Chapter 9
The promotion and transfer were approved||
After saying goodbye to my reluctant coworkers, I moved to headquarters]]
Mrs. Thompson invited me out to dinner, and I didn’t refuse.
When I walked into the restaurant, I found Lucas sitting across the table
He looked nervous.
“I got rid of Sophin, She won’t bother you anymore.”
“Can we start over?]
He pulled out my chair, set the table, and kept his head down as he spoke. ||
“I work harder. If you like it here, I try to transfer too.“]
I can quit and find a new job here.
I stood at the door, not moving closer.
He eagerly walked over, pulling a gold necklace from his pocket||
He held it out like a treasure.
fixed the necklace.-]
“Look, I fixed
It looked exactly like
the on
one I’d thrown away
But the broken part had been welded, and it would never be the same
He noticed me staring and awkwardly added, “It was too damaged ||
“There’s no way to fix it perfectly.
“If you don’t like it, we can buy a new one.”
“Emily, why won’t you talk to me?”
I sighed.]
“Some things can’t be fixed once they’re broken.
Ive already told you.
The problem was never Sophta
“I was always you.“]
Lucas’s eyes flickered ||
my fault. —
my
Lout him off.
You can’t change who you are.
You love the thrill of two women fighting over you.]
You call in charm
But the truth is, you don’t really care about either of them. “[]
You just like the attention 1
I was wrong about you from the start-
The called after sur, “I know I messed up
dichs 1 kusove if he truly understand what far it chour, let it client natter maryennar ||
threw myself into tny new, lousy jedi, necnomally getting uplates from any
“They weren’t just done they were pe
cally at early other’s throats ||
tice word put out, no one winded hire her ||
Diras kept getting called into meetings over his behavior ||
vin supposed to get were strappost ||
He even faced fine Tur Traking company secretL
He looked wert aut
Ticily, I really jpmund up, dalve me mother immer ||
I walked just libin without looking back. ||
What’s done is done. You can’t go back. “
His voler coached. ||
I shook my head ||
tas tended my old apartiner
The landlord hadn’t cleared out my things yet ||
He opened the four[]
The warmth of the past still lingered, like a faint freeze you could almost feel ||
He lay sin the bed I used
sleep in, calling out in his sleep, “Tondly, I need water. []
But no one answeredt ||
Hed wake up instantly, cluichding his head in pain []
The inte inkels Tableft behind were still there||
knew the glor
knew the story behind each one ||
The stuffed doll in the corner?||
The jar of weini shaped nur
We’d picked them up at the
How they were juu
deft behind witla fuim, at
What had be done?||
