?Chapter 1665:


    He’d spent weeks systematically pushing her away at every opportunity. Had she finally reached her breaking point and decided to leave him for good? That was fine. That was exactly what he wanted. William repeated this to himself like a mantra, but the ache in his chest only intensified with each repetition.


    Sleep refused toe.


    Every time his eyes drifted shut, Ste’s face materialized in the darkness behind his eyelids. The moment he began to fall asleep, her voice would drift through his mind — broken, tearful — and jolt him awake again. He lost track of how long hey there fighting for rest before he finally abandoned the effort and hauled himself out to the balcony.


    Cold night air rushed over him, stripping away thest remnants of fog clouding his thoughts. William lit a cigarette, the ember glowing crimson between his fingers. Smoke spiraled upward, blurring the darkness in front of him.


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    He’d never been much of a smoker. During their time together, he’d avoided cigarettes entirely — he hadn’t wanted to expose her to the smoke. But now, nicotine and alcohol were the only things that offered him even the smallest measure of relief.


    Morning arrived slowly, gray light creeping across the sky.


    William stood under a freezing shower, hoping the shock of cold water might wash away some of the exhaustion from his sleepless night. When he finally looked at himself in the mirror, dark stubble shadowed his jaw and exhaustion had carved deep lines into his face.


    After thirty minutes making himself presentable, he pulled on a fresh shirt and jacket and steeled himself to leave the vi. On his way down the stairs, he found himself stopping outside Ste’s door again. After a moment, he forced himself to keep walking as though nothing had happened.


    Tasha hadid out breakfast in the dining room, but William’s stomach rebelled at the thought of food. He managed to choke down a cup of ck coffee and nothing else. The bitter liquid burned down his throat and brought a brief, sharp moment of rity. He snatched up his car keys, prepared to head to the office.


    At that exact moment, the distinctive beep of the fingerprint lock echoed from the front door.


    William’s head snapped up. His eyes locked immediately with Ste’s as she stepped through the doorway.


    She wore the same clothes from the day before. Her hair fell in disheveled waves around her face, which looked unnaturally pale, and exhaustion shadowed her eyes. She obviously hadn’t slept any better than he had.


    Ste stepped fully inside and, when she spotted William standing in the dining room, wentpletely still before lowering her head to change her shoes. She had crashed at Sharon’s apartment the previous night — alcohol always made her wake unreasonably early, which was why she hade back at this hour. She had assumed William would already be gone by now. Running into him face-to-face was thest thing she had expected.


    After a moment of hesitation, she forced herself to speak as she entered the living room. “Good morning.”


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