When Damon came to, he was greeted by blinding white walls and the overpowering sting of disinfectant in the air. His head throbbed, heavy and foggy from the lingering effects of alcohol. His stomach twisted with a dull, sour ache.
He blinked, trying to make sense of the room as the world slowly came back into focus. Yvonne stood at the foot of his hospital bed, her eyes rimmed red–part anger, part exhaustion.
“Seriously, Damon? You’re going to ruin yourself over her? She’s just the housekeeper’s daughter. What is it about her that’s worth all this?”
His friends hovered nearby, their voices a tired chorus of concern.
“Emily’s been gone for a month, man. No calls, no texts–nothing. She’s doing this on purpose. It’s time to let her go.“”
Damon had heard it all before, over and over, day after day. None of it ever sank in. Not then, not
now.
His eyes were bloodshot and unfocused, lips pressed tight. Stubble shadowed his jaw, the only sign left of his stubbornness.
Seeing he wasn’t going to budge, Yvonne just shook her head, gave up, and walked out, slamming the door behind her.
Silence swallowed the room. The guys exchanged awkward glances, then tried again.
“Come on, Damon. With your status, you could have anyone. Why are you clinging to Emily?”
“Yeah, show her you don’t need her. You’ll have girls lining up, while she’ll realize she’s nothing
out you. She’ll come crawling back.”
helps, we could find you a few girls who look like Emily. Give it some time–you won’t even otice the difference.”
A glass hit the floor, shattering right at their feet. Water splashed across their expensive pants, and suddenly, none of them dared to breathe.
They remembered how they used to laugh at Emily–how she’d stuck by Damon when he’d lost his sight, how she’d devoted herself to a man everyone else had written off as a washed–up heir. They’d called her foolish. They’d thought nobody would ever want a man like him.
But slowly, their mockery turned to envy. These guys were all born into wealth, always surrounded by women, but none of them had ever met someone as loyal as Emily.
They kept trying to set Damon up with someone new. Even after he got his sight back and became the hottest name in town, he only ever had eyes for Emily.
Then Lea came back.
They kept up the act, pretending to care about Damon, but all the while, they were scheming
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Chapter 16
behind his back, setting him up with Lea. And this time, they actually succeeded. So much for true love, they thought. Maybe Emily needed to learn that no one is ever really sincere.
Now that Emily was gone, they figured Damon would finally let loose, go wild. But instead, he just lost it in a way they didn’t expect.
Now, they couldn’t even say her name without setting him off.
“Get out. All of you,” Damon’s voice was cold and flat. “And if any of you ever speak badly about Emily again, don’t blame me for what happens to your precious families.”
The threat hung in the air, chilling enough to send everyone scrambling for the exit.
The last guy out paused at the door, unwilling to let it go. Once outside, he pulled out his phone, found a photo of Emily, and sent it to his assistant.
“Study this face. Find me someone who looks just like her–the closer, the better.”
He glanced back at the closed door, eyes full of spite.
Let’s see how long Damon can keep pretending.
