Amelia couldn't understand it—couldn't understand how he could kiss another woman just days ago, then turn around and try to kiss her now.
Was his mouth some kind of trash can?
Is this just what men are like? Able to separate love from sex, never really choosing, never really caring?
There was nothing tender or desirable about his touch. No heat, no passion. Just a sickening revulsion that twisted her stomach until she nearly doubled over.
Like a cornered cat, every nerve on edge, she lashed out with all the sharpness she could muster. For the first time in her life, she fought back with such unfiltered anger, biting down on his lips without a second thought.
He hissed in pain. Blood welled up, and as Daniel jerked away, Amelia’s palm cracked across his face with a sound that echoed through the cramped car like a church bell rung too close to the ear.
Daniel’s handsome profile turned sharply, the haze in his eyes clearing. It was as if her slap had snapped him out of whatever trance he’d been in.
Amelia shoved open the car door and stumbled to the curb, bending over as her stomach heaved.
Sophia, startled, hurried over. “What’s wrong? Did the sight of that jerk make you sick?”
Daniel climbed out as well, fetching a bottle of water and some tissues from the Rolls parked nearby. He offered them to Amelia.
She knocked his hand away without looking at him. Daniel could only hand them to Sophia, and when Sophia passed them over, Amelia finally accepted.
Daniel stood there, uncertain, watching as Amelia rinsed her mouth and wiped her lips. For a good ten seconds, his mind went blank.
Mr. Campbell, always so composed and calculating, was almost never at a loss for words. But now, everything inside him just… stopped. Only a wave of raw feeling churned in his chest, forcing him to face a brutal truth.
Just his touch was enough to make her physically ill.
“I’m sorry,” he said at last. “I never realized you hated me that much.”
The winter wind cut through the parking lot, sharp and dry. Maybe it was the chill that made his voice sound so rough and defeated that even Sophia looked at him, just once, with something like pity.
After indulging herself for a few days, Sophia called Daniel and told him she wanted to return the car. She put it plainly, “I’m not the type to take advantage, especially not of my best friend’s ex. You can have your car back.”
Daniel was busy reviewing the new year’s project lists and hadn’t given the car a single thought. “If you don’t want it, give it to Amelia. It’s hers now.”
Sophia relayed the message, and only then did Amelia remember—it was already mid-February, and everyone was starting to head back to work.
Daniel had disappeared these past few days. He hadn’t even tried to contact her from an unknown number. She’d almost managed to forget he existed.
When she unlocked her phone, a reminder popped up: only one month left until March 12th.
March 12th. The day she would leave.
Thirty days left until she was gone.
Amelia stared at the screen for a long moment. Then she closed the app and dialed Mr. Harper’s number.
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