Chapter 187

Chapter 187: Chapter 187

Samuel’s POV

Aria’s mother was staying in a private room on the second floor. When I knocked, her caretaker was peeling fruit for her.

Seeing her up close, I finally understood where Aria got that face from. The same delicate features. The same warm, gentle smile.

"Thank you for coming to see me." Aria’s mother looked at me, her eyes already glistening. "It’s been a long time since anyone visited."

"Garrett’s been tied up with pack business, but you’re always on his mind." I pulled out the chair beside her bed and sat down. "The second he gets the chance, he’ll come."

"I know he will." She stayed composed, lifting her chin just a little, that steady smile still on her face. "I keep telling myself that once I’m a little better, I’ll go home. I really miss it there."

We talked for a while. She told me about the garden outside her window, the nurses she liked, and the book she’d been reading. The conversation was easy, almost light.

Later, I spoke to the doctor in private. The outlook wasn’t good. Moving her right now would be too risky.

I saved the doctor’s number, then went back to say goodbye.

"You’re leaving already?" Aria’s mother looked disappointed.

"I’m afraid so."

"My daughter will be here any minute. If you can wait a bit, I can introduce you two properly. She’s a wonderful girl."

I hesitated. Aria would probably rather chew glass than sit across from me again.

Before I could decide, the door opened.

"Mom—"

Aria stopped dead in the doorway. Her eyes landed on me, and her whole body went rigid.

"Perfect timing." Her mother beamed. "This is Samuel, Garrett’s friend. He came all this way just to visit me. Aria, take him somewhere nice for a meal. It’s the least we can do."

"No need." I could see the resistance written all over her. "Your mother is being well cared for. I should go."

I didn’t promise I’d visit again. I’ve never been the type to hand out pretty lies just to sound good.

I turned and headed for the door.

Aria stood there, staring hard at the wall like even one glance at me was too much.

"Go on, walk him out," her mother urged from the bed.

Aria followed behind me, down the hallway, down the stairs, then across the courtyard. The whole way, she didn’t say a word.

I stopped walking. "Is being around me really that unbearable?"

"That’s not even the issue between us." Her tone was stiff as a board. "I need to go back to my mom."

She turned to leave, and I caught her wrist.

She jolted all over and yanked her hand free, eyes wide. "What are you doing?"

"I need to tell you something. Your boyfriend is seeing another woman."

Her face went cold in an instant. "You’re unbelievable. I actually thought you were a decent person. Guess I was wrong."

"It’s fine if you don’t believe me now. Sooner or later, you’ll see the truth." I kept my voice as even as I could. "Just... protect yourself."

"Stay out of my life." She spun around and walked off.

I stood in the courtyard and watched her disappear behind the door. My chest felt weirdly hollow, like everything inside had been scooped out, leaving behind nothing but a shell.

When I got back to the hotel, I booked a flight home for early the next morning.

That night, thunder sounded like it wanted to rip the sky in half. Rain slammed down in sheets, rattling the windows nonstop. Every few minutes, lightning tore across the dark and bleached the room white.

My phone buzzed once: flight delayed. By morning, the airline had canceled it altogether.

I stared out at the rain pouring down like a solid curtain of water and decided to extend my stay.

The rain never let up. I went downstairs for breakfast, and on my way back through the lobby, I heard a commotion. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

Sharp, messy voices bounced off the marble floor. I wouldn’t have stopped, except I recognized one of them.

"Aria, just let me explain—"

I turned toward the sound and saw a slender figure rush through the revolving doors and vanish into the pounding rain.

Kyle was standing near the elevators. The rich girl I’d seen with him in the elevator before had both hands wrapped around his arm, trying to hold him back.

"She already saw us. There’s no point chasing after her now." The girl didn’t care in the slightest who was watching. "Just let her go."

Kyle didn’t follow.

He let the girl pull him back toward the elevator, and a second later, the doors slid shut.

I stared at the spot where Aria had been standing three seconds ago. The lobby was still buzzing, people whispering, side-eyeing, eating up the drama.

I walked to the front desk, borrowed an umbrella, and stepped out into the storm.

The rain came at me like a wall. I scanned the area and asked the doorman which way she’d gone, but he hadn’t seen her.

I circled the building, checked the side streets, searched every corner and every strip of shadow under the eaves.

The rain was so heavy visibility was basically trash. I could barely make out anything ten feet away.

Finally, I found her behind the building. She was curled up in a narrow gap between the wall and the dumpster enclosure.

The tiny awning above her was useless against the rain being whipped sideways by the wind. She was soaked through, her wet hair stuck to her face, her arms wrapped tightly around her knees.

I lifted the umbrella over her, blocking as much of the rain as I could.

She looked up. First she saw the umbrella. Then she saw me.

The second she recognized me, she scrambled to her feet, ready to bolt.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her back under the umbrella. "Dressed like that, where exactly do you think you’re going?"

"Leave me alone." Every word came out shaking.

"I’m not here to make things worse." I didn’t let go. "You’re an adult. You have every right to be hurt, and every right to cry. But don’t wreck your body over something he did. If you get sick standing out here, the person who’ll worry most is your mother."

My voice was firm. That was what she needed right now, not softness.

She stopped struggling. Her shoulders loosened little by little, no longer wound so tight.

I let go of her hand. "Go upstairs, take a hot shower, and change your clothes. Don’t waste even one more second of your health on a man who isn’t worth it."

She bit her lip, trembling all over, rain and tears running together down her cheeks.

"I want to go home."

"In weather like this, you won’t get a cab. And no driver is going to want a completely soaked passenger in the car." I looked her straight in the eye. "Aria, I’m just an ordinary man. If I meant you harm, I would’ve already done something. Right now, I’m just the person standing here holding an umbrella. That’s all this is."

She kept staring at the ground, her chest rising and falling hard.

"Can you walk on your own, or do you need me to take you there?"

"I can walk." She wiped her face with the back of her hand and started toward the entrance.

I held the umbrella over both of us and followed her inside.

In the elevator, she crossed her arms and kept sniffling, a small puddle gathering by her feet. I watched the floor numbers climb and said nothing.

I opened the room door and led her toward the bathroom. "Take a shower first. I’ll find you something dry to change into."

She went into the bathroom, and I stepped back out.

Fifteen minutes later, I came back carrying a shopping bag from the hotel boutique. I set it by the bathroom door and knocked. "Your clothes are outside. Take your time. I’ll be in the other room."

I stood by the window and lit a cigarette. The rain outside was unreal, so heavy the buildings across the street looked blurred out behind it, like ghosts.

The bedroom door opened.