Zoe's POV
The room had gone quiet again after Chloe's last words.
Too quiet.
The kind of silence that wasn't peaceful but heavy. The kind that sat on your chest and made breathing harder than it should be.
Garrett's hotel room suddenly felt too small.
I could hear the soft hum of the air conditioner overhead and the distant muffled sounds of the fashion event happening somewhere below us. Faint music occasionally floated through the walls. Laughter. Footsteps outside in the hallway.
Life was still happening.
People were still smiling.
Still celebrating.
Still taking pictures.
Meanwhile, my world had just shattered and stitched itself back together in the same night.
I sat curled against the edge of the couch, my fingers gripping one of the throw pillows absentmindedly.
I could still smell Chloe's perfume.
A soft vanilla scent mixed with floral notes.
The same perfume she'd always stolen from Mom years ago.
God.
Even that hadn't changed.
