Rose's POV

James. As if he hadn’t just turned my life into a nightmare. As though everything remained the same between us. As if I hadn't repeatedly stated—time and time again—that I wished to have no further association with him. Yet there he stood before me, his gaze fixed on mine, as though he deserved my focus as if he still had the right to ask something of me.

“Listen, Rose,” he began, his tone sleek yet tinged with that well-known arrogance. "I understand we’ve ...