It wasn’t an exaggeration the moment those words left his mouth, a fiery surge of rage exploded in her chest, suffocating her.

There was a thin line between love and hate. She only hurt this much because she had cared about him so deeply, fueling an anger she couldn’t contain.

“Save your breath, I don’t believe a word you say!”

In a fit of fury, Amara yanked her arm out of his grasp and glared at him.

Her eyes blazed with intense, undeniable wrath.

Amara was usually so calm and composed. To see her explode with such pure, visceral anger left Finnian momentarily stunned into silence.

“Amara, please, just listen to me—” he started, desperate to bridge the gap.

“Shut up! I don’t want to hear it!”

She couldn’t stand being near him for another second. She shoved him back. “Get out of my sight! Don’t touch me, and don’t ever speak to me again!”

66

The way she looked at him-like he was something filthy and revolting shattered him.

An agonizing pain tore through his chest, radiating to his very core until he could barely breathe.

Seeing the sheer devastation etched on his face made Amara’s heart twist, despite her anger.

But she refused to stay and argue in circles. She spun on her heel and walked away.

Back in the lounge, Amara sank onto the sofa, pressing a hand to her aching chest.

It took a long time for her erratic heartbeat to settle.

She had loved him for so long. Even knowing exactly who he was, she couldn’t seem to erase him from her mind, and that attachment only guaranteed she would keep getting hurt.

But he was the one constantly crossing boundaries, showing up uninvited to mess with her head.

If he had just left her alone, maybe she would have finally moved on by now.

After sitting in numb silence for a while, she finally gathered the strength to return to work.

Finnian left the set like a man walking to his own execution. The memory of Amara’s disgust and her venomous tone played on a loop in his mind, tearing him apart. Coment

He paced blindly outside the studio for several minutes before finally summoning the energy to get into his car.

He didn’t start the engine right away. He sat in the driver’s seat, staring darkly out the window, lost in his own suffocating thoughts.

After five long minutes, he finally put the car in gear. But he didn’t drive home. He headed straight back to the hospital.

He strode into Liliana’s room. She had just woken up from the anesthesia, wincing at the sharp pain radiating from her torso.

But she didn’t care about the pain. If this was what it took to keep Finnian coming back, she would gladly suffer through it.

Speak of the devil the door clicked open, and Finnian walked in.

Liliana’s eyes lit up instantly. “Finnian! You came back?”

She tried to shift her weight to greet him, but a sharp spike of agony forced her back against the pillows.

She had been so disappointed when she woke up to find him gone. Jenny had told her he left, and she thought she wouldn’t see him again today To have him return so quickly feft like a massive victory.

“Give us a minute. I need to speak with her alone.”

Finnian directed the command at Jenny, his eyes fixed entirely on Liliana.