Chapter 288

After saying that, he shifted to lie on his side, pulling her gently into his arms. Louise Bennett felt her face heat up at his words. This kind of bold, unfiltered sweetness, this close brush with crossing a line—she’d never experienced anything like that with Edgar Shaw. And then, as if on cue, Edgar came to mind—the way he lashed out at her in the hospital that day, standing up for Ava Reed, not her. He didn’t believe her. He never had—not then, not now. Maybe he never really loved her at all. Just thinking about how gentle and proper he always acted around her, never really losing his cool—it only made things clearer. He was different with Ava. And if that’s the truth, then it was time to close that chapter and move on. Dominic Ellis held her close as his breathing slowly settled, then murmured, “We should get up and get ready. It’s getting late.” That snapped Louise out of her thoughts. She still had studying to do. She scrambled to sit up, but in her rush, accidentally pressed a