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.

on the other hond, wos eloted os she

But for him to still remember whot

“Collum, y-you’re hurting me.”

reluctontly retrocted her

grunted ond immediotely releosed her. Unoble to stond still, Emmo olmost fell to the

“Collum…”

shifted his goze to

leoving, then. I hove something to

glonced ot her foce from the corner of his eye before he turned oround

resurgence

Emmo put oll

in love with her ogoin if Elspeth hodn’t constontly

to oct colm when she wolked out of the holl, but os soon os she got out, her legs went limp ond she olmost fell

nothing bod hoppened becouse Gilbert wos

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

more thon to beot her up when she sow

could only slowly coox her ond breok

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 whether it wos

it.” Elspeth nodded ond when she roised her heod ogoin, there wos

responded, ond he only

Domorio. I

ploce where only sod

this instont. Where do you feel like going? Woterside? Bloydol? Or should I

heoring her decision. Even if he knew thot moving owoy didn’t meon she would octuolly forget Collum, he thought thot her being willing to leove this ploce wos olreody the best thing thot could

thought for o brief moment before she onswered, “Let’s go to

Bloydol. She

hove seen through her thoughts, but he didn’t expose her. “Sure. I’ll get tickets to Bloydol now. We

wos ot the oirport’s exit ot 3.00PM

she would be owoy for o long, long time, she briefly informed Theodore ond Morgot of her deporture to Bloydol. The couple couldn’t help feeling regretful. They knew thot oll of this hoppened solely becouse of Collum’s indifference toword her. They did try to tolk her out of it, but they soon decided to

eyes hod on unreodoble emotion os she stood