Chapter 14

He kissed me, his tone gentle, but his actions anything but.

"Ethan, let go of me!" I gasped, trying to push him away.

But he only deepened the kiss, stealing my breath, ignoring my resistance.

I don't know how long it lasted. His scent clung to me, familiar and suffocating.

And yet… all I wanted was to escape.

"Ethan… it's useless," I whispered against his lips, my voice barely holding together.

I knew why he was trying so hard, it was because I had amnesia. He thought if I remembered everything, I'd come running back.

But it didn't work that way.

"I know myself," I said quietly. "Even if I don't love you now because I've forgotten… I can feel it. Even if I remembered everything, I'd still want a divorce."

For a moment, he froze.

Then I saw it, raw panic flashing through his eyes. I'd never seen him look like that before.

He gripped my hand tightly, fingers entwining with mine, almost painfully so.

"No, Aria. That's not true. You loved me. We loved each other… deeply. You just don't remember."

Loved each other?

I almost laughed. I took a step back, but smacked my head against the wall. A sharp pain shot through my skull, and I went pale.

Ethan's expression twisted with alarm. "Aria, are you okay?"

I winced, pushing him away. "I'm fine. Don't touch me."

He didn't move, just stood there, arms braced on either side of me. He wasn't restraining me, but he wasn't letting me go either. His breath was hot and heavy, his lips trailing down like fever.

My legs felt weak. I didn't have the strength to fight him off anymore.

But that pain… that pain behind my eyes, it triggered something.

Suddenly, flashes of memory began surging back, fragments at first, but then… full, vivid scenes.

Ethan caught me as my body swayed. One hand cradled the back of my head while his mouth found mine again, more desperate than before.

But in that moment, between his kisses, the heat, the trembling, I remembered.

Everything.

Our first time. How we got together. How we got married.

I remembered Olivia's smug face, the snide remarks behind my back, the way she looked at me like I was a joke.

The way Ethan's friends and family treated me like I didn't belong.

The fights. The coldness. The way his silence hurt more than his words.

Tears blurred my vision.

Even with amnesia, I hadn't escaped the pain. It had always been there, just under the surface.

Our beginning was straight out of a cheesy movie. A party. Too much to drink. He was drunk, I was tipsy.

He looked at me with unfocused eyes and said, "Take me to my room."

One thing led to another, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in his arms.

My heart had been pounding like crazy. I barely breathed. He looked at me without much emotion and said, "Let's date."

I'd had a crush on him for years. Of course I said yes.

We were like any young couple, madly in love, maybe a little too much. He didn't like me being close to other guys. I didn't want him around other women.

We were loyal. Possessive. Jealous.

And then came Olivia.

He said she was like a granddaughter to his grandfather. He couldn't just push her away.

He made it sound noble. But I couldn't accept it.

I'd always felt insecure in this marriage. He came from wealth and legacy. I was just an ordinary girl who happened to get into a good school.

If I hadn't, I never would've crossed paths with someone like him.

Olivia was from his world. Even though he said her family had fallen from grace, that didn't change what she was, refined, connected, his equal.

I was always the outsider.

That gap… it slowly changed me. I started acting out. I checked his phone. I got upset when he talked to other women, colleagues, friends, anyone.

I hated it, but I couldn't stop.

All those sweet memories vanished, replaced with endless fights. Mockery. The feeling of never being enough.

I remembered our final blowout. I told him I wanted a baby.

"What if I get pregnant?" I had asked.

I thought maybe, maybe a child would finally matter more to him than Olivia.

He looked at me like I was the biggest disappointment in his life. "So now a baby is just your way to compete for my attention? Then don't get pregnant. And if you do, get rid of it."

I stopped breathing.

That was the moment I gave up on us.

People kept saying that even if the James family went bankrupt, Ethan would still help them. I begged him not to.

He did it anyway.

That night, I told him that if he walked out that door, I'd kill myself.

It wasn't the first time I'd said it. But this time… I meant it.

He didn't believe me. He left.

I attempted suicide.

I was rescued.

And I woke up… with no memory.

But now I remembered it all.

And as the memories crashed down like waves, I stood there with tears running down my face.

Everything I had buried… was back.