Chapter 28

• It was the morning after a long, troubled night when a timid knock disturbed the fragile quiet of Ellie’s room at the Salton place. The door creaked open to reveal Cole Grimwood, his travel-worn face still dusted with the residue of endless miles. His presence, like an omen cloaked in weary resolve, filled the small space with an unsettling calm.
• “Good mornin’, Miss Harrington,” he greeted, his voice low and measured_ a sound that had seen too much and trusted too little. He extended a hand in greeting, but Ellie, guarded and fierce, brushed it aside with cool indifference. “You still busy hatin’ me?” He challenged_ his tone sharp with defiant irony.
• “I’m simply… surprised that you have come in here to talk to me” she replied, each word deliberate as though weighing fate on its tongue.