Tessa.
"Us."
The word echoed in my head like it was supposed to unlock something.
But it didn't.
I stood halfway down the stairs, my fingers tightening around the railing as if the polished wood could steady the sudden dizziness in my chest.
"Remember what?" I asked again, quieter this time.
Thomas looked at me like I had just broken something fragile between us. There was disbelief in his eyes. And hurt. And something else, something that felt too intimate for a stranger.
But he was a stranger.
Wasn't he?
I searched his face, waiting for recognition to spark. For warmth. For memory.
Nothing came.
Only confusion.
"You don't remember what we were?" he pressed, his voice softer now. "What we planned?"
Planned?
My pulse quickened.
Behind me, I felt Robert shift slightly, his presence solid and tense. Protective. His shoulder almost brushing mine as he stood between Thomas and the doorway.
"I remember," I said slowly, forcing the words out carefully, "that you left."
