Unwilling to wave the white flag just yet, he pressed on before Hadley could reply.

“I know you can’t force the heart to sing a tune it doesn’t know. But sometimes love strikes like lightning, and

sometimes it blooms slowly, like a seed in spring. We've never even tried walking that path together. What if we

did, and your feelings forblossomed over time? Hadley, can’t we at least give it a shot? You don’t find me

disagreeable, do you?”

Hadley sat there, momentarily struck speechless.

His confession of love was so raw, so fiery, so unshaken by the odds-it stirred memories of her own fearless

heart at twenty.

She let out a soft sigh, as if exhaling the weight of years.

Looking into his eyes, Hadley asked, “Denver, does your family know about me?”

Caught off guard, Denver blinked, and then after a brief silence, admitted with candor, “Not... yet.”

Precisely as she had foreseen.

Hadley’s gaze lingered on Denver, her fingers delicately tracing the rim of her glass.

“If all you're after is a fleeting moment to tuck into your memories, then Denver, | wouldn't say no...”

He had been her lifeline more than once. A warm ray of sunshine in her shadowed days.

For that alone, Hadley wouldn't mind sharing a chapter of her journey with him, even if they were destined to be

mere passersby in each other's lives.

She wasn’t one to cling to the dusty old moral code, nor did she see shin the dance of love and longing.

But one truth stood firm-Denver wanted more than she could offer.

He was earnest, playing for keeps.

“Hadley!”

True to form, the instant her words left her lips, Denver shook his head in a flurry of unease. “I'd never dream of

treating you that way! I'm set on building a true, lasting future with you!”

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“A lasting future?”

Hadley’s laugh was sharp, tinged with irony. “We have no future together, Denver. Your family would never

welcme with open arms.”

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How could shea woman who had already walked down the aisle once-be deemed worthy of him? A golden son of

a high flying, pedigreed clan?

And then there was joy....

It was a puzzle with no solution.

Denver faltered, his confidence flickering. “My family doesn’t even know yet. How can you be so certain they'd

turn their noses up?”

“I'm certain.” Hadley didn’t need to ponder; the answer was as clear as day.

She reiterated, “Denver, this is not gonna work. I'm grateful to you. You pulledfrom the wreckage of a painful

marriage. You helpedpirouette back into the stage...”

Hadley’s gratitude was as deep as the ocean. “You're a dear friend, one | treasure. But let's draw the curtain

here before the plot thickens, shall we?”

Before his heart sank any deeper.

Before the inevitable ache took root.

“Hadley...”

At that moment, the waiter cwith their meal.

“Very well.” Hadley seized the chance to shift gears, her tone lightening. “Aren’t we here to toast my triumphant

performance? Let's not muddy the waters with anything else. The food's calling-let’s just savor it

for now.”

Denver sat in silence, the flavors on his plate suddenly bland as sawdust.

He knew pressing further was like chasing a mirage. The real hurdle wasn’t just Hadley-it was the towering

shadow of his own family.

Back home, Denver began plotting his next move in secret.

He had never meant to keep Hadley a hidden chapter from his family. The timing just hadn't felt right.

But Hadley’s words tonight lit a fire under him, pushing him to lay his cards on the table sooner than planned.

If he cclean to his family, she would have no more excuses to push him away, would she?

Then he could sweep her off her feet and ask her to be his girlfriend.

As he waited for his parents to return, Denver mused over whether to pair his declaration with a gift.

What would be fitting?

It couldn't be something run-of-the-mill.

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Chapter 120 Not Fir

Kising to his feet, he left his room and descended to the basement. The basement housed a sturdy safe, a

sanctuary for the family’s most treasured possessions.

Denver punched in the code, slipped inside, located his personal safe, and opened it with a soft dick

Rummaging through its contents, he pulled out a small box, lifted the lid, and nodded with a satisfied grin “This’ll

do the trick.”

He tucked the box under his arm, secured the door, and headed out.

“Denver.”

A voice halted him just as he was about to climb the stairs.

Turning, he spotted his parents, Roderick and Wilma Moran.

“Dad, Mom.”

The pair had just returned from a social affair.

As luck would have it, Denver had been waiting for them.

Wilma took a few steps forward, her expression unreadable as she sized up her son. “You're back earlier than

| expected...”

Then her eyes landed on the box in his hand.

Her gaze darkened like storm clouds rolling in. “What's that you've got there?”

“This...” Denver didn’t dodge the question. With a bright smile, he answered, “It's a bracelet.”

Since he was about to bring up Hadley anyway, there was no point in playing coy.

Wilma’s brow creased instantly. She recognized the delicate jewelry box in a heartbeat. “Is that the one your

grandmother left behind?”

“Yes.”

“Lettake a look.” Without waiting for permission, she plucked the box from Denver's hands, opened it, and

gazed at the ruby bracelet nestled within.

Wilma let out a brittle chuckle at the sight of the bracelet, her expression tinged with fury.

The whispers she had overheard at the evening's gathering gnawed at her as she cast a piercing gaze upon her

son.

“Ccloser, we need to have a word.”

“Oh?” Denver furrowed his brow, puzzled, and glanced at his father. “Dad, what’s got Mom so riled up?”

Roderick let out a weary sigh, shaking his head. “You'll see soon enough, son.”

He too was far from pleased with the rumors that had reached his ears tonight.

The tsettled onto the plush sofa in the living room.

“Mom?” Denver sat across from his parents, still in the dark about the storm brewing. “What's this all about?

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13:44

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Chapter 120 Notfit

Why the long faces?”

He had been meaning to bring up Hadley once they were done with whatever this was.

“Tellstraight.” Wilma slid the delicate bracelet box onto the coffee table with a deliberate air. “Why did you

take this out from the safe? Don’t tellyou're planning to wear it yourself?”

“Hardly!”

Denver chuckled, a stroke of luck that they'd brought it up-he was just about to spill the beans.

“I'm planning to give it to someone special.”

“Give it away, you say?” Wilma shot a sidelong glance at her husband, her face clouding over like a gathering

storm. “To whom? A sweetheart, perhaps? This isn’t strinket you would hand out to a casual acquaintance.”

“Well...”

Denver nodded hesitantly, but then shook his head. “Not yet. I'm still trying to win her over.”

At that, Roderick turned his head aside, his jaw tightening.

Wilma’s complexion paled, though a flicker of hope still danced in her eyes. “You've only been back a short spell,

and already someone's caught your fancy? Who's the lucky girl, and which family is she from?”

Denver scratched the back of his neck, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips. “She is... the adopted daughter of the

Flynn family.”

Just as they

“Denver.”

Wilma'’s face soured completely, the strained smile she had been clinging to vanishing like smoke in the wind.

“Listen well-1 won't stand for this.”

“What?” Denver reeled, as if the notion of opposition had never crossed his mind, utterly baffled. “Why not?”

“Why not?” Wilma’s laugh was laced with bitter incredulity. “You tellwhy! What ‘adopted daughter’ of the

Flynn family? That Hadley girl has got no roots to speak of! And worse-she is Eric’s former wife!”

“So what?” Denver couldn't wrap his head around it. “I care for her and want to be with her. Is that such a

crime?”

“Denver!”

Wilma faltered for words, her frustration boiling over, and in a sudden burst, she brought her hand down hard on

the table with a resounding smack.

“Open your eyes! She is not fit to stand by your side!”