THE realization hit her like a sting, sharp and sudden. He hadn’t shown up today. Amelia’s chest tightened, a flutter she hadn’t expected catching at her heart. ‘Why?’ she wanted to ask, wanted to know if something had kept him away, or if he had simply forgotten. But she held herself back, forcing her curiosity into quiet corners of her mind. The bartender gave no explanation, no hint of an excuse, and she let it slide, though it left an unusual emptiness lingering.
Something in her shifted. Maybe it was the absence of his voice, or the missing warmth of his presence, or perhaps just the hollow ache of an expectation unmet. She drained the last of her drink in one long swallow, her lips brushing the rim of the glass with a faint, distracted sigh.
Stepping out of the bar, Amelia let the
