“No.” The word leaves my mouth before I even think. “No.” Something shifts inside my mind.
A crack.
A pressure building behind my eyes.
And suddenly—
Memories flood in. Not dreams. Memories.
The blonde hair. The mirror.
The feeling of running my fingers through it. A strange confidence I never understood. Something coils tight and won’t let go.
The conference. The office. Andrew standing at my desk.
The hair suits you.
I thought he meant because I wore it down. But he wasn’t looking at my hair style. He was looking at the color. Black.
Because the day before…
It had been blonde.
My breathing becomes uneven.
“No,” I whisper, refusing to believe what I just heard. My hands tremble as I look back at Dominic. “Don’t.” The rain mixes with the tears on my face. “I don’t believe you.”
My voice cracks harder. “You’re saying It was me?” My head shakes violently. “And I don’t remember?” “No.” I take a step back. “I don’t remember anything.”
My mind tries to piece the fragments together but they slip through my fingers.
The dreams.
The flashes.
“I don’t—” My voice breaks completely. “I don’t remember any of that.”
Panic claws through my chest.
I shake my head harder.
“Just… leave me alone, Dominic.”
I turn away from him. Ready to run again. But his voice stops me.
“Sera… please.”
The name hits me like lightning and I freeze.
Slowly, I turn back.
Rain drips from my hair as I stare at him.
“You’ve never called me that,” I say quietly.
Dominic’s expression softens.
Pain fills his eyes. “I know.” The wind moves through the trees as he looks at me. “Era…” He swallows hard. “Is who I married.” His voice lowers. “Sera, you...”