He Pretended to Have Amnesia and Chose My Best Friend, I Left Chapter 05
Callum didn’t expect me to actually leave.
He stood in the doorway, watching me go, and didn’t move.
He started after me.
But Tessa’s voice stopped him from the couch.
“It’s not right to make her leave this late.”
“She hates the dark, and it’s pitch-black out there.”
“Go talk her into coming back. Or at least give her a ride to that apartment you found.”
“Oh, and grab the muscle rub on your way out.”
“My knee’s bothering me. I think I need to put something on it.”
Tessa rolled up her sweatpants.
Both knees were swollen and bruised.
Callum forgot about me. He was at her side in two steps.
“It’s this bad and you didn’t say anything?”
“She did this to you, and you’re still worried about her?”
He tilted her chin up, his jaw tight.
A minute ago, he’d been ready to come after me. Now I didn’t exist.
Tessa’s voice was small.
—
“I told you, I slipped.”
“It’s fine. I’m used to it.”
Callum went still.
“Used to it?”
“Has she been doing this to you behind my back?”
Tessa nodded hesitantly.
Callum shook his head.
“You’re unbelievable, you know that? You just let her walk all over you?”
“I don’t know what hold she has on you.”
“Forget it. I’m staying.”
“She’s a grown woman. She’ll be fine.”
“Don’t move. Let me take care of this.”
Tessa watched him rub the ointment into her knee. Her voice dropped.
“Why are you so good to me?”
Callum looked up and brushed the hair from her face.
“Because you’re mine.”
“Who else am I supposed to take care of?”
“What if I wasn’t the one you were supposed to marry?”
—
“If it were Maren instead, would you treat her like this?”
Callum’s hand stopped. The smile slipped from his face.
“You’re pregnant. Don’t stress yourself out over hypotheticals. None of that matters.”
But Tessa wouldn’t let it go.
“But what if it was true? What if Maren was actually your fiancée?”
“If you had to choose between her and me, who would you choose?”
Callum didn’t hesitate.
“You. Obviously you.”
That was what she needed to hear.
She smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder.
“I’m holding you to that.”
I didn’t know any of this: not the lies Tessa was feeding him, not the way she’d painted me as the villain.
My flight was in two days.
There was no point looking for an apartment.
I checked into a hotel near the office instead.
I’d just gotten out of the shower and was about to collapse into bed.
Then Callum’s name lit up on my phone.
[I rented a place for you. The door code is your birthday.]
—
[I’ll let what you did to Tessa slide this time.]
[But if it happens again, you and I are going to have a real problem.]
I stared at the screen. Unbelievable.
I blocked his number.
I closed my eyes and lay back down.
Something nagged at me, like I’d forgotten to do something.
The next morning, I’d barely sat down at my desk.
A notification popped up on my screen. Tessa had posted something.
The photo showed her fingers laced through Callum’s. Matching rings on both of them.
The caption stopped me cold.
[Forever starts with this ring.]