Lahat ng Kabanata ng THE WEIGHT OF LOVING YOU: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

JESSICA I woke up still tangled in Liam’s arms, his legs wrapped around mine, his chin nudging my shoulder like he’d been there for hours. Maybe he had. The sheets were a mess around us—warm, wrinkled, and smelling like sleep and sex and him. His fingers were already on my arm, brushing up and down, slow and lazy, like he had nowhere else to be. And maybe he didn’t. But I did. Which was why I groaned and tried to roll away. He held me tighter. “Oh please,” I murmured, teasing, “don’t start this morning.” “Start what?” His voice was low, still rough with sleep. And somehow smug. “You know what.” Liam didn’t answer. He kissed my shoulder. Then my neck. His hand slid up, cupping my breast like it was his favorite thing to hold. I bit back a gasp. “Liam…” “Do you really have to go to work?” he asked, voice muffled against my skin. “Yes,” I breathed, even though my hips were already arching into his. “Don’t play with me right now.” “Can’t you work somewhere else?” His

JESSICA I was pacing. Up and down the glossy white tiles of the lobby, heels clicking, heart pounding, phone clutched in my hand like it had answers. It didn’t. Just a black screen, a stupid lock screen photo of Liam kissing my cheek that made my stomach twist. The building was nearly empty. Receptionist gone. Security guard half-asleep by the revolving doors. Even the janitor had finished for the day. It was just me and the soft hum of silence. I checked the time again—7:56 p.m. “He said four,” I muttered under my breath, like saying it out loud would rewind the clock or bring him walking through the doors with that lazy grin of his. I tried calling one more time. Straight to voicemail. Again. I swallowed hard, then bit the inside of my cheek because I knew what came next. That familiar tightness in my chest, the disappointment slowly crawling up my spine, curling around my throat like it had a right to be there. This morning had been... perfect. He’d kissed my neck, slow

JESSICA Lucas’s fingers were laced through mine, casual and warm, like it was second nature. He’d said earlier, with a crooked grin and a shrug, “Let me feel your fingers.” Like it was nothing. Like holding hands was just what two people did when the day had been sweet and the laughter easy.And I let him.Half-laughing, fully aware that I shouldn’t have—but also… not hating the way it felt. It was comfortable. Familiar in a way that scared me a little. But I told myself it was harmless. Just fingers. Just a moment.The shopping bags swung gently at our sides. My wrist still tingled where the silver bracelet rested—delicate, understated, and beautiful.The air smelled like warm pretzels and cinnamon sugar and a little too much possibility.I was about to say something—probably sarcastic, something to keep things light—when I saw him.Liam.He was standing by the mall entrance, just outside the glass doors, half in shadow, half in sunlight. One hand in his pocket. The other holding

JESSICAI woke up to silence. The kind that felt almost like graveyard—like the house was holding its breath. The sheets were twisted around my legs, my skin cool under the thin fabric. There was a strange lightness in my body, like I’d finally cried enough to make room inside. But my chest? It was tight. Heavy in a different kind of way.Liam was still asleep—somewhere. I’d locked the bedroom door last night. He hadn’t tried too hard after that. Just knocked once or twice or more..... I sat up slowly, rubbed my eyes, and pulled my knees to my chest for a second. I wasn't angry anymore.Just tired.Tired of feeling like I was talking to a wall. Tired of begging for softness. Tired of being the only one bleeding in a war we both started.I climbed out of bed, careful not to make a sound, not because I owed him silence but because I needed it for myself. I didn’t want to open any wounds I’d barely managed to bandage.I headed to the bathroom and started brushing my teeth, staring at m

LIAMThe room was full of warm voices and laughter—except mine.Ava and Jessica were whispering and giggling like they used to in college, heads leaned in close, shoulders bumping. The kind of laughter that made everyone else want to join in, even if they didn’t know the joke.But I couldn’t laugh. Could barely chew.I picked at my food—though her mom had made everything perfect. The paella was rich, the plantains golden and sweet. But all I could taste was guilt. I barely looked up, except to sneak glances at Jessica when she wasn’t paying attention.Which was often. Because she hadn’t looked at me once since we got here.Not once.And I deserved that.Her smile had returned somewhere between the second glass of sangria and Ava’s teasing, but none of it was for me. Her voice was lighter now, her shoulders a little looser. And watching her laugh like that—genuinely, freely—made something twist in my chest.I used to be the reason for that smile. Now I was the reason she didn’t want