PART 3 – CHAPTER 162
JESS
The airport felt like a blur of sound and movement, a constant hum in the background as we made our way through the terminal and out to the car. I barely registered any of it, my mind spinning in a hundred different directions. The moment we were buckled into the car, the silence felt heavier than it should have. Aiden didn’t say a word, his jaw tight as he started the engine and pulled us onto the highway.
The landscape blurred past us. I stared out the window, trying to focus on the passing trees and the distant horizon–anything but the knot growing tighter in my chest.
I could feel Aiden glancing at me every few minutes, his frustration simmering just beneath the surface. I knew it wouldn’t take long before he broke the silence. It never did.
After what felt like hours but was probably only ten minutes, Aiden finally sighed loudly and gripped the steering wheel tighter, knuckles turning white. “What the hell is wrong now?” His voice was sharp, cutting through the tension in the car like a knife. “You’ve been quiet ever since we got off the plane. You barely said anything the entire flight. You gonna tell me what’s going on, or do I have to guess?”
I shifted in my seat, trying to keep my expression neutral. “It’s nothing,” I lied, forcing a weak smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “I’m just tired.”
Aiden’s eyes flicked over to me again, narrowing in suspicion. “Right. Just tired.” His tone was dripping with disbelief. “Come on, Jess. I’m not an idiot. You’ve been acting weird for weeks now. What’s going on?”
I kept my gaze on the road ahead, my pulse quickening. The words I wanted to say were jumbled up in my head. I need space. I’m not happy. I think I need to end this. But instead, what came out was a weak, “It’s nothing, Aiden. Seriously.”
But inside, the truth screamed louder. I was considering leaving him. I wasn’t sure how or when, but the thought was there, lingering like a shadow I couldn’t ignore. The safety I used to feel with him was gone, replaced by this growing sense of suffocation. Everything between us felt strained and fake. And now I wasn’t sure if there was anything left to hold on to.
Aiden’s voice snapped me back to the present. “Is this about Luke?” he asked, his tone sharp and laced with jealousy. “Did you remember something about him?”
I whipped my head toward him, eyes wide. “What? No. It has nothing to do with Luke,” I said a little too quickly. The lie left a bitter taste in my mouth. Luke was always there, wasn’t he? In the back of my mind, the confusion about him and us gnawed at me constantly. But this wasn’t about him. Not entirely.
“Right,” Aiden scoffed, his voice rising with frustration. “You think I don’t see the way you get when his name comes up? The way you freeze, like you’re hiding something. It’s always fucking Luke, isn’t it?”
“No!” I snapped, my voice sharper than I intended. “It’s not about him! Why do you always bring him up?”
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PART 4 CHAPTER 162
288 Wouchere
The car fell into a tense silence, the air thick with unspoken accusations. My chest tightened, anger bubbling up inside me. It wasn’t about Luke. It wasn’t even about Aiden–at least, not completely. It was about me, about how lost I felt, how I didn’t know who I was anymore or what I wanted.
Aiden gripped the steering wheel harder, his knuckles pale. “I’m not stupid, Jess. Do you think I don’t notice how you’ve been pulling away? How every time we talk about the future, you just go quiet?”
I clenched my fists in my lap, my nails digging into my palms. “You’re being paranoid. I’m just… figuring things out. It has nothing to do with Luke.”
Aiden didn’t respond immediately, but the way his jaw clenched and his grip on the wheel tightened made it clear he didn’t believe me. He was silent for a few more moments, and for a second, I thought maybe he’d drop it. But then his voice cut through the tension again, low and dangerous.
“Maybe I should just drive you back to the airport,” he said, his words dripping with bitterness. “You know, so you can go back to him!”
My stomach dropped. “Aiden, stop.”
“No, really,” he continued, his voice hardening. “If he’s the one you want, if this is all about him, why are we even doing this? Why are you with me, Jess? To stop you from feeling lonely at night?”
I swallowed hard, the words catching in my throat. Why was I with him? The question lingered, unspoken, as we sped down the highway, the silence between us more deafening than the
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roar of the engine.
“I think, maybe you should sleep softly, the truth more complicate
