Lilian's POV
The phone rang unexpectedly, jolting me from my thoughts. I glanced at the unknown number flashing on the screen.
"Hello? Who is this?" I answered cautiously.
"Lilian..." The voice was soft, wounded, and painfully familiar.
My chest tightened. Armand.
His tone carried a fragility I had never heard before, each word carefully measured as if he feared I might hang up. "You won't even answer my calls anymore?"
"What do you want?" The question came out sharper than I intended.
We had never put labels on what we shared. No official relationship, just an unspoken understanding that had stretched between us for months. Yet guilt still twisted in my stomach like a knife.
After a long pause, his voice dropped to barely above a whisper. "Last night... are you alright?"
Heat flooded my cheeks. He had heard me with Augusto. The memory of my own desperate sounds made me want to disappear into the floor. "I'm perfectly fine. Just normal adult activities."
