“I’ll call you back.”
“Wait—don’t?—”
Too late.
I killed the comm and started walking.
She noticed me before I reached her.
Smart.
Her body shifted, just enough to tell me she’d clocked me as a possible threat. Her shoulders didn’t stiffen. Her face didn’t panic. But her eyes sharpened, tracking me with quiet caution.
That wasn’t the girl I remembered.
The girl I remembered used to run barefoot throughsummer grass and steal fries off my plate when she thought I wasn’t looking.
This woman looked like she knew exactly how dangerous the world could be.
“Can I help you?” she asked.
Calm. Polite. Controlled.
I stopped a few feet away.
For a second, I forgot every word I’d ever known.
Because this close, the resemblance wasn’t just strong.
It was impossible.
“Felicity?”
The name slipped out rougher than I meant it to.
Her brows drew together. “That’s me.”
My chest tightened.
She didn’t say it like she was surprised I knew her.
She said it like she had no idea who I was.
I stared at her, waiting for the flash of recognition.
The gasp.
The smile.
The anger.
Hell, I would’ve taken a slap.
Instead, she just looked at me like I was a stranger standing too close on a public sidewalk.
“Do I know you?” she asked.
That hit harder than it should have.
