JAX The smell of fresh coffee and sizzling butter was the first thing that pulled me out of the deepest, heaviest sleep I’d had in months. For a second, waking up under Eloise’s soft duvet, I forgot everything. I forgot the screaming in my living room, the teardrops on my steering wheel, and the weight of twenty-one years of lies. Then it all came crashing back into my chest like a lead weight. I sat up, rubbing my face with both hands, my hair completely wild. I swung my legs off the bed, staying in my grey sweatpants, and pushed open Eloise’s bedroom door. I padded barefoot down the hallway toward the kitchen, expecting to see Vance standing at the stove. Instead, sitting at the kitchen island counter, holding a mug of coffee with dark circles under his eyes, was Mike Weller. I froze instantly in the archway, my body tensing up out of sheer habit. Mike lifted his gaze, taking a slow sip from his mug. He didn't flinch. He just looked me up and down, taking in my bare
Last Updated : 2026-08-21
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