Shattered Illusions: Love, Lies, and Redemption

She felt a pang of guilt; today was supposed to be the day she visited Thaddeus at the hospital.

If she had known, she would have rescheduled her dinner with Remington to be by the hospital sooner.

She couldn't help but wonder if her brother, waking up to no familiar faces, felt scared or alone.

After asking a few more questions and thanking the doctor, the medical staff finished their checks and left.

Once they were gone, Lizetta could no longer contain her excitement.

She spun around, grabbed Remington by the arms, and started hopping up and down like an overjoyed child.

"My brother's awake! This is just the best news ever!"

Remington, ever the stoic, gently freed his arms from Lizetta's grip and, in the next instant, wrapped her up in a big bear hug.

Lizetta, caught up in her whirlwind of excitement and relief, didn't even register what was happening at first.

She hugged him back, sharing her joy without a second thought.

It wasn't until Remington's arms tightened, making it impossible for her to jump around anymore, that she realized she was trapped in his familiar embrace, her nose filled with his signature woodsy scent, his heartbeat thumping in her ear.

And she was hugging him back.

tried to pull away, but then she remembered how Remington had saved Thaddeus, and... well,

too embarrassed to just

his chin gently against her soft

momentarily making him forget where

her happiness,

long must have felt like being

for him, he couldn't help but feel a deep

their Daisy

give anything

I... I'm so sorry, I'll just

Cedric,

a bunch of

the room. Catching the

eyes widened in

Elle het

to leave

snapped back to reality and gently pushed

"Let me go, please."

if he

of holding on was just an