Because right now, I don’t give a damn about press statements or damage control or any of it.
All I care about is the woman I just walked away from.
And figuring out how to prove to her we’re worth fighting for.
Even if she doesn’t believe it yet.
Chapter Seventeen
Olivia
The silence in my apartment is deafening.
Standing at the window, I watch Carter’s truck pull out of the parking lot, and the urge to run after him nearly brings me to my knees. Every instinct screams at me to call him back, to take it all back, to tell him I didn’t mean it.
But I did mean it.
Sort of.
I don’t know anymore.
My phone sits on the coffee table, screen dark and accusing. I haven’t turned it back on since leaving Mark’s office. Can’t bring myself to face the notifications, the messages, the hateful comments that are probably still multiplying by the second.
Instead, I do what I always do when life gets overwhelming.
I clean.
The apartment is already spotless, but I scrub the kitchen counters anyway. Wipe down surfaces that don’t need wiping. Organize cabinets that are already organized. Anything to keep my hands busy and my mind from spiraling.
It doesn’t work.
Because all I can see is the look on Carter’s face when I asked for space. The way his jaw tightened. The pain in his eyes he tried so hard to hide.
The way he walked away without fighting me on it.
Maybe that’s what hurts most. He just… left. He let me push him away without more of a fight.
Except that’s not fair, and I know it. He offered to fight. Offered to hold a press conference, to defend me publicly, to risk everything for us.
And I told him no.
Because I’m a coward.
A knock on my door makes me jump. For one wild second, I think it’s Carter. That he came back. That he’s going to tell me we’ll figure this out together whether I like it or not.
But when I open the door, it’s not Carter.
It’s my best friend, Maya.
“I brought wine,” she says, holding up two bottles. “And ice cream. And those fancy chocolates you like but claim you don’t eat.”
I burst into tears.
“Oh, honey.” Maya pushes her way inside, setting everything on the counter before pulling me into a fierce hug. “I know. I know.”
Sobbing into her shoulder, I ugly crying in a way I haven’t since my modeling career ended. She just holds me, rubbing my back, making soothing sounds until I finally pull away.
“How did you know?” I manage through hiccups.
