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Chapter 62 – Arya's POV
"The Truth Between the Lines"
Two months.
That's how long it had been since that quiet night Damon and I found each other again. Since I let myself believe, even just a little, that maybe people could change.
Life moved fast after that. I buried myself in the gallery, preparing for our next showcase. Damon had been more present, more patient. And Amara... she had returned to her usual confident, driven self — on the outside at least.
But something had shifted in her.
I didn't notice it at first. She laughed at the same jokes. She still rolled her eyes dramatically when I asked about her non-existent love life. She still wore heels that made statements louder than words.
Yet, every now and then, I'd catch her looking out the window. Not distracted — distant.
She had changed, and I couldn't figure out why.
Until today.
It started with the smallest thing.
We were at the gallery office, going through guest lists and RSVPs for the upcoming charity event. Amara had just finished a call when Ethan walked in.
I'd invited him to the event planning meeting — reluctantly, I'll admit. Things between Damon and Ethan were still a little awkward, though neither man would admit it. But Ethan had connections, and this fundraiser needed high-profile donors.
He walked in casually, dressed in his usual clean-cut, tailored style. Calm. Sharp. Focused.
And the second he stepped into the room, I saw it.
Amara straightened. Just slightly. Smoothed her skirt. Flipped her hair like she didn't even realize she was doing it.
But I noticed.
Then came the part that gave it all away — Ethan greeted everyone with a nod… except her.
He paused.
Only for a second. Barely noticeable.
But in that pause, I felt it. Something thick. Tense.
He said her name softly. "Amara."
And she just gave him a tight-lipped smile. "Ethan."
No flirting. No sarcasm. No sparkly-eyed banter.
Just restraint.
That's when it clicked.
The way she never talked about him anymore. How her eyes avoided his in group conversations. How she never stayed in the same room alone with him longer than necessary.
Amara wasn't avoiding him out of hate.
She was avoiding him out of hurt.
I sat there, stunned, as realization sank in.
She had feelings for him.
Real feelings.
And suddenly, everything made sense — the tension at that dinner months ago, the way she froze when I mentioned Ethan's name in passing, the flickers of emotion in her eyes that she tried to bury under indifference.
Amara had a crush on Ethan.
Maybe more than a crush.
And judging by the way Ethan looked at her when she wasn't paying attention, I wasn't sure it was one-sided.
After the meeting, I pulled her aside in the hallway.
She looked tired, guarded — like she knew I had seen too much.
"What's up?" she asked casually, flipping through her phone like she wasn't waiting for me to bring it up.
I took a breath. "Why didn't you tell me?"
She didn't look up. "Tell you what?"
"About you and Ethan."
Her fingers froze on the screen. Just for a second.
Then she shoved the phone into her bag. "There's nothing to tell."
"Amara—"
She cut me off, voice tight. "Seriously, Arya. Drop it."
But I couldn't. I wouldn't.
"Is that why you've been distant lately?" I asked gently. "You like him, don't you?"
She hesitated.
Then she laughed — but it was hollow. "Liked. Past tense."
I tilted my head. "Are you sure about that?"
She didn't answer. Her eyes looked past me like she was somewhere else entirely.
"You know what's worse than falling for someone you can't have?" she said softly. "Falling for someone who almost made you believe you could."
My heart cracked a little hearing that.
Because I'd been there once too — when I thought Damon was gone forever and Ethan was the only light I had.
I reached for her hand, but she shook her head and stepped back.
"I'm okay," she said. "I promise. I'll get over it."
I wanted to believe her. But I saw the pain she wasn't showing.
She wasn't just trying to get over Ethan.
She was trying to forget he ever mattered.
And somehow, that hurt even more.