His First Love Got My Heart - Chapter 5: Chapter 5

Back at the apartment, Chase leaned against the window frame, his toned body barely covered by a towel slung low around his hips. His fingers tightened around his phone as he stared at the screen, his jaw clenched.
Foster had blocked him. Again.
This wasn't her first time putting him on ice during their relationship, but something about this silence felt different. No flood of unread messages. No barrage of her signature texts filled with random photos and heart emojis. Just... nothing.
He'd grown accustomed to 's constant digital presence—her need to share every mundane detail of her day, from bakery finds to sidewalk insects. Now the void where her chatter used to be screamed louder than any message.
This wasn't just another mood. was pissed. Not that Chase particularly cared why—he'd always been able to buy or charm his way back into her good graces.
His attention snapped to Grace as her arms slid around his waist from behind, her body molding against his with familiar ease. "You kept me waiting," she murmured, her breath warm against his bare shoulder. "I was starting to think you'd forgotten about me."
The tension in Chase's shoulders dissolved as he turned, capturing her mouth in a hungry kiss. Four years of stolen moments, and Grace still knew exactly how to pull him from his thoughts. "Soon," he promised between kisses, steering them toward the bedroom. "No more hiding."
As they tumbled onto the bed, the signed organ donor form in his desk drawer seemed to pulse with promise. Everything was falling into place.
He remembered that pivotal rainy afternoon like it was yesterday—standing drenched outside 's dorm after learning about Grace's deteriorating heart condition. The lie had come so easily, the performance so convincing. He could still see the single tear tracking down 's cheek when he'd declared his undying love.
Now, as Grace arched beneath him, a sudden pang of something like guilt twisted in his chest. He buried it instantly, losing himself in her touch.
"You're distracted," Grace teased, her fingers tangling in his hair. When Chase hesitated, she pulled him down, her lips brushing his ear. "Seven days, remember? No interruptions."
Later, sweat cooling on his skin, Chase slipped from bed to shower. Returning to check his phone, he found the screen stubbornly blank. Old habits made his thumb hover over 's number—until Grace appeared, plucking the device from his hand with a playful smirk. "No distractions," she repeated, deleting the contact with practiced ease before he could protest.
The moment my plane touched down, I felt lighter than I had in years.
Adam's villa rose before me—all sharp angles and monochrome severity, as uncompromising as the man himself. The sterile modern interior couldn't have been more different from the warm home I'd tried to build.
As I unpacked, my fingers closed around a small velvet box buried in my luggage. The diamond inside caught the light, winking as if amused by my surprise. I'd forgotten packing Chase's wedding gift—a stone he'd supposedly crossed continents to find.
Now it just felt heavy in my palm, like a paperweight holding down memories I needed to release. Setting it aside, I turned toward the floor-to-ceiling windows and the new horizon beyond.
"Time for better things," I whispered to my reflection, and for the first time, I almost believed it.