“Does he have a tragic backstory and good cheekbones?”
“…Yes.”
“Perfect. I approve.”
I shake my head, smiling despite the heaviness in my chest.
“You’re ridiculous.”
“Correct,” Clara says proudly. Then her voice softens again. “But Era?”
“Yeah?”
“You deserve someone who looks at you like you’re the best thing that ever happened to them.”
My mind flashes to Lucien in the hallway. The way he looked at me before he kissed me. My chest does something strange.
“Get some sleep,” Clara says gently. “Tomorrow is going to be interesting.”
I exhale slowly.
“Yeah,” I whisper.
“I love you,” Clara says.
I smile softly.
“I love you more.”
After we hang up, I set the phone on the nightstand and the room falls quiet again.
But this time, the silence feels a little less heavy.
***
My phone buzzes on the nightstand. It’s 7:03am , dragging me out of sleep slowly, like surfacing through heavy water. I squint at the screen.
Dominic. Voicemail. Something inside me knots up before I even press play. His voice fills the quiet room.
“Hey, babe.” For a moment, hearing him say it almost hurts more than the betrayal itself. “I just got out of surgery. Long night. You know how it is.” He sounds… normal. Casual. Like nothing happened. “I miss you,” he continues. “The house feels weird without you.”
I sit up slowly in bed, the sheets sliding down to my lap. “Call me when you wake up, okay? And try not to have too much fun in New York without me.” There’s a small laugh in his voice. “Although I know you. You’re probably already charming half the city.”
A pause.
“I can’t wait until you get back. I’ve got plans for us.” The message ends and I stare at the phone in silence. Not even a hint of guilt, not a crack in his voice, nothing. He’s so good at sounding normal that it makes something ugly crawl through my chest. It makes me wonder how long he’s been this good at hiding things. How many more women there might have been before her.
I set the phone down and push myself out of bed. The shower clears some of the fog in my head. I get dressed quickly, simple work clothes, hair down again without really thinking about it. By the time I step into the hallway, I’m already rehearsing how to survive another day pretending everything is normal.
Then the door across from mine opens.
Lucien.
We both pause at the exact same moment. He leans casually against the doorframe, a slow smile spreading across his face. “Well,” he says, amused, “I was starting to think you’d been waiting outside my door this whole time.”
I laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
“Too late.” He smirks.