Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 10

‎ ‎ ‎A noisy and chaotic city greeted her. ‎ ‎She just came back here to the Philippines from abroad for a job she couldn't refuse. She's working as a famous architect under a big company in Australia—The Carson Inc. ‎ ‎Her boss Mr. Louis Carson sent her personally. Even though she didn't want to return to the Philippines, he forced her to do it for the project because she was the only one he could trust apart from the engineers he sent to the other country, and because she loved her job, she did the right thing even if it was against her will. ‎ ‎Coming back to her birth country where she was dumped is traumatizing. ‎ ‎Although it’s been years and she has moved on, the memories in the past just keep showing up in her dreams, especially in the last couple of days as her trip to the Philippines came near. ‎ ‎It's been two years since she left. After her failed marriage to her ex-husband Archiver, she decided to start a new life in another country. She studied aga

‎"How was the meeting?" Louis asked her on the call. ‎ ‎She sighed after arriving at the condo. ‎ ‎ ‎She lazily lay down on the bed looking very tired. ‎ ‎ ‎ "The presentation went well. there are people who want to fix and just some minor changes in the plan. Once it's finalized and I see the area, we can start the construction." ‎ ‎ ‎In fact, she wanted to go home now. But she stopped herself and calmly talked to Louis. ‎ ‎ ‎"Very good, Roxanne, I made the right decision to send you there," Louis said happily. ‎ ‎ ‎"Alright. I'm going to rest," she said before cutting the call. After hanging up, she sighed again and closed her eyes tightly. ‎ ‎She had no strength to talk to Louis and saying she's happy although she's not. ‎ ‎She usually doesn't cut the conversation with Louis. In fact, she's happy when she's talking to him. But what happened to her today is unexpected. She seemed to have lost the will to talk as various memories came to her

‎ ‎I know everyone would think that I'm crazy, because it took me a long time to forget Arch, but in just a matter of minutes or hours, she's back again to say yes to her ex-husband. ‎ ‎She must be really out of her mind. ‎ ‎For a long time, she thought she didn’t care about him anymore, but here she is, being a martyr again for the sake of love. ‎ ‎What the hell is she even thinking? Has she really gone completely crazy to agree to this? Or is it for completely different reasons? ‎ ‎Oh, Roxanne! You are really stupid! Here you are again for the same man! ‎ ‎She just wants to be buried in the ground because of the situation. ‎ ‎She should have thought carefully first if she was sure about this, because it was indeed a foolish choice. But she didn’t have time to think about everything. ‎ ‎She admits that she missed his family. She was happy when she met Arch’s family. Arch might not have loved her, but his family did, and honestly, that was the only time sh

‎ ‎ ‎Roxanne woke up to the soft patter of rain tapping against the window. ‎ ‎For a moment, she forgot where she was. ‎ ‎Forgot the lie she willingly stepped into. ‎Forgot the heartbreak she had buried so deeply. ‎Forgot the man lying just inches away from her. ‎ ‎Until she turned her head— ‎ ‎And found Arch staring at her. ‎ ‎Not asleep. ‎Not pretending. ‎Just quietly… staring. ‎ ‎Her breath caught. ‎ ‎His messy morning hair, the soft light slipping between the curtains, the faint worry in his eyes— ‎It all felt too familiar. ‎Too dangerous. ‎ ‎“Why are you staring?” she whispered, pulling the blanket close and sitting up. ‎ ‎Arch blinked, rubbing the back of his neck. ‎“You… were crying.” ‎ ‎Her chest tightened. “No, I wasn’t.” ‎ ‎“You were,” he said softly. “You had tears on your cheeks.” ‎ ‎Roxanne turned away sharply. ‎“It’s the blanket. Maybe I’m allergic. Don’t make assumptions.” ‎ ‎He didn’t believe her.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎Roxanne’s pulse still hammered inside her skull, loud enough that she wondered if Arch could hear it too. Her lips tingled with the memory of the kiss she hadn’t meant to give, hadn’t meant to want, hadn’t meant to let happen. She swallowed sharply, forcing air into her lungs as if that alone could push back the chaos swirling inside her. ‎ ‎She pressed her palms against her thighs, grounding herself. Breathe, Roxanne. Slow down. Control it. But control felt like a fading concept—something she had once mastered, once clung to like armor, but lately… lately everything about Arch had been peeling that armor off piece by piece. ‎ ‎And Arch… he was still right there. ‎ ‎Close enough that his warmth seeped into her skin. Close enough that she could feel him, even without touching. He always had this effect on her—like gravity fixed itself around him and she was helplessly, stupidly human against it. ‎ ‎She was exhausted. Mentally. Emotionally. Bone-deep tired. ‎ ‎“Rox…”