Chapter 42
Amelia’s POV
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The doorbell rang just as I was setting down the teacups on the small tray. My heart leapt into my throat, the porcelain rattling softly against the saucers. I froze, staring at the door like it had the power to undo me.
He was here.
For a moment, I wanted to pretend I hadn’t heard it, to buy myself just one more minute of pretending this wasn’t happening. But Scarlett’s curious voice carried from the living room.
“Mommy, aren’t you going to open it?”
Her little feet padded across the wooden floor, and panic jolted through me. “No. Wait, sweetheart, I’ll get it.” My voice cracked, too breathless, too uneven. She tilted her head at me, but I forced a smile that felt more like a grimace.
Each step toward the door felt like a countdown. My palms were damp, and I rubbed them against my jeans before gripping the handle. For seven years, I had kept him out of this part of my life. Now I was about to swing the door open and let him walk straight into the most fragile piece of me.
I inhaled, held my breath until it almost hurt, and then finally opened the door.
Edmund stood there, tall, perfectly put together in his dark coat, but his eyes gave him away. They weren’t calm or controlled; they were anxious, searching, almost restless. For a man who always commanded every room he entered, he suddenly looked like he was asking permission to breathe.
“Hi,” I whispered.
“Hi,” he echoed, and then, without hesitation, he pulled me into his arms.
The embrace was too much. Too familiar. Too dangerous. I let myself sink into it for half a second, inhaling the clean scent of him, before forcing myself to pull away. My heart betrayed me with the ache of the loss.
“Come in,” I said softly, stepping aside.
The moment he entered, the air in the living room shifted. My mother was sitting on the couch, her thin frame wrapped in a shawl. She looked up at him and smiled, but said nothing. Scarlett sat on the rug with her crayons, her head bent over the paper.
Edmund greeted my mother first, walking toward her with a gentleness that caught me off guard. “Mrs. Garcia,” he said warmly, bending slightly as he offered her a small wrapped box. “It’s been way too long. How are you holding up?”
Her tired smile softened. “I’ve been better. But it’s good to see you again, Edmund. You look… stronger.”
He chuckled faintly. “I’ve had no choice.”
Then his gaze flicked toward Scarlett. She hadn’t noticed him yet, humming to herself as she switched crayon colors. My chest tightened. My hands trembled so badly I clasped them together to hide it.
20:40 Wed, Jan 28
Chapter 42
I cleared my throat. “Scarlett, sweetheart.”
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She looked up, her big curious eyes landing on me before sliding to the stranger standing by the couch. Edmund shifted, his jaw tightening as if bracing himself for impact.
“This is…” My voice broke. I swallowed hard. “This is Edmund. A… very important person I’d like you to meet.”
Scarlett tilted her head, still holding the purple crayon. “Hi,” she said softly.
I saw Edmund’s hand twitch before he finally crouched down to her level. He looked terrified and awestruck at the same time, like a man facing both salvation and damnation in a single breath.
“Hi,” he whispered, his voice breaking. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small, carefully wrapped box with a ribbon. His hands shook as he held it out to her. “I brought you something. I–I hope you like it.”
Scarlett blinked, then glanced at me as if to ask if it was okay. I nodded, forcing my lips into a smile even as tears burned behind my eyes. She took the box, tugged at the ribbon, and gasped softly when she saw the doll inside.
“It looks like me,” she said, her little voice filled with wonder.
Edmund let out a shaky laugh. “That’s because I asked someone to make sure it did,” he said, ” I… I wanted you to have something special.”
He reached out slowly, hesitantly, and let his fingers brush through her hair. His hand trembled, but when Scarlett didn’t flinch, he whispered, “Hello, Scarlett.”
The sound of her name in his voice nearly shattered me. I bit down on my lip until I tasted iron, trying not to sob. Watching him, watching them, how easily she accepted him, how carefully he touched her, it filled me with a warmth I had no right to feel.
And
yet, beneath that warmth, I felt a certain sense of dread. The world could be cruel, merciless. I couldn’t afford to hope, not when hope had destroyed me once before. Hoped that he would feel the same way and the marriage wouldn’t have to be annulled.
I turned away, pressing my hand to my mouth. God, don’t let me regret this.
******
Later, after dinner and endless stolen glances, I walked Edmund to his car. The night air was cool, but my skin burned with every step I took beside him.
He stopped by the car door, turning to me with a look that pinned me in place. “Amelia… I want this. I want to be with you. With her. I want us to be a family.”
I stared at him, my chest tightening. “Why?” My voice cracked. “Because of Scarlett? Because you suddenly realized you have a daughter?”
He snorted, shaking his head. “You know that’s not true. I’ve been trying, Amelia. I’ve been dropping hints, pushing my way back into your life even before I found out. Finding out about Scarlett just… it gave me more
20:40 Wed, Jan 28
Chapter 42
reason. But it was never just that.”
My throat closed. “But it can’t happen.”
“Why not?” His voice was raw, impatient.
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I forced myself to meet his gaze. “Because you’re married, Edmund. And I won’t let my daughter live in the shadow of some scandal. I won’t give the tabloids a chance to rip her apart, to paint her as the mistake that ruined a marriage. I don’t want her to feel like we destroyed something to exist. I won’t let her carry that.”
The silence between us was brutal. His lips parted, but no words came. For once, the man who always had answers had none. Because he knew I was right
I swallowed, my voice firmer now. “See you tomorrow, Mr. Montgomery.”
The title was deliberate. A wall I had to put back up before my heart broke open completely.
I turned and walked back inside, every step heavier than the last.
AD
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
