“See me? By sneaking around like this? That doesn’t really suit someone like you, Mr. Jennings.” I shot back,ing at him harder than I meant to. Maybe it was all the fear and anxiety from earlier tonight, giving me a kind of courage born from desperation.


    Edward stared at me, totally thrown off. After a long moment, he gave a helpless shrug. “What else do you want me to do? Should I just call you and ask you out like it’s all normal? Or maybe hang around outside your office waiting for you to get off work?”


    “No way,” I shot back, just the thought of it making my skin crawl. “Can you please just be


    reasonable?”


    Edward’s eyes, shadowed and dark, caught the glimmer of streetlight, making them look even more haunting and mesmerizing.


    “I know I should keep it together, but… I just can’t help myself anymore, Victoria. Meeting you like this -it’s humiliating,” he admitted, sounding almost desperate. All that pride was gone; he looked so vulnerable, and you could see the pain written all over his face.


    When you can’t rein in your own feelings and desires, it’s pure agony.


    It’s not like a knife stabbing straight into you–it’s more like a swarm of tiny ants crawling all over your heart, biting and driving you crazy. The more you try to ignore it, the worse it gets.


    “If you think it’s humiliating, then stop creating these chances to run into me. Ryan’s not clueless- tonight he thought <i>you </i>were there for Isabelle. If you keep popping up at the wrong moments, what do you think he’ll start suspecting?” I said, my fear now reced by a calm, rational edge. If he couldn’t see the problem, I had to make it clear to him.


    Edward just stared at me for a moment, then gave a wry chuckle. “You know, you’re starting to sound a bit like me when I’m trying to be logical.”


    I shot him an annoyed re. “I’m just trying to find a way to handle this. Even you think this is wrong, Mr. Jennings, Shouldn’t you be making an effort to fix it?”


    “How do you know I haven’t tried? I’ve been holding myself back. I’m not asking for anything else–1 just wanted to see you, even if it’s like <b>this</b><b>,</b>” Edward said, his voice low and intense,


    “No, you just want someone to call you out and snap you back to reality,” I replied, my tone firm.


    Edward didn’t get mad; instead, he chuckled and nodded. “Honestly, you’re the only one who’d ever call me out to my face like this.”


    11:37 <b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>4 </b>Sept ti D


    “What about your dad? Wouldn’t he?” I snapped back without missing a beat.


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    Edward paused, caught off guard, and for a split second, I saw a sh of nervousness in his usually dark, steady eyes. He gave a self–deprecatingugh. “Oh, he would. He’d tear into me way worse than you ever could. I’m actually scared of him. But with you… no matter how much you yell or get mad, I just don’t feel afraid.”


    “Seriously, Edward, aren’t you a grown man? Do you really still need someone else to knock some sense into you? Shouldn’t adults be responsible for their own actions?” I was so shocked and angry, I couldn’t help but hit him where it hurt.


    Edward suddenly closed his eyes, lowered his head in silence, then nodded. “You’re right. But don’t


    worry, Ryan won’t suspect a thing. I’ll just get some woman to pretend to be with me–y the part


    so he doesn’t catch on.”


    “What?” I blurted out,pletely stunned. ‘That’s his idea of a solution?‘ I thought, unable to believe <ol><li>it. </li></ol>


    Edward tried to reassure me. “Don’t worry, I won’t put you in an awkward position. But you can’t stop me from wanting to see you.”


    “No, 1 can’t do this anymore. My heart can’t handle this kind of shock,” I blurted out, the fear almost


    overwhelming me.


    “That’s not your call, Victoria. I mean it–I really do like you. Tonight, there were so many gorgeous women, all dolled up in their fancy dresses, but none of them could hold a candle to you in that business suit. Watching you lean on Ryan like that… I was actually jealous,” Edward admitted, pouring


    out more than he’d ever said before.


    I stood there,pletely frozen, a cold numbness spreading through my whole body.


    “It’ste. I need to go rest,” I said angrily.


    Edward nodded. “Okay, go ahead.”


    I turned to leave, but after a few steps, I stopped and looked back at him. “Can we please just not see each other anymore? Seriously, okay?”


    Edward suddenly stepped forward, reached out, and gently plucked a leaf from my hair. “Honestly, even with your hair all messy, you still look pretty good.”


    For a moment, I waspletely speechless


    rushed toward the elevator,


    mind went nk. Freaked out, I spun around and


    11:37 <b>Thu</b><b>, </b><b>4 </b>Septi


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    When I got home, I stood in front of the mirror, still a little out of breath. My hair was a mess from napping on Ryan on the way back, but somehow, there was a certain messy beauty to the reflection staring back at me.


    I took off my pink pearl earrings and flopped onto the bed, feelingpletely drained. ‘How did things end up like this?‘ I wondered, exhausted.


    ‘Why does life feel like one big knot I can’t untangle?‘ The more I thought about it, the more frustrated


    I felt.


    ‘Why does Edward have to be so stubborn about chasing after me? Can’t he just like someone else for a change?‘


    ‘I’ve never even been nice to him. Every time I see him, I either hide or run away. Is he blind or something? Can’t he tell I want nothing to do with him?‘


    Just as my mind was spinning in chaos, my phone suddenly lit up with a few photos.


    They were from Jared–pictures of me and Edward under the tree just moments ago.


    I practically exploded off the bed, jolting upright in shock.


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    <b>11:37 </b>Thu<b>, </b><b>4 </b>Sept i D.