Chapter 2

Margo hung up and went straight to the hospital.

The cut on her forehead needed three stitches. The doctor told her to keep it dry.

She barely reacted.

On her way out, she spotted Huxton's Maybach parked nearby.

The window was cracked open. Inside, Jayla leaned against his shoulder, tears running down her face.

"Huxton, I know I hurt you back then..." Her voice broke. "I don't expect you to forgive me. But I had my reasons. My parents didn't approve of us, so they forced me to go abroad. They even took my phone. I wanted to contact you. I just couldn't..."

Huxton said nothing, his jaw tight.

Margo froze nearby.

Finally, Huxton spoke, his voice low.

"Then why'd you come back now?"

Jayla looked up, tears streaking her cheeks.

"Because I can't forget you... I know you have Margo now. I'm not asking for anything. Just don't make me leave. Let me stay, even if it's from a distance..."

From the shadows, Margo watched Huxton stay quiet for a long moment.

Then he reached out and wiped Jayla's tears.

"I don't blame you. And Margo..." He paused. "She's like a sister to me. It's not what you think."

Jayla's face lit up. "Really?"

Huxton nodded.

Jayla broke down again and threw herself into his arms.

Margo smiled bitterly, turned around, and headed straight to the immigration office.

***

At the immigration office, an employee handed Margo a form.

"Your visa should be ready in two weeks."

Margo thanked her. By the time she stepped outside, it was dark.

She went back to Huxton's villa.

She'd lived there for three years while taking care of him.

She'd even been dumb enough to call it home.

The print she'd picked still hung by the front door. Her succulents sat in the living room. Her handwritten list of "easy-on-the-stomach recipes" was still taped to the kitchen wall.

Now she'd erase every trace herself.

While packing, she found a photo at the bottom of a drawer.

It was from the day Huxton finished rehab. He'd actually smiled for the camera, while Margo stood beside him, beaming.

The edges had yellowed from how many times she'd held it.

Margo stared at the photo for a long moment.

Then she dropped it in the trash.

'About time I woke up from this stupid dream.'

***

Early the next morning, Huxton called.

"I forgot my stomach meds. Bring them to the office."

His voice was rough with sleep, his tone way too casual after last night.

Margo went quiet for two seconds.

"Okay."

When she got to the office, the elevator opened and Jayla stepped out carrying a fancy lunch box.

"What a coincidence." Jayla smiled. "I brought Huxton lunch. Wanna come?"

Margo said nothing and followed her in.

Huxton was going through some files. He looked up when they walked in together.

"How'd you two end up together?"

"We bumped into each other." Jayla opened the container, and the smell of spices filled the room. "I made your favorite spicy beef stew!"

Margo's expression tightened.

"His stomach can't handle spicy food."

Huxton glanced at her and grabbed his fork.

"Once won't kill me."

He took a bite of beef drenched in sauce without even flinching.

Margo's grip tightened around the stomach meds in her bag, her knuckles turning white.

It didn't take long for sweat to bead across Huxton's forehead. His fingers shook around his pen.

"Huxton, are you okay?" Jayla asked.

"I'm fine." He forced a smile. "I've got work to do. You two should head home."

Margo stared at him for a second, then quietly set the meds on his desk and left.

Downstairs, she couldn't hold back.

"His stomach issues are serious. Please be careful what you bring him to eat."

Jayla suddenly laughed. "You seriously still don't know your place, do you?

"To Huxton, you're basically just his caregiver. Of course you have to remember all that stuff. Me? He loves me. I don't have to."

She stepped closer, a smug smile on her lips. "I could hand him poison, and he'd still take it. Get it?"

Margo's fingers shook, her heart twisting.

'She's right.'

It had taken Margo three years just to matter to Huxton.

Jayla didn't have to do a thing.

He'd swallow poison for her anyway.