Page 109 of Obsessing Over His Favorite

He searched her eyes.

“Please understand—it was just business. Nothing more. You get that, right?”

Emily tilted her head slightly, her gaze dropping to the hand he’d placed on her knee. She slowly unwrapped his fingers and placed them back onto his knee.

Then she looked him in the eye.

“What a waste of my five years.”

Lucas froze.

He stood up from his knees, and he leaned in close again. His hand braced against the armrest of her chair as he bent down, dipping his face close to hers.

In a low, sincere whisper against her ear, he spoke with the same calm conviction that once comforted her. “Once this deal is done, everything will settle. My business will stabilize. Everything I have will be yours too, Emily. This is temporary. Just for show. I’m still yours.”

Emily met his gaze silently.

Then she rose smoothly to her feet, standing face-to-face with him. She lifted her chin, locking eyes him.

And then—

Smack.

Her palm struck his cheek sharply, the sound echoing through the still room.

Lucas’s head jerked to the side, surprise and pain flashing across his face. His body stiffened, frozen for a heartbeat.

“There will never be anything between us again, Lucas.” Her voice was steady, cold.

She spun on her heel, the hem of her dress sweeping the floor as she turned to leave.

Suddenly, Lucas’s hand shot out, grabbing her arm with a rough grip that halted her steps. His fingers tightened around her wrist.

“Emily, you still love me,” he growled, his voice raw and desperate. His eyes burned with a fierce need, searching her face for something, anything. “You’ve loved me for five years. That doesn’t just disappear!”

Her body tensed.

She twisted around, looking him dead in the eyes.

“This is no longer about whether I love you or not. This is now about my heart. And my goddamn heart—” she yanked her arm from his grip, “—isjustnot that into you anymore.”

Those words hit him harder than the slap.

The impact tore through him, unraveling his composure in seconds. He stood frozen, unable to move or speak, as her voice echoed relentlessly in his ears.

Every syllable seemed to tighten around his chest, making his blood run cold.

Emily had always loved him.There had never been any doubt about that. From the very beginning of their relationship, her love had been the one thing he was sure of.

She had never—even in anger or as a joke—said she didn’t love him. Never once hinted at wanting to leave. She had loved him openly, fiercely, without hesitation.

For five years, she had loved him constantly. Shamelessly. Openly.

So when she said those words in that detached, icy voice, it knocked the breath out of his chest.

Emily turned and walked out of the hall. The noise and chatter continued around her—unaware, indifferent. People were too busy fawning over Amelia’s latest collection, too busy flattering the ‘the next billionaire wife’ to notice the tension that had just erupted between Emily and Lucas.

Lucas stayed rooted, watching her retreat until she disappeared from sight.