All Chapters of GUILTY DEVOTION: Chapter 111 - Chapter 120

We sat like that a long time, our hands clasped between half-empty cups of tea and a plate of crumbs, the silence saying everything words couldn’t.The cookies were almost gone by the time the question slipped out of Mia’s mouth. She had that look, her chin propped on her hand, eyes sharper than they had any right to be, like she was about to hit me with a truth I’d been dodging.“So,” she said, breaking off the last bit of a cookie and popping it into her mouth. “When are you going to tell your mom about Nicholas?”I froze. Heat rushed up my neck. “Mia—”“Don’t bother denying it,” she cut in, her voice firm but not unkind. “I’ve known that thought has been bothering you for weeks.”The air in the living room suddenly became too thick to breathe. I stared at her, my heart pounding. “How did you know?”She gave a half-smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Cass, you’ve been my best friend since middle school. You think I won’t notice? Plus…” Her gaze softened. “You must have been thinking

|Mia|The envelope felt heavier than paper should. Maybe it was the weight of the past six months folded neatly inside. It has been a ride of long nights in the hospital, the endless smell of antiseptic, and the occasional rush of adrenaline when a patient coded and the interns scrambled.I stood outside the HR office, smoothing down the creases in my skirt, the envelope pressed against my chest. The door was propped open. Voices murmured inside; one belonged to one of the HR coordinators, typing rapidly, and another was answering the phone.This was it. The end was getting closer.Chloe had already gone; her last month shifted to the countryside, where she was knee-deep in community health education. I missed her in ways I couldn’t explain. Not just her jokes or the way she filled silence with warmth, but the reassurance of knowing someone was always beside me. Without her, the hospital felt emptier, like one half of my compass had been ripped away.But here I was, pretending not to

The ride felt endless. My nails dug crescents into my palm as the car swallowed street after street I didn’t recognize. Every turn carried me farther from the city’s glittering lights until we slid into a gated driveway lined with hedges high enough to hide a mansion.The car stopped. My stomach lurched but I tried my best to keep calm.The driver got out, opened the door, and jerked his head for me to move. My legs felt shaky, but I forced them to hold. I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing me cower.Inside, the house smelled faintly of roses and something metallic. It was a big mansion but was hidden deep from the town as if the owner deliberately wanted to be isolated from the bubbling city life. Genevieve was there in the flesh, lounging on a velvet armchair like she’d been waiting for me all her life.“Well,” she drawled, swirling wine in a crystal glass, “if it isn’t the little intern.”My throat tightened, but I lifted my chin. “Genevieve.”Her red lips curved into a

That weekend came so fast and my mom left for her assignment so I went over to his place. The house was quiet when I let myself in with the spare key. It was too quiet. The kind of quiet that made you feel like you weren’t supposed to be there, even though Nicholas had begged me to stay over while Mom was away with the Governor.The first thing I noticed was the trash can. It was overflowing. Banana peels, crumpled paper towels, and an empty takeout box threatening to spill onto the kitchen floor.I sighed, set my bag down, and grabbed a neon Post-It from the stack near the fridge. In thick letters, I wrote:“You’re brilliant at managing campaigns but less brilliant at managing garbage.”I slapped it right on the fridge door before trashing the waste and went to make myself tea, a smile tugging at my lips.By the time Nicholas got home, the note was waiting for him. I heard the low rumble of his laugh from the hallway before he even appeared in the kitchen.“You think you’re funny,” h

We were in the Governor’s office, a long polished table between us and a dozen staffers. Everyone’s eyes flicked between their notes, the Governor’s booming voice, and Nicholas’s timely responses for everything he was asked. No one noticed me. No one ever did when he was in the room since he was the main focus and that was so uncomfortable.He was close to me so I slid my hand under the table to hold his but he didn’t grab it or react. I told myself not to care. I tried hard not to care when Nicholas ignored the way my fingers brushed the back of his hand under the table. Not to care when he didn’t look up even though I was practically burning holes into the side of his face with my glances.But he noticed me. I knew he did yet nothing from him.I folded my arms across my chest, biting the inside of my cheek as I sat there invisible. I didn’t know if I was supposed to assume the role of intern manager, a normal adult, or his girlfriend. By the end of the meeting, my stomach was filled