The next morning, I placed the letter from Melissa in my drawer.
Hidden. Like the part of me that still questioned everything.
Adrian walked into the room, tying his tie in the mirror.
"You're quiet today," he said.
"Just tired."
He turned. "Don't lie to me."
I met his gaze. "I'm not her, Adrian."
He frowned. "I never said you were."
"But you still see her in me, don't you?"
He came closer, his voice low. "I used to. I don't anymore."
I stared at him, unsure if I believed it.
"Then prove it," I said. "Tell me something you never told her."
He hesitated.
Then he said, "I was afraid of being alone. That's why I proposed to her. Not because I loved her. But because I thought she was the only one who could love me back."
My heart cracked.
"And now?" I whispered.
"I'm still afraid," he said. "But not of being alone. Of losing you."
---
That night, we went to a charity gala.
Cameras, reporters, fake smiles.
Melissa was there.
Of course she was.
She walked straight up to me, champagne in hand, and whispered, "You think he loves you now?"
I didn't flinch. "I know he does."
"Funny," she said. "He told me the same thing… right before he proposed."
My jaw tightened.
"I'm not you," I said calmly. "I don't run. I don't break people for fun."
"No," she said with a smirk. "You just steal."
I walked away before I lost my temper.
---
In the car ride home, Adrian reached for my hand.
I pulled away.
"What did she say?" he asked.
"Ask her," I muttered.
"Claire—"
"She's still in your past, Adrian. And you're still letting her control our present."
He sighed, frustrated. "You think I want this?"
"I don't know what you want anymore."
"Then why are you still here?" he snapped.
"Because I'm not a quitter. Not like her."
The car went silent.
I stared out the window, tears threatening to fall.
He didn't touch me that night.
And this time…
I didn't want him to.