LOGINEvelyn's POV“He seriously still has the nerve to call you?” Maddie said, sounding personally offended on my behalf. “What, he wants you back now?”“Probably.” I pressed down on another pillow experimentally, testing the height and softness against my shoulder. “Performing undying devotion has always been one of Sebastian’s greatest talents. Although, to be fair, he usually doesn’t text me this much at night.”“Wow. Right. Because nighttime is normally reserved for cheating on you with other women,” Maddie replied dryly. “Daytime is when he schedules his roleplay as Husband of the Year.”“Bingo.”I picked up another pillow and leaned against it for a second, trying to decide whether my neck would thank me for it later or sue me in my sleep.“But seriously,” Maddie continued, folding her arms across her chest like an outraged parrot ready to start a fight, “the Langfords are old-money rich. Divorce isn’t going to be as simple as signing papers and dramatically walking away in slow moti
Evelyn's POVAs we moved farther through the store, I grabbed two simple glass cups from a nearby shelf and added them to the cart, thinking they’d at least be useful whenever friends came over and we wanted to drink wine together.The lighting in the kitchen section felt colder than it did near the entrance, bright white against rows of perfectly arranged cookware and knife sets mounted neatly along the wall. I stood there for a while comparing prices I normally never would have paid attention to before eventually choosing a set somewhere in the middle—not cheap enough to feel depressing, but not expensive enough to make my heartbeat spike at checkout either.“So,” Maddie said casually, leaning against the shopping cart like we were discussing the weather instead of my emotional disaster of a life, “are you and Julian actually over?”I kept my eyes on the shelves for a second too long before answering.“Well…” I exhaled quietly. “This probably makes me sound like a terrible person, b
Evelyn's POV“So basically,” I said slowly, finally feeling the tension in my chest loosen enough for a real smile to appear, “we’re more like each other’s therapists.”Julian looked at me for a second before smiling too, softer this time, the kind of smile that felt rare on him.“Then let’s consider that night in Seattle our first session.”A quiet laugh escaped me before I could stop it, and for the first time all evening, breathing didn’t feel quite so difficult.But then another thought resurfaced.“Wait.” I looked at him again, my brows drawing together slightly. “How did you know my hand was injured because of Sebastian?”Julian’s expression barely changed.“He bragged about it once,” he said flatly.My smile disappeared instantly.That bastard.Of course he had.The last traces of sunset stretched across Julian’s face then, warm gold slipping over the sharp lines of his features, and only now did I properly notice how swollen the bruise near his cheekbone looked beneath the fad
Evelyn's POV“Do you like me, Julian?”The question left my mouth before my heart had time to stop it.And the second the words were out there between us, hanging in the cold ocean air, I wanted to take them back.Because honestly, this couldn’t just be my imagination anymore. Somewhere along the way, I had started believing Julian liked me—really liked me—and otherwise none of this made sense. Not Seattle. Not tonight. Not the way he kept showing up for me even after I tried so hard to push him away.Hope rose inside me before I could stop it, sudden and dangerous, like water breaking through cracked stone.And at the exact same time, fear followed right behind it.Because my life was already a disaster. My marriage had collapsed, my emotions were a wreck, and if I was being honest with myself, I barely even trusted my own judgment anymore. I didn’t know how to handle another complicated relationship. I didn’t know how to handle being cared for by someone again without immediately wa
Evelyn's POV“Why?” A shaky laugh escaped me before I could stop it, and even to my own ears my voice already sounded dangerously close to unraveling. “Because I’m using you, Julian. How do you still not understand that?”The words came faster and faster after that, emotions spilling out before I could force them back down.“How are you still standing there acting calm enough to worry about whether I’m forcing myself? I’m selfish. I’m a mess. I dragged you into this whole disaster because I was angry and humiliated and wanted revenge!” I could hear the instability creeping into my voice now, raw and trembling beneath every sentence. “You should be furious at me. You should yell at me, tell me I’m awful, and then walk away so you can go back to being that perfect, untouchable Julian everyone else sees!”But Julian barely reacted.“I already told you,” he said quietly, “I don’t mind being used.”“That’s impossible!” I snapped immediately, my throat tightening so hard it almost hurt. “Ev
Evelyn's POV“So what if we got along?” I let out a small laugh at my own expense, the sound thin and bitter against the crashing waves behind us. “What exactly did you expect me to do? Keep acting like some pathetic woman crying herself apart over a failed marriage, clinging to you because I needed someone to stay beside me?”“That’s not what I meant.” Julian inhaled slowly, like he was deliberately forcing himself to stay calm before speaking again. “But disappearing without a word? At the very least, you could’ve answered me. I contacted you so many times, Eve. You never replied once.”“Why should I have replied?”I curled my fingers so tightly that my nails bit into my palm, grounding myself with the pain as I forced the cruel words out anyway.“Our relationship is over.”“Over?” Julian stared at me as if he genuinely couldn’t process what he’d just heard. “What the hell does that mean?”“It means exactly what it sounds like.” I forced myself to hold his gaze, even though every wo







