All Chapters of Just Say Yes: Chapter 51 - Chapter 55

StevanWhile I packed my bags and my mother’s, I tried to convince myself that I had done the right thing. And even if it wasn’t, I had already said yes.I was fully aware that my life would never be the same after that phone call. Nothing I had planned for my future was happening the way I wanted; the idealized script of falling in love, being loved back, and building something beautiful had been torn to pieces. But at least my hope of seeing my mother get better was guaranteed. That was the price. And I would pay it on my knees if necessary.I glanced at the clock on the living room wall. The minutes were flying by far too quickly, as if time itself were running against me. I had less than an hour to pack everything and get back to the hospital in Omaha before the medical team from New York landed. I wasn’t taking much, and that had also been one of Eric’s explicit orders.After that desperate call, he had sent me a short, surgical message letting me know that once I was in New York

EricThe anxiety was consuming me. The hours refused to pass since I last spoke with Stevan. It was almost ridiculous how nervous I felt.“You’d think this was your first contract, Eric,” I muttered, staring at the city lights.It wasn’t my first contract. I had long lost count of how many I’d signed since adopting this arrangement, but this time everything felt different—even if I didn’t want to admit it. I took another sip of whiskey, trying to calm myself and keep control. I knew he had already landed; the pilot had informed me the moment the private jet touched down. I hadn’t slept at all that night, but I needed to see him standing in front of me, as if that would give me the certainty that I hadn’t hallucinated that phone call.The soft sound of the private elevator opening made me draw a deep breath. He had arrived.That same frightened, nervous expression was there, as always, and it was already enough to shake my foundation. His cold skin, contrasting with the heat of my hand

StevanSuffocating was the word that best defined the atmosphere in Eric’s apartment. Everything seemed to oppress me—from the excessive luxury of the place to his words, which subtly implied that I could ask for more.Had he still not understood the real reason I had called him and gone against everything I believe in? Apparently not.When I left the apartment, I felt a certain relief knowing I wouldn’t be staying there and that, at least for today, I wouldn’t begin my obligations. “Obligation.” That was exactly how I saw my situation with Eric Winter.It would be ridiculous to deny that he still affected me, but after everything—after the entire circumstance of our involvement—I felt that something inside me had hardened a little. Maybe because I knew none of it was real. That the kiss just moments ago had been nothing more than another clause being fulfilled.I wanted to go back to the hospital and stay by my mother’s side, but the driver was already taking me to the apartment that