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2026-07-15 03:40:31Amelia stared at the question. It should have been easy to answer.
Amelia:
No.
He just...
Wouldn't leave.
Lucy replied almost immediately.
Lucy:
Sometimes that's worse.
Amelia found herself staring at the words. There had been no shouting, no threats, no grabbing her arm, nothing dramatic enough that anyone else in the pub had looked twice. And yet somehow she'd felt smaller with every passing minute. As though she had slowly lost permission to say no.
Amelia:
Exactly.
I felt stupid for feeling uncomfortable.
Lucy:
Don't.
A moment later another message appeared.
Lucy:
If you felt uncomfortable, that was enough.
You didn't owe him your evening because he bought you a drink.
Or because he was "being nice."
Or because you smiled.
Amelia stopped typing. Her fingers rested motionless above the screen. Those last three words caught in her chest.
Amelia stopped typing. Her fingers rested motionless above the screen. Those last three words caught in her chest.
Amelia:
That's exactly what he said.
Lucy was typing almost before Amelia had finished sending the message.
Lucy:
...
Lucy:
What?
Amelia:
He told me I'd smiled at him.
Like that meant I wanted him to sit with me.
Lucy:
Oh, Amelia...
Lucy:
No.
That's not how smiling works.
Lucy:
You're polite to everyone.
The postman probably thinks you're his favourite customer.
Despite everything, Amelia laughed.
Amelia:
Probably.
Lucy:
You apologise when people walk into YOU.
Again... Not entirely inaccurate.
Amelia:
Then something really weird happened.
There was a pause.
Lucy:
Weird how?
Amelia stared at the screen for a moment. She still wasn't entirely convinced the evening had actually happened.
Amelia:
The most ridiculously attractive man I've ever seen suddenly appeared beside me.
Three dots appeared. Stopped. Appeared again. Finally...
Lucy:
I'm listening...
Amelia:
He put his arm around me and said,
"There you are, sweetheart. I've been looking everywhere for you."
Several seconds passed.
Then...
Lucy:
NO.
Lucy:
HE DID NOT.
Amelia laughed out loud.
Amelia:
He absolutely did.
Lucy:
Fake boyfriend??
Amelia:
Exactly.
Lucy:
I've watched enough romantic comedies to know this is either the start of your love story...
Lucy:
...or you're about to discover he's secretly a serial killer.
Amelia snorted.
Amelia:
Thanks for narrowing it down.
Lucy:
You're welcome.
So...
Continue.
Amelia:
He led me to a quieter table and sat with me.
The other man left almost immediately.
It was like someone had pressed a reset button on the whole evening.
Lucy took slightly longer to reply.
Lucy:
How did he make you feel?
Amelia frowned. That wasn't the question she'd expected. She thought carefully before answering.
Amelia:
Safe.
The message sat on the screen for a moment before Lucy replied.
Lucy:
That's a good answer.
Amelia looked down at the phone. It was. She hadn't realised it until she'd typed it.
Lucy:
Was he fit?
Amelia rolled her eyes. There it was.
Amelia:
Very.
Lucy:
How very?
Amelia considered it carefully.
Amelia:
Annoyingly.
Lucy responded with a string of laughing emojis.
Lucy:
Specific.
Amelia:
He looked like he belonged on the cover of one of my books.
Lucy:
You're in trouble already.
Amelia:
I'm absolutely not.
Lucy:
You've described his face before you've told me his name.
Amelia froze. Then looked back through the conversation. Lucy was right. She had.
Amelia:
...
Lucy:
HAHAHAHA.
Lucy:
You don't even know his name, do you?
A reluctant smile spread across Amelia's face.
Amelia:
Actually...
I do.
It's Jake.
There was another pause.
Lucy:
Jake.
Solid name.
Eight out of ten.
Amelia:
You cannot rate names.
Lucy:
Watch me.
Jake.
8/10.
James.
7/10.
Nigel.
Straight to prison.
Amelia burst out laughing.
Amelia:
That's not how names work.
Lucy:
It is now.
Did he ask for your number?
Amelia's smile faded.
Amelia:
No.
Lucy:
Did you ask for his?
She stared at the cooling mug of tea on the coffee table.
Amelia:
No.
Lucy:
Amelia Carter...
She groaned.
Amelia:
I know.
Lucy:
You met a gorgeous man who rescued you with the greatest fake-boyfriend entrance in history...
Lucy:
...and then you let him disappear?
Amelia:
I wasn't exactly thinking straight.
Lucy:
Clearly.
Honestly.
I leave you alone for one Friday evening...
Amelia smiled.
Amelia:
You'll have to come with me next week.
Lucy:
Deal.
But if Mr Fake Boyfriend turns up again, I'm pretending I don't know you.
Amelia:
Traitor.
Lucy:
Night, Amelia.
Try not to fall in love with any more mysterious strangers before breakfast.
Amelia:
No promises.
Night, Lucy.
The conversation had done exactly what Lucy had intended. The anxiety had eased, the shaking had stopped and she no longer felt like crying. She felt... lighter. Even so, as she plugged her phone into its charger and switched off the lamp beside the sofa, one thought refused to leave her.
Jake.
She doubted she would ever see him again. Yet somehow, that thought disappointed her far more than it should have.
Outside, the city settled into the quiet rhythm of another ordinary night. Neither Amelia nor Jake knew that their lives had changed forever.
Not because of the man who had refused to leave her alone. But because of the man who had.
Latest chapter
The Things I Can't Do To You 12
"Because she stayed polite.""Exactly."Evelyn sighed quietly."How many women have found themselves in that position?""Too many."Jake looked into his coffee."I couldn't just watch.""So you stepped in.""I pretended to be her boyfriend."His mother smiled."I did wonder where your dramatic streak came from.""It worked.""I'm sure it did."Jake found himself smiling too."Then what?""For a second she thought I was making things worse."Evelyn laughed softly."Reasonable.""But the moment she realised what I was doing..."His voice faded."What happened?" Evelyn asked gently.Jake hesitated."I don't know."She waited."There was this feeling.""What sort of feeling?""I've never experienced it before."He searched for the right words."It was like..."His brow furrowed."...like every instinct I possess suddenly focused on one person."His mother didn't interrupt."I couldn't stop watching her."Jake rubbed a hand across his jaw."Not because I wanted anything from her.""No?""N
The Things I Can't Do To You 11
Jake barely remembered the drive home. The streets of Birmingham blurred beyond the windscreen while the engine purred beneath him, every familiar junction passing almost unnoticed. He drove the route so often he could have managed it with his eyes closed, yet tonight his concentration drifted back to the same pair of blue-green eyes every few seconds.It made no sense.He had spent years building a life around control. Control over his business. Control over the pack. Control over himself. Tonight, for the first time in years, he felt as though something inside him had ignored every rule he'd ever lived by.Kade refused to settle. Normally, once danger had passed, the restless energy faded within minutes. The instinct to protect eased until it became little more than a quiet awareness beneath his skin.Not tonight. Every instinct screamed that he had left something important behind. Someone. Jake tightened his grip on the steering wheel."Enough."The single word disappeared into the
The Things I Can't Do To You 10
Amelia stared at the question. It should have been easy to answer.Amelia:No.He just...Wouldn't leave.Lucy replied almost immediately.Lucy:Sometimes that's worse.Amelia found herself staring at the words. There had been no shouting, no threats, no grabbing her arm, nothing dramatic enough that anyone else in the pub had looked twice. And yet somehow she'd felt smaller with every passing minute. As though she had slowly lost permission to say no.Amelia:Exactly.I felt stupid for feeling uncomfortable.Lucy:Don't.A moment later another message appeared.Lucy:If you felt uncomfortable, that was enough.You didn't owe him your evening because he bought you a drink.Or because he was "being nice."Or because you smiled.Amelia stopped typing. Her fingers rested motionless above the screen. Those last three words caught in her chest.Amelia stopped typing. Her fingers rested motionless above the screen. Those last three words caught in her chest.Amelia:That's exactly what he s
The Things I Can't Do To You 9
Amelia found herself sitting perfectly still on the sofa with her eyes closed. She had intended to make herself a cup of tea, curl up beneath a blanket and forget the evening had ever happened. That was usually how she dealt with difficult days. A hot drink, a romance novel and an early night could fix almost anything.Tonight, none of it seemed to work.The tea sat untouched on the coffee table, slowly cooling in its mug. The book lay open in her lap where she had abandoned it after only a few pages. The television hummed quietly in the background, though she couldn't have said what was on.Instead, the evening replayed itself.Daniel smiling as though she owed him her time. The scrape of the chair as he'd sat down without permission. The casual confidence with which he'd answered questions directed at her. The growing knot in her stomach every time she'd tried to end the conversation, only for him to steer it somewhere else. The horrible realisation that nothing he was doing seemed
The Things I Can't Do To You 8
She did not know why disappointment touched her. She barely knew him. Yet something about his presence had felt grounding in a way she could not explain.“Will I see you again?” she asked before she could stop herself.Jake’s expression shifted. Something warm. Something pained. Something she did not understand.“I hope so,” he said.He stepped back, giving her space. For a moment she thought he might say something else, but instead he offered her a gentle smile and turned away. He walked through the bar with the same quiet confidence she had noticed earlier. When he reached the door, he paused. His shoulders lifted slightly, as though he were taking a breath.Then he left.Amelia stood alone beside the four chairs, her pulse steadying at last. She should have gone home immediately. Instead she found herself staring at the door he had just walked through. She did not know his surname. She did not know anything about him. Yet she felt as though something significant had just happened.
The Things I Can't Do To You 7
Amelia followed the tall stranger through the soft glow of the bar, her hand still held gently in his. She had not expected him to keep hold of it, yet she found herself grateful for the steady warmth of his palm. Her pulse had not yet recovered from the encounter with Daniel, and the stranger’s presence felt like the only solid thing in a room that had tilted dangerously off balance.He guided her towards a quieter corner where four wooden chairs surrounded a small round table. The lighting here was softer, the noise gentler, the atmosphere calmer. It felt like a pocket of safety carved out of the crowded room. Amelia lowered herself into the nearest chair, her handbag resting against her leg, and tried to steady her breathing.The stranger took the seat opposite her. He did not sit in the one beside her, nor the one that would have blocked her view of the exit. Instead, he chose the chair that allowed him to face the room while still giving her space. It was a small detail, yet it m
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