I rake a hand through my hair, jaw clenched, the burn in my chest refusing to go out. “It’s a business move.”
“Sure,” James says lightly, but I can hear the shift in his voice, something more thoughtful, more cautious now. “Just making sure you’re still the one steering the ship.”
“I just want it done.”
He nods slowly, tapping the pen against the table again. “Fine. I’ll push it through.”
“Good.”
James leans back, arching a brow. “But if you start buying her flowers and quoting poetry, I’m staging an intervention.”
I glare at him.
He grins again. “See? Now that’s the Ben I know.”
But even he knows it’s not.
Not anymore.
This is the best move. Get the deal sorted. Get the hell out of here.
Just like before.
I grab my phone, checking my emails. Not a single one from her.
Not that I expected anything, Lila made herself clear. I haven’t stepped foot in the cafe since. Not even walked past. Not even had a decent coffee. Maybe that’s what’s really pissing me off. Not the rejection. Not the guilt.
Just caffeine withdrawal.
Right.
I scrub a hand down my face, rolling my neck, trying to shake the tension sitting like lead in my chest. I need to stop thinking about this. Need to focus.
But before I go, before I leave this town for good, there’s one thing left to do.
I glance at my watch, push back from the desk, and grab my coat.
Because it’s been too many years.
It’s time.
*****
The graveyard is quiet.
Too quiet.
The kind of quiet that seeps into your bones, filling the spaces between your ribs with something you don’t want to name.
The early signs of spring are everywhere. Snowdrops scattered across the grass, delicate and unbothered by the weight of the past. The sunlight filters through the yew trees, long golden streaks cutting across mossy headstones, casting soft, shifting shadows. The air is crisp, carrying that damp, earthy scent of old stone and fresh growth.
It doesn’t belong here.
Spring. Renewal.
Not in a place built on endings.
I shove my hands into my coat pockets, my jaw locking as I take the last few steps toward the grave.
