The driver immediately opened the door for him, but Elias didn’t say a single word as he got inside.
The entire ride home passed in complete silence.
He leaned back against the seat with his eyes fixed ahead, his expression blank, yet something heavy and shattered lingered in his gaze.
When he finally entered the house, he still didn’t speak.
He walked straight into the living room and sat down on the couch.
Hours passed.
The sun disappeared completely, and darkness slowly swallowed the entire house, but Elias never bothered turning on the lights.
He sat there motionless, his elbows resting on his knees as he stared into the darkness, memories replaying endlessly inside his head. Hours passed while he read through every message Amara had sent him when he was in Australia.
Her love. Her anger. Her pleading. Her fear.
Every emotion poured through those texts so vividly that each word made his chest ache harder than the last, until he could barely breathe anymore.
He remembered how Amara used to proudly introduce herself as Mrs. Creed every chance she got. She never allowed anyone to think otherwise.
She had loved being his wife.
And he had loved hearing it.
A bitter ache spread through his chest as he remembered the way she used to cling to him, the way she always looked at him like he was her entire world.
He had barely been able to keep his hands off her back then.
Amara had been the brightest thing in his life.
A warmth he never realized he depended on until it was gone.
And he had destroyed it himself.
Elias dragged a tired hand down his face before leaning back heavily against the couch.
He truly thought he was doing what was best for her.
Giving her space.
Handling problems alone.
Protecting her from the mess in their lives.
But instead, he had hurt her in every possible way.
The darkness around him felt suffocating.
After a long time, he finally let out the breath he had been holding and muttered hoarsely into the empty room,
“No wonder you stopped calling yourself Mrs. Creed.”
His eyes lowered.
He remembered the exact moment she had started introducing herself as Amara Hawk again instead of Amara Creed.
At the time, he hadn’t paid much attention to it.
