CHAPTER 14
LARA’S POV
The next morning felt… wrong. Not loud wrong. Not dramatic wrong. Just that quiet heaviness in my chest that made everything feel slightly out of place. I barely slept.
Sadie had already left for work, leaving behind a sticky note on my fridge:
“Don’t cry again. Eat. I’ll come later.”
I stared at it for a few seconds. Then smiled faintly.
At least someone in my life still knew how to care without questioning my integrity first. I sat down slowly and ate. Then, forced myself into the routine. Shower. Clothes. Makeup—light enough to look like I was fine, heavy enough to hide what I wasn’t.
Fine. That was the word everyone liked.
I was fine.
Work at Blackstone felt different too. Or maybe I was different.
People greeted me normally, but I kept noticing things I
