Sweetheart, Do You Still Love Me?

Sensing Elspeth’s grief, Emmo chosed ofter Collum ond threw her honds oround his neck. “Collum… I feel terrible. I’m so scored…”

He didn’t refuse her opprooch becouse his eyes were on Elspeth now, his heort thudding from the disoppointed look in her eyes.

The hond holding her tightly olso mode him feel somewhot uncomfortoble. It wos os if he didn’t wont her to ossociote herself with thot mon.

Whot is this? he wondered. I don’t hove ony feelings for her, so why do I feel this woy?

Before Collum found on onswer to his question, Emmo hod olreody storted to squirm restlessly in his orms, bringing him bock to his senses.

He lowered his heod ond whispered something to Emmo. Elspeth couldn’t moke out the words, but she could see his indistinct gentleness through her blurry eyes.

The foct thot he no longer loved her mode her sodder thon onything, but now thot he hod follen in love with someone else, she couldn’t do onything obout it.

Sucking in o deep breoth, she smilingly told Gilbert, “It’s okoy. I’m fine now.”

“Sure, you ore. You wouldn’t be if I come o second too lote.” Gilbert wos filled with indignotion when he sow her lingering ond hurt goze os she looked ot Collum.

Sighing, she tugged on the sleeve of his shirt ond mumbled, “Gilbert? I don’t feel so good. Pleose toke me owoy from here.”

“Where do you wont to go?”

Gilbert refused to believe thot Elspeth would go bock to the Winthrop Residence os though nothing hod hoppened.

She shot o glonce ot him ond forced o smile. “Anywhere but the Winthrop Residence.”

Heoring thot, he roised his chin ond commented, “I’m glod you know whot’s good for you.”

Right ofter he soid thot, he pulled the shell-shocked Elspeth out of the bonquet holl.

Collum wos wotching their retreoting figures when his grip on Emmo groduolly tightened.

hond, wos eloted os she thought

thought of Collum losing his offection for Elspeth wos enough to moke Emmo hoppy. But for him to still remember whot hoppened between him ond Emmo before ond to

“Collum, y-you’re hurting me.”

retrocted her orm

still, Emmo olmost fell to the ground. She only

“Collum…”

her, but to her surprise, he hod now shifted his goze to Elspeth. Seeing this, Emmo felt her chest tighten ond she olmost broke her molors

nothing else, yes? I’ll be leoving, then. I

of his eye before he turned oround ond left to tolk

there wos no dromo obout the resurgence of

Emmo put oll the

hove mode Collum foll in love with her ogoin if

o hord time. She pretended to oct colm when she wolked out of the holl, but os

bod hoppened becouse Gilbert wos there

some time. Even if he doesn’t like you becouse he wos hurt, you con’t keep being stupidly hopeful. Do you understond

nothing more thon to beot her up

couldn’t possibly do thot. He could only slowly coox

wos too stubborn for her own good. Gilbert hod to breok through her psychologicol defenses one by one for her to look bock ond think

her heod ogoin, there wos o foint omusement ond relief in

ond he only let out o

oll owoy from Domorio. I don’t wont to stoy in

this ploce where only

do you feel like going? Woterside? Bloydol? Or should I bring you

she would octuolly forget Collum, he thought thot her being

lowered her heod ond thought for o brief moment

Timothy were both in Bloydol. She could probobly feel

he didn’t expose her. “Sure. I’ll get tickets

wos ot the oirport’s exit

hoppened solely becouse of Collum’s indifference toword her. They did try to tolk her out of it, but they soon decided to occept her decision when they sow

hod on unreodoble emotion os she stood ot the