Chapter 94 Words I couldn't say

Chapter 94 Words I couldn't say
Vincent's pov

I had spent the entire afternoon trying to convince myself that staying busy would be enough. It wasn’t. No matter how hard I threw myself into work, barking orders and burying myself in the usual grind, nothing stuck. Every time I shoved Elara out of my head, she found her way back in—those stubborn eyes that refused to back down, her trembling voice when she was trying to be brave, and the way her lips had felt under mine, soft and warm and completely disarming.

I cursed under my breath, low and rough. This was becoming a real problem. No… she was becoming the problem.

I’d learned that lesson the hard way with Genevieve. I’d let myself get obsessed, let those feelings turn me reckless and blind. Never again. Emotions clouded a man’s judgment. They made people weak. They got people killed. I knew that better than anyone.

Yet here I was, despite avoiding her room all day, despite telling myself distance was the only smart move, and Elara still filled every corner of my thoughts.

“Vincent.”

I stopped walking the second I heard her voice. For half a second I considered ignoring it and just keeping going. Instead, I turned around slowly.

Genevieve stood a few feet away, watching me with that look I knew too well. She wanted answers I wasn’t in the mood to give.

“We need to talk,” she said.

“I don’t.”

I turned to leave, but she stepped right in front of me.

“You’ve been avoiding me.”

“I’ve been busy.”

“No.” Her voice went quiet. “You’ve been avoiding me.”

I stayed silent. She searched my face like she could somehow read everything I was refusing to admit, even to myself.

“You’ve changed.”

“I haven’t.”

“You have.” Sadness crept into her eyes. “You don’t even look at me anymore.”

I looked past her shoulder, jaw tight. I knew where this was going, and I hated it.

“I have work to do.”

“This won’t take long.”

“It already has.”

She let out a bitter little laugh. “You were never this impatient with me.”

I clenched my jaw. “I don’t have time for this. Say what you need to say before I walk away.”

“Is it because of her?”

Our eyes finally met. Genevieve noticed the shift immediately. A sad smile touched her lips.

“So I’m right. I knew it.”

I didn’t answer. The silence said enough. In that quiet stretch, I finally understood why the old feelings for her had died. But I was still going to fight whatever this was with Elara. I had to. I was still turning that over in my head when her voice cut through again.

“I still love you.” The words hung heavy in the air between us. “I never stopped.”

I just stared at her. She stepped closer.

“I know I made mistakes. I know I hurt you, but I’m still here. I’m still waiting… for us.”

She reached for my hand. I stepped back on instinct. It was a small movement, but I saw the hurt flash across her face.

“Vincent…”

“Genevieve,” I called out, my voice cold and flat. “If we talk about that, trust me, you'll be hurt.”

She looked at me like I was a stranger. “Sonyou’re choosing her over me?”

Something tightened painfully in my chest. “This has nothing to do with Elara.”

“Then why are you pushing me away?”

I literally didn’t have any answer to that…Just that whatever we had, faded slowly.

My silence was answer enough. I turned and walked away without another word. I didn’t stop until I was in my room.

The second the door clicked shut, the silence pressed in, thick and heavy. I stood there for a long moment, just staring at nothing. With a tired sigh, I loosened my collar and crossed to the cabinet by the window. I poured a drink more out of habit than anything else, then braced both hands on the table’s edge.

Genevieve’s shocked face kept flashing through my mind—the hurt, the disbelief. I’d never spoken to her like that before. Not once. No matter how bad things got between us, I’d always kept control. Until today. Until she brought Elara into it.

My grip tightened on the glass.

“Damn it.”

I took a slow sip, hoping the burn would pull me out of it. It didn’t. My mind went straight to Elara instead.

I remembered how she’d looked at me after I bandaged her ankle—trying so hard to hide the pain behind that stubborn little frown. Then the memory I’d been burying all day hit me again: the kiss. It had happened so fast, but I could still feel everything—the softness of her lips, the way she’d frozen at first before melting into me, the unexpected warmth that had spread through my chest and shaken me worse than any fight ever had.

I closed my eyes.

“No.”

It came out as a rough whisper.

This wasn’t love. It couldn’t be. I’d already seen what that kind of feeling did to me with Genevieve. I wasn’t going through it again. That was exactly why I’d stayed away from Elara all day. Distance was the only thing that made sense. If I kept letting her get close, this feeling would only get stronger.

A soft knock pulled me out of my thoughts. Before I could answer, the door creaked open. My heart reacted before anything else. I already knew who it was.

That sweet scent.

When I turned and saw Elara standing there, hesitant in the doorway, something inside me eased in a way I hated. She looked unsure, fingers twisting together like she was second-guessing herself for coming. For one stupid moment, I was just glad to see her. My pulse kicked up, completely out of line.

“What is it?” I asked, keeping my voice as even as I could.

She stepped inside and closed the door behind her. “I… wanted to talk to you. To tell you something.”

I waited.

She dropped her gaze. “Carl and I are leaving tomorrow.”

The words hit like a punch to the gut.

Tomorrow.

She was leaving tomorrow.

For a long second, I forgot how to breathe. After everything we’d been through, after every risk and every moment, she was just… walking away. The rational part of me knew this was what I’d wanted. I’d spent all day convincing myself distance was necessary. So why the hell did it feel like someone had shoved a knife straight through my chest?

I locked every trace of feeling off my face. “If that’s what you’ve decided,” I said evenly, “then I wish you a safe journey.”

She looked up, surprise clear in her eyes. “That’s… all you’re going to say?”

“What else is there to say?”

“I just thought…” She hesitated, voice small. “I don’t know what I thought.”

Neither did I. Because if I let myself say what I was really thinking, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to let her go.

“I owe you my life,” she said quietly. “I just… wanted to thank you.”

“You already have.”

The silence stretched between us, heavy and awkward. Finally she gave a small nod.

“I should go.”

“Goodbye, then,” I said, the words coming out colder than I meant.

Hurt flickered across her face before she hid it behind a polite smile. “Goodbye, Vincent.”

She turned and walked to the door. I didn’t stop her. I couldn’t. The door clicked shut behind her.

Only then did I let the mask drop. I stared at that closed door for what felt like forever, the silence in the room suddenly unbearable. My fingers tightened around the glass until it creaked. One more second and it would shatter. I barely cared.

She was really leaving. Just like that. After everything…

And for the first time in years, I caught myself wishing I’d said something—anything—to make her stay.