LOGIN"Owen... you need to cut yourself some slack," she says gently, reaching up to lightly brush her thumb against my cheekbone. "You don't have to be the invincible counselor right now. You just lost your mom, honey. I know how much she meant to you. I know how much you loved her, and I know how hard y
I watch Sydney walk away from me, her spine perfectly straight, her head held high like a queen marching out of a ruined kingdom. Her words—sharp, icy, and dripping with disgust that makes my skin crawl—still echo in the quiet space of the dining room. "While you're busy playing love and playing h
My heart drops into my shoes, a sickening wave of nausea swirling in my stomach. He sharply pulls away after a beat, his hands coming up to grip her shoulders, his face a mix of shock and discomfort. "Camille, what are you doing here? How did you even get past the gates?" "Oh, Owen, I came the sec
I lean in across the dark wood, my jaw tight, waiting for the genius to drop some mind-blowing corporate strategy. Owen slides his glass entirely out of the way, his eyes tracking mine with a sudden, sharp intensity. "The first thing we need to do," he says, leaning his forearms on the table, "is p
I don't wait to hear another word. A blinding, white-hot rush of pure adrenaline and rage explodes in my chest. Before I even realize what I’m doing, my arm whips forward. I throw my phone across the bedroom with every ounce of strength I have left. It hits the far drywall with a sickening smack,
I sit on the edge of the mattress, the silence of my locked bedroom pressing in from all sides. My scalp still burns from where I was aggressively pulling at the tangles earlier, but I barely care. I slowly run a hand through my hair, letting out a long breath that shudders against my teeth. The r
The grill is hissing, the sun is beating down on the patio, and I am seconds away from losing my mind if the staff doesn't move faster. I turn toward the kitchen door, smoothing my hair back with one hand while the other rests on my hip. "Hurry up with those buffalo wings and the buns!" I bark at o
I expect Sydney to give a polite, icy nod and move on. That’s what she always does, but not today, apparently. She turns to Jake, tilting her head slightly. "Oh, Jake, there’s no need to risk yourself and apologize for her. I actually just heard about what happened to your career and it's such a sh
The elevator ride down from the attic feels like a descent into a fever dream. My head is still ringing, and the fragments of those flashbacks are cutting through my consciousness. I saw her, and I’m certain of it. I saw Sydney in a hospital bed, her eyes bandaged, and I was there...standing over
My mind blurs, taking me back down a memory lane I’ve tried to pave over for years. My fingers find a folded piece of paper tucked into the base of the box and I pull it out as tears gather in my eyes. "Owen," I whisper, my voice cracking. "I... I didn't realize, but this was the music box Deckard







