The CEO Used AI To Reply While He Loved Her Chapter 08
Three days later, my old phone lit up with another text from an unfamiliar number.
This time, it was Brielle.
[Evelyn, it’s me.
I know you’re angry, but there are some things I feel like I should explain.
Cal and I really are like family. You probably don’t know this, but when we were kids, he got bullied a lot. I was always the one standing up him. When his parents fought, I stayed with him too. What we have isn’t romantic. It’s just… deeper than that.
The way he takes care of me… it’s habit. Gratitude.
But you’re still the person he chose to marry. That’s never changed.
Evelyn, please come back. Cal’s been miserable these past few days. He zones out constantly. He’s stubborn, but he really does care about you.
You’re the woman he wants to marry.
And me? I’m just the spoiled little sister he couldn’t stop protecting.]
Iread the entire thing slowly, word by word.
And somehow, I didn’t feel angry.
Just… stunned by the absurdity of it.
Because after all those paragraphs, the only thing her message really said was-
Look how much Callan loves me. Loves me enough to abandon his fiancée the day before their wedding.
And no matter what happened, I would always come second.
Even on my own wedding day.
I lowered my eyes and typed back.
[You’re right. That’s why I gave him to you.]
[Enjoy being his spoiled little sister for the rest of your life.]
I hit send.
Then blocked the number along with every other missed call sitting in my inbox.
A new week started.
The resumes I’d sent out finally got responses, and I accepted an offer from a new company almost
immediately.
The workload was manageable.
The people were kind.
And for the first time in years, my life felt… quiet.
Friday night, I stood in my kitchen making slow-cooked corn chowder with ribs while staring at a recipe on my phone trying to figure out how much salt I was supposed to add.
Then the doorbell rang.
I walked over and looked through the peephole.
Callan stood outside.
His shirt was wrinkled. Dark stubble shadowed his jaw, and heavy exhaustion sat beneath his eyes.
He looked terrible.
I opened the door but made no move to let him in.
“What do you want?”
Callan stared at me, his throat tightening visibly before he finally spoke.
“Evelyn.”
His voice sounded rough.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”
I didn’t answer.
I simply waited.
He seemed unsure what to say next. His eyes flicked toward the spoon still in my hand, then drifted
past me into the apartment.
“The place feels awful without you.”
“The fridge is empty. I went to get water and realized there wasn’t any.”
“Last night I ran out of body wash. I didn’t even know where you kept the extras.’
“I tried getting coffee yesterday and realized I don’t even know the name of the place you always
order from.”
I understood exactly what he was doing.
Trying to soften himself.
Trying to show me how miserable his life had become without me there to hold it together.
For five years, his shirts had magically appeared ironed and hanging in the second section of the
closet.
Every morning at exactly 7:20, coffee waited for him by the door before work.
His favorite body wash was always stocked on the far left shelf in the bathroom.
He never knew water pitchers needed refilling. Laundry needed sorting. Groceries needed replacing.
He simply reached out his hand, and everything appeared.
Meanwhile, Brielle enjoyed all of his love without ever carrying any of the invisible labor that came
with it.
I listened to him quietly and felt absolutely nothing.
“So?”
Callan blinked, clearly caught off guard.
“So…” He struggled for the words. “I’ve been doing badly.”
“Evelyn… I got used to having you there.”
“Used to me?”
I repeated the phrase softly and almost laughed.
“Callan, you didn’t get used to me.’
”
“You got used to having someone clean up your life, manage everything for you, never ask for emotional effort, and never compete with Brielle for attention.”
I tilted my head slightly.
“Your housekeeper quit. Of course you’re uncomfortable.”
His face paled immediately.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
I looked directly into his eyes.
“You tracked me down just to tell me your life’s inconvenient now?”
“You want me to come back and keep playing caretaker while you keep choosing Brielle every time
she snaps her fingers?”
“Keep letting AI respond to me while you give your real attention to someone else?”
“Callan… I loved you.”
My voice stayed calm.
“But I’m not pathetic.”
He suddenly looked up, eyes bloodshot.
“I didn’t choose her!”
“At the resort, I told her things had to change.”
“I told her I was getting married and couldn’t keep dropping everything for her anymore.”
“She cried, so I stayed one extra day.”
His voice rose sharply, frustration and disbelief bleeding through it.
“One day, Evelyn.”
“Just one damn day.”
