With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.


    Lucy''s smile faltered, hardening into a brittle mask. She hadn''t expected Esmeralda to snap at her like that. The words stung, sharper than she''d imagined possible. Still, Lucy shook it off in seconds. Let her talk, she thought. Esmeraldashing out because she couldn''t have what she wanted?


    And really, who else would ever find out? Besides Esmeralda, who would care about the details?


    Esmeralda descended the stairs, her mind throbbing with the bitter aftertaste of the encounter. Finding Lucy at Fleming''s ce-openly,fortably—was more than she''d prepared for. She''d suspected lingering feelings between them, perhaps vague, passing tension. She never dreamed they''d unt it so openly.


    All it proved was that Fleming couldn''t care less about her. She was done-done with this entire rotten situation, with people who made everything feel cheap and ugly.


    She strode toward her car, keys clutched in her palm, only to see another car pull up beside her. The door opened, and Fleming stepped out. For a moment, his eyes softened when he caught sight of her.


    "What brings you here?" he asked.


    Esmeralda''s hands curled into fists. "Oh, I forgot this is a bad time for you, isn''t it?"


    Thement cut, but Fleming''s only reaction was a tense press of his lips. "If you want to talk, we can go upstairs."


    He probably assumed she''de to patch things up, to y her part in some reconciliation—like maybe she''d finally realized she''d overreacted.


    Esmeralda almostughed, short and cold. An invitation upstairs? What, so she could have another standoff in front of his darling little sister? Was Fleming not even pretending anymore?


    "If you want to clear up the wedding dress mess," she said, her voice like steel, "ask your sister. I never told my mother to approach her about the design. It was Lucy''s mom who offered. So don''ty that on me. Someone else was desperate to be freebor, but I don''t use a cheap one. I have standards, after all."


    There was nothing left to say. Every word came out sharper than intended, biting and intentionally cruel.


    Fleming''s expression darkened, his eyes hard on her. "Are you just taking potshots now?"


    He understood the subtext-if Esmeralda was resorting to this, there must be some mix-up about the dress. But that didn''t excuse how pointed how venomous, she''d beer Shed as good as called Lucy cheap.


    "No," Esmeralda replied, unlocking her car. "I''m saying it to her face. As long as you get my meaning, that''s fine."


    She pulled open the driver''s door,


    pausing just long enough to fix Fleming with onest look. The man she''d once loved felt indistinct now blurred, faded, reduced to the source of her current humiliation.


    She fixed him with a direct gaze. "Fleming, I won''t settle. For anything."


    With that, she got into her car and drove away.


    Fleming stood on the curb,


    unmoving. Not even the cool hush of night could soften the strange ache in his chest. He''d never seen Esmeralda like that-didn''t recognize her, really. Her anger, her resolve, even the wounded pride behind her words left him unsettled and unmoored, a heavy sense of unease settled in his gut But he pushed the feeling aside. No point dwelling on it. He wasn''t about to defend Esmeralda''s verbal attacks on Lucy-not when she hadn''t bothered to get the story straight.


    He headed upstairs and punched in his code at the door. No luck. He tried again—


    still wrong.


    He was frowning in confusion when the door opened from the inside. Lucy stood there, casual and bright. "Fleming, I''m staying over tonight. You''re not going to throw me out, are you?"


    He nced at her, and for a second, all he could see was the glow of taillights fading into the dark where Esmeralda had just driven off. He hesitated, then stepped inside. "What are you doing here?"


    "There was some trouble in my building-security issues. I got nervous, and I''ve still got work to finish, so I ended up here."


    "What happened to the code?" Fleming asked, turning with a mild frown.


    Lucy tilted her head and met his eyes directly. "I changed it. Does it bother you?”


    He held her gaze for a long, quiet moment, then finally stepped back with a nonchnt shrug. "Do what you want."


    Lucy''s smile bloomed, as content and unsurprised as if she''d predicted his every move. "Aren''t you worried Esmeralda might get jealous?"