Regret Came Too Late

Grace stood motionless at the kitchen's sliding door, thinking it over for several long minutes. There was really no point in torturing herself. If the pain got her in the end, it wouldn't be worth it. Her stomach was already twisting in spasms, and sweat was slick on her forehead.

With her head down, she walked toward the coffee table and quietly sat in the armchair. She picked up a warm slice of bread and began to eat. After a few bites, she spotted her legal documents resting at the edge of the table. She froze, then looked over at Ethan.

Without even looking at her, he said, "We're heading to the city hall once you're done eating."

Upon hearing that, Grace's grip on the bread tightened. She ended up squashing it out of shape.

The moment she walked in and saw Ethan earlier, she nearly convinced herself that the chaos last night had just been a dream. However, hearing what he just said made her realize that it wasn't a dream.

Did Ethan actually have feelings for her?

Grace kept her head down, eating a little more until the ache in her stomach eased. Then, she asked quietly, "Do you like me, Mr. Henderson?"

Ethan flipped the page of his book. In a neutral voice, he replied, "What do you think?"

"You don't like me. This isn't how someone acts when they like someone."

She answered without hesitation, but she couldn't actually define what love was supposed to look like. She truly liked Ed. Still, she knew what they had was a little toxic. It was the kind of thing most people wouldn't understand, let alone accept.

"Then no," Ethan said, still focused on his book. "I don't like you."

His grip on the page remained soft, detached—like none of this mattered.

Hadn't

it be that he simply found her face familiar and transferred those feelings onto her? She glanced at him, a quiet discomfort

a replacement, Mr.

book, rose to his feet,

tightened in disbelief because Ethan didn't seem like he was joking. Were they really going to get married? It felt like she was holding

that she wasn't done with her food. As she chewed, her mind kept spinning, trying to figure out what to do. She couldn't marry Ethan; it would

Ed, she would become someone who started things and walked away. The mere thought of

her chest

had given

words. Honestly, she never

she had brought up breaking up with him;

nights ago, when she decided to leave without a word, there hadn't been this kind of emotional weight. But right now, it felt like something was tugging painfully at

another bite of the

Ethan's perspective, she was upset, and she would rather sit in silence than say

his gaze, then asked, "Finished

daze, Grace set down the half-eaten bread. "I really can't go through with

Ed well. Leaving

it

marrying someone