My chest ached so badly I thought I might shatter. I’d ironed those same shirts, thinking I was building a life with him. But all I’d really been doing was preserving a ghost.
Loriana turned, her eyes glinting with that perfect blend of nostalgia and pity. “You’ve done well, really,” she said softly. “Not every woman could live surrounded by someone else’s memories.”
I couldn’t speak. The silence pressed down like a confession I hadn’t meant to make.
Then she stopped in front of the wall where our wedding photos hung. Her expression softened, and she let out a quiet laugh.
“How funny,” she murmured. “Dominic and I used to talk about doing three photoshoots; desert, ocean, and forest. We never got to finish them before I left. Looks like you two made my dreams come true.”
I froze. My stomach twisted.
Those exact themes… he’d chosen them himself. I’d thought he was romantic, creative. Turns out, he was just finishing what she started.
My vision blurred for a moment. Then a voice cut through the air, sharp and cold.
“What are you doing here?”
Dominic stood by the doorway, his face hard, eyes darting between us.