"Kevin, this all has to be a big misunderstanding. What are you saying?" Louisa panicked, and avoided his gaze. She knew that Kevin had her dead to rights. But she hadn't thought that he'd be so brazen as to directly accuse her. It caught her totally off-guard. She was at a loss for words.
"I didn't say anything before out of respect for Claire. I don't want to hurt her feelings just because you did something wrong. So, now that I have you alone, I'm going to tell you straight up. No matter what, you and Claire are besties, right?" Kevin gazed deeply into Louisa's eyes, forcing her to face him.
"Kevin, I'm confused! What do you mean?" Embarrassed, Louisa turned her head away and quickened her pace. She wanted to run away. She didn't want him to notice the panic on her face.
"The food was pretty bad tonight. I have a feeling that was your doing." Louisa seemed to have no concept of what she did, or worse, not care. So Kevin was blunt. He didn't give a damn how she felt.
"How could you say that? Kevin, I know you don't like me, but why are you accusing me of doing something like that? What kind of girl do you think I am?" Louisa stared at Kevin with sad eyes. She was humiliated by his bluntness, by his aggressive manner. There was no way she was weaseling out of this.
"I think you know the answer to all of that. Do you even feel bad about what you did?" This time, she faced him and met his gaze. In her mind, she did nothing wrong. So why should she feel bad?
Why don't you ask Leena? Maybe she did it intentionally. It's obvious she wanted to frame me." Louisa raised her chin in defiance. Yeah, she knew she did it. And yes, she felt a pang of guilt here and there. But seeing Kevin so angry, and come down on her like that, it hurt. It hurt that he thought so little of her that he would come to that conclusion. It hurt that he would side with Leena over her. It hurt that the man she loved would treat her this way. It just added insult to injury.
Why would you even say that? How stupid do you think I am? She spent hours preparing those dishes, so why on earth would she mess them all up? You know, if you owned up to it and showed an ounce of guilt, I might have let it go. But you didn't. I've wasted too much time on you already. You make me sick." Kevin closed his eyes in disgust. He couldn't actually do anything to her, just because her father was the commander. But he found her really repulsive now.
Kevin, are you so sure I did it?" Louisa bit her lip, her eyes reddened in sadness. She did do it, but his accusing tone, his anger... both of these really hurt her deeply.
"I think you know the answer to that one too. And I don't want to ever see you in my house again. Don't come around here anymore. You won't be invited back." The words tumbled out of his mind and fell from his mouth, sounding cold and indifferent. His eyes were cold, his jaw firm, his tone emotionless.
"Why? What did I do that was so wrong? Is it because I like you? So you just take my love and throw it away like so much trash?" Louisa backed up a few steps, and looked at him in disbelief. How could he be so ruthless, so cruel?
"You only love hurting other people, so your love is worthless to me. I've told you over and over that I'm not the man for you. I love Leena, and no one else. Besides, your kind of love is what I've been avoiding my whole life. I didn't need it then, and I don't need it now. It's toxic." This was classic Kevin. When he was kind, he'd cave easily, and let you in. But if you crossed the line, God help you.
"But what about Leena? Is she a sweet poison to you?" Louisa asked sharply, tears forming in her eyes. Since he bluntly refused her, why should she hide how she really felt?
"You are wrong. Leena's love is far from poison, it's a healing love. A selfless sacrifice. You aren't even in the same league as her." Kevin didn't soften his heart because of her puppy-dog eyes. He knew how to deal with someone like Louisa. If he wasn't absolutely tough on her, if he didn't keep rejecting her firmly, she wouldn't get the message. She'd still think she had a chance with him.
Is she really so good to you? So good that you'll trash me for her? If it's just because she's hot, well, I don't think she is hotter than me. And I am from a much better family than she is. My dad can help you get ahead." Tears streamed down Louisa's face. She couldn't hold them back. Kevin had hurt her, and so there was no shame in letting him know.
"Get a grip. Marriage isn't based on shallow things like appearance and power. At least, my marriage isn't." Kevin put his hands on her shoulders. He really had the urge to shake her. Maybe her brains would roll around in her skull and land right this time. She was too caught up in her own head.
"Isn't it? All guys are like this. Don't they want power more than anything?" Louisa bit her lip and gazed at Kevin firmly with her watery eyes. She had nothing left.
"I don't know what other guys think about power. But to me, power isn't everything. I'd rather have a happy family than all the power in the world. Get it now?" Kevin released her and shifted his eyes away from her. He looked off in the distance rather helplessly. He was overwhelmed by how callously she thought of love.