NovelOnline“See me? By sneaking around like this? That doesn’t really suit someone like you, Mr. Jennings.” | shot back,
coming at him harder than | meant to. Maybe it was all the fear and anxiety from earlier tonight, givinga
kind of courage born from desperation.
Edward stared at me, totally thrown off. After a long moment, he gave a helpless shrug. “What else do you want
waiting for you to get off work?”
“No way,” | shot back, just the thought of it making my skin crawl. “Can you please just be
reasonable?”
Edward's eyes, shadowed and dark, caught the glimmer of streetlight, making them look even more haunting
and mesmerizing.
“I know | should keep it together, but... I just can’t help myself anymore, Victoria. Meeting you like this -it's
humiliating,” he admitted, sounding almost desperate. All that pride was gone; he looked so vulnerable, and you
could see the pain written all over his face.
When you can’t rein in your own feelings and desires, it’s pure agony.
It’s not like a knife stabbing straight into you-it's more like a swarm of tiny ants crawling all over your heart,
biting and driving you crazy. The more you try to ignore it, the worse it gets.
“If you think it's humiliating, then stop creating these chances to run into me. Ryan's not clueless- tonight he
thought you were there for Isabelle. If you keep popping up at the wrong moments, what do you think he'll start
suspecting?” | said, my fear now replaced by a calm, rational edge. If he couldn’t see the problem, | had to make
it clear to him.
Edward just stared atfor a moment, then gave a wry chuckle. “You know, you're starting to sound a bit like
| shot him an annoyed glare. “I'm just trying to find a way to handle this. Even you think this is wrong, Mr.
Jennings, Shouldn't you be making an effort to fix it?”
“How do you know | haven't tried? I've been holding myself back. I'm not asking for anything else-1 just wanted
to see you, even if it's like this,” Edward said, his voice low and intense,
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“No, you just want someone to call you out and snap you back to reality,” | replied, my tone firm.
Edward didn’t get mad; instead, he chuckled and nodded. “Honestly, you're the only one who'd ever callout
to my face like this.”
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“What about your dad? Wouldn't he?” | snapped back without missing a beat.
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Edward paused, caught off guard, and for a split second, | saw a flash of nervousness in his usually dark, steady
eyes. He gave a self-deprecating laugh. “Oh, he would. He'd tear intoway worse than you ever could. I'm
actually scared of him. But with you... no matter how much you yell or get mad, | just don’t feel afraid.”
“Seriously, Edward, aren’t you a grown man? Do you really still need someone else to knock ssense into
you? Shouldn't adults be responsible for their own actions?” | was so shocked and angry, | couldn't help but hit
him where it hurt.
Edward suddenly closed his eyes, lowered his head in silence, then nodded. “You're right. But don’t
worry, Ryan won't suspect a thing. Ill just get swoman to pretend to be with me-play the part
so he doesn’t catch on.”
“What?” | blurted out, completely stunned. ‘That's his idea of a solution? | thought, unable to believe
i)
Edward tried to reassure me. “Don’t worry, | won't put you in an awkward position. But you can’t stopfrom
wanting to see you.”
“No, 1 can’t do this anymore. My heart can’t handle this kind of shock,” | blurted out, the fear almost
overwhelming me.
“That's not your call, Victoria. | mean it-I really do like you. Tonight, there were so many gorgeous women, all
dolled up in their fancy dresses, but none of them could hold a candle to you in that business suit. Watching you
lean on Ryan like that... | was actually jealous,” Edward admitted, pouring
out more than he'd ever said before.
| stood there, completely frozen, a cold numbness spreading through my whole body.
“It’s late. | need to go rest,” | said angrily.
Edward nodded. “Okay, go ahead.”
| turned to leave, but after a few steps, | stopped and looked back at him. “Can we please just not see each other
anymore? Seriously, okay?”
Edward suddenly stepped forward, reached out, and gently plucked a leaf from my hair. “Honestly, even with
your hair all messy, you still look pretty good.”
For a moment, | was completely speechless
rushed toward the elevator,
mind went blank. Freaked out, | spun around and
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When I got home, | stood in front of the mirror, still a little out of breath. My hair was a mess from napping on
Ryan on the way back, but somehow, there was a certain messy beauty to the reflection staring back at me.
| took off my pink pearl earrings and flopped onto the bed, feeling completely drained. ‘How did things end up
like this?’ | wondered, exhausted.
‘Why does life feel like one big knot | can’t untangle?’ The more | thought about it, the more frustrated
| felt.
‘Why does Edward have to be so stubborn about chasing after me? Can’t he just like someone else for a
change?’
‘I've never even been nice to him. Every t| see him, | either hide or run away. Is he blind or something? Can't
he tell | want nothing to do with him?‘
Just as my mind was spinning in chaos, my phone suddenly lit up with a few photos.
They were from Jared-pictures ofand Edward under the tree just moments ago.
| practically exploded off the bed, jolting upright in shock.
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