Chapter 296 Cold Shoulder\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just moments before, Scarlett had genuinely been moved by Damian\u2019s kindness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
65\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had even allowed herself to wonder\u2013what if his care was real? What if, by pushing him\u00a0<\/p>\n
she was turning her back on someone who might truly cherish her?\u00a0<\/p>\n
away,\u00a0<\/p>\n
But now, looking down from above, it seemed nothing had changed after all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Whether it was Vincent or Damian, they were all the same\u2013men she couldn\u2019t afford to trust with her heart.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even as the thought formed, tears escaped her eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She stayed by the window, letting the night air chill the wet tracks on her cheeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In an instant, the fragile warmth inside her vanished, replaced by a familiar, hollow coldness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Perhaps it was for the best\u2013she hadn\u2019t fallen too deeply yet. There was still time to pull back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett didn\u2019t watch any longer. Slowly, she made her way back to her room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had just settled into bed when Damian returned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He entered quietly, careful not to make noise, thinking she was asleep. But when he reached the bedside, he found her eyes open, gazing into the dimness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStill awake?\u201d he asked softly, a trace of surprise in his voice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett glanced at him. \u201cYes.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something in her tone felt distant. Gently, Damian probed, \u201cWould it help if I held you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead of answering, she asked a question of her own, \u201cYou were gone a while. What were you doing?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was giving him a chance\u2013if he told her the truth, she thought she might still listen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But Damian didn\u2019t mention Sabrina. \u201cJust took a work call,\u201d he explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At that, the last bit of warmth in Scarlett\u2019s chest dissolved. She offered a faint, empty smile. \u201cI see.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing her smile, Damian tried again. \u201cCan I\u2026 hold you while you sleep?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He began to move onto the bed, but Scarlett didn\u2019t shift to make room. She simply looked at\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
20:05 Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 296 Cold Shoulder\u00a0<\/p>\n
him, her voice cool and detached. \u201cNo. I\u2019d prefer to sleep alone.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she turned onto her side, her back to him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
65\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Damian stood frozen, suddenly at a loss. Everything had seemed fine just a short while ago\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
A restless unease settled in his chest. He sat on the edge of the bed. \u201cAre you feeling worse? Is it the fever?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett didn\u2019t turn. \u201cNo. I\u2019m just tired.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her tone was closed off again, guarded\u2013exactly as it had been in the beginning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Damian fell silent, but his eyes remained fixed on her, unwilling to look away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stared at the curve of her shoulder, the back of her head, as if he could see through her\u2013but\u00a0<\/p>\n
he couldn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was she upset over Vincent again?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just as the thought crossed his mind, Scarlett suddenly turned back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The small bedside lamp cast soft, shifting shadows, leaving her expression hard to read.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She studied him for a moment, then said quietly, \u201cYou smell like perfume.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was no actual scent\u2013she said it deliberately, testing whether he would admit to seeing Sabrina.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hearing her speak again, Damian\u2019s thoughts scattered briefly. He lifted his collar and pretended to smell it, then flashed her a playful, rogue\u2019s smile. \u201cIt\u2019s your scent, I think.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett\u2019s lips pressed into a thin, humorless smile. \u201cLet\u2019s just sleep, Damian. I\u2019m tired.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
With that, she turned away once more.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Damian had hoped she might shift over, even a little\u2013if she had, he would have curled beside her. But she left him no space at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not wanting to disturb her rest, he didn\u2019t push.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He sank into the chair beside the bed, leaned forward, and lowered his head to text Zachary, \u201cCome to the hospital tomorrow. Keep Scarlett company.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He thought Scarlett might be in low spirits. Having someone else around could help.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lying on her side, Scarlett couldn\u2019t sleep.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
20:05 Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 296 Cold Shoulder\u00a0<\/p>\n
:.\u00a0<\/p>\n
665\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before, she\u2019d always believed Damian wanted something from her\u2013she just couldn\u2019t figure out\u00a0<\/p>\n
what.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tonight, she thought she might finally understand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What Damian wanted was likely Sabrina.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And since Sabrina was fixated on Vincent, he was starting by getting close to her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
*****\u00a0<\/p>\n
The next morning, just as dawn tinged the sky, Vincent\u2019s phone buzzed with a message from Lily.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Stewart, I\u2019ve prepared breakfast and am leaving Ravenshade Villa now. If Ms. Stewart is still asleep, could you meet me outside to get it?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vincent replied, \u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vanessa had been moved to a regular room overnight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
About half an hour later, Lily arrived outside the door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Vanessa was still sleeping, so Vincent rose quietly and stepped into the hallway.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When Lily handed him the insulated bag, he didn\u2019t take it immediately.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After a brief pause, he said, \u201cLily\u2026 give Scarlett a call.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lily looked startled. \u201cPardon?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1.1K\u00a0<\/p>\n
B\u00a0<\/p>\n
Editorial Board: Our editorial team works behind the scenes to refine each chapter, maintain consistency, and deliver the best reading experience.<\/p>\n
Silent Dreams Never Die \u2014 Author: John Miller 296 Chapter 296 Cold Shoulder\u00a0 Just moments before, Scarlett had genuinely been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[81],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-impossible-condition-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27660"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27660\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}