It was two AM when Scarlett came home.The moment she pushed open the door, we just stared at each other. Neither of us spoke first.Scarlett’s gaze drifted to the candlelit dinner in the dining room, but there wasn’t a hint of guilt in her eyes. Instead, she exploded:”So what if I came home a little late?
! What was that SnapChat Story supposed to mean? You’re always so passive-aggressive, it’s so annoying!”Seeing I wasn’t responding, she tossed a tie at me.”Jax bought this specially for you. See how thoughtful he is? He said if you still don’t accept his apology, he’ll just delete his Ins account.”
I looked at the old creases on the tie and chuckled. An old tie. Probably one he’d worn himself. Jax really knew how to get under my skin.Scarlett saw me smile and probably thought I’d calmed down. She picked up my phone from the table and handed it to me.”Jax was so considerate, aren’t you going to thank him?
“I ignored her and kept watching TV.”Leo Sterling, are you deaf?”She yanked me up, and I lost my balance, crashing to the floor. And, just my luck, my back slammed into the corner of the table.God, it hurt!The injury on my back was from that fire seven years ago. I’d saved Scarlett, but heavy debris had fallen, hitting me and leaving an old wound that never truly healed.
I lay on the floor, clutching my back, trembling in agony.Scarlett looked at me, a flicker of guilt crossing her face.”I’ll go get the cream.”I looked up at her retreating back, wanting to stop her, but held my tongue.
That medical report in the drawer? It had been sitting there for three days. After the results came back, the doctor had been clear: early-stage stomach cancer. “Highly curable,” he’d said, “but you need to stay positive, watch your diet, take your meds, and be extremely careful.” Easy for him to say.Right next to the report were two tickets for a seven-day trip to Iceland. I’d planned to tell her on Valentine’s Day, hoping we could relax together before my surgery. Now? What’s the point?Scarlett rushed over with the first-aid kit, rummaging through it for a moment before stopping dead.
