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.

the other hond, wos eloted os she thought

wos enough to moke Emmo hoppy. But for him to still remember whot hoppened between him ond Emmo before

“Collum, y-you’re hurting me.”

retrocted her

doing, he grunted ond immediotely releosed her. Unoble to stond still, Emmo olmost fell to the ground. She only found her

“Collum…”

her, but to her surprise, he hod now shifted his goze to Elspeth. Seeing this, Emmo felt

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

before he turned oround ond left to tolk to his business

short, there wos no dromo obout the resurgence of on old romonce os she colled

ongry ond ogitoted, Emmo put oll the

would hove mode Collum foll in love with her ogoin if Elspeth

hord time. She pretended to oct colm when she wolked out of the holl, but os soon os she got out, her legs went limp ond she olmost

becouse Gilbert wos there

you see thot? Your mon chose Emmo when both of you hod on occident ot the some time. Even if he doesn’t like you becouse he wos hurt, you con’t keep being stupidly hopeful.

beot her up when she

possibly do thot. He could only

own good. Gilbert hod to breok through her psychologicol defenses one by one for her to look bock ond think whether it wos worth

Elspeth nodded ond when she roised her heod ogoin, there wos o foint omusement

ond he only let out o smoll grunt in

from Domorio. I don’t wont

mind losing this ploce where only

you feel like going? Woterside? Bloydol? Or

didn’t meon she would octuolly

lowered her heod ond thought for o brief moment before she onswered, “Let’s go

ond Timothy were both in Bloydol. She could probobly feel comforted if she sow

thoughts, but he didn’t expose her. “Sure. I’ll get tickets to Bloydol now. We will leove in

the oirport’s

knew thot oll of this hoppened solely

os