I Swear I Still Hate Him (Atlas Lawson) novel Chapter 127

Chapter 127

Emery’s POV

“Thank you.” I said as the waitress set our planes down in front of us.

Daisy took one bite of her lasagna and let out a small groan. They never mess this up. Ever?

I smiled faintly and took a bite of mine, chewing slowdy, “Yeah” I nodded. “It’s really good

But my mind wasn’t on the food.

When Daisy showed up at my dorm earlier and asked if we could grab lunch, my brain had immediately gone into overdrive. Why did she want to see me? Had she somehow found out about Atlas and me sneaking around again? Or was this her trying to be… nice? Like a stepmom-making-an-effort kind of thing?

The thoughts stacked on top of each other until my head actually started to hurt.

Still, the drive here had been calm. She didn’t seem upset. No tension. No awkward looks. Maybe this was all in my head

“Emery”

““Yes!” I answered way too fast, nearly knocking over my glass of water.

Daisy blinked. “Honey, are you okay?”

“Um.. I quickly tucked my hair behind my ear, heat crawling up my neck. Secondhand embarrassment hit hard. Yeah Yeah. I’m ine. Sorry

She glanced at my plate. “You don’t like the meal”

“What?” I looked down and realized my lasagna was barely touched.

“Oh,” she said quickly. I should’ve checked with your dad or done more research or..

“No!” I rushed out, grabbing my fork and taking another bite. “It’s really good, I swear. I’m enjoying it.”

I followed it up with a big sip of water, like that would prove my point.

She studied me for a second, then smiled. “Okay”

We ate in silence after that, not uncomfortable, just quiet.

When we were done, Daisy paid the bill, and we headed out to her car. Honestly, I was relieved. Lunch was over. No explosions. No weird conversations. Just food.

But of course, life didn’t let it end there.

“I was hoping we could stop by the park,” Daisy said as she started the car.

“Oh. My shoulders stiffened slightly.

“They sell the best ice cream,” she added quickly. “I think you’d love it. But if you don’t want to, we can just head home.”

“No,” I said, forcing a small smile. “It’s fine.”

She smiled back, and I relaxed just a little.

19:58 Fri, Feb 6 MM

Chapter 127

Then my phone buzzed.

I glanced at the screen, and my heart immediately tripled its speed.

Atlas.

Of all times.

Crap.

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It wasn’t like answering would be a crime, but… not in front of Daisy. What if she noticed something? What if she suspected…

“Aren’t you going to answer that?” she asked gently.

I jumped. “Oh…uh, later,” I said too quickly. “It’s just a friend from college. Probably checking in.”

I declined the call, silenced my phone, and shoved it back into my bag like it had personally betrayed me.

We reached the park a few minutes later, and I had to admit, Daisy hadn’t lied.

The ice cream was insane.

“This is actually really good,” I said after a bite, my shoulders finally loosening.

“I knew you’d love it,” she said, smiling.

I smiled back, but my chest still felt tight.

Because something told me this lunch, and this day wasn’t over yet.

“You know,” Daisy said with a soft smile, scooping up more ice cream, “when I first got pregnant with Atlas, I really hoped it was a girl.”

I looked up at her, my spoon pausing halfway to my mouth.

“I got so excited,” she went on, eyes distant like she was replaying the memory./”I thought about all the fun stuff, dress-up, shopping, doing things together. I even bought a few girls’ clothes.”

She laughed quietly, shaking her head. “Don’t tell Atlas this, but when I found out I was having a boy. I was heartbroken. I cried for days.” She took another scoop. “But now… I love that little guy with my whole life.”

My chest tightened.

“And now,” she added thoughtfully, “sometimes I think maybe the reason I didn’t have a girl back then was because I was meant to have you.”

My heart skipped, hard.

Guilt hit me so fast it made my stomach flip. I forced a smile, hoping it looked real enough.

“I know things were complicated between you and Atlas before,” Daisy said gently. “But I’m really glad you both chose to be real siblings and let go of all that… stuff.”

My nails dug into my palm under the table. I nodded, even though my throat felt tight.

“Y… yeah.”

She smiled at me, warm and sincere. “You know you can always talk to me, right? I don’t want us to be strangers. We’re family, maybe not by blood, but I love you so much, Emery.”

19:58 Fri, Feb 6 MM.

Chapter 127

“I…” My voice caught. “I love you too.”

She went back to eating her ice cream like she hadn’t just shattered something inside me.

I tried to do the same, but every swallow felt thick, painful.

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Because all I could think about was last night…being pressed against Atlas in his car, my legs around him, our mouths desperate, tangled, forgetting every line we weren’t supposed to cross.

If only she knew.

“Oh,” Daisy said suddenly. “And about Atlas…”

My stomach dropped.

I wished she’d stop saying his name. Talking about him. About us. I felt seconds away from choking on the guilt sitting in my

chest.

“There’s something I found out,” she said carefully.

My heartbeat picked up, loud in my ears.

“What is it?” I asked, trying and failing to keep my voice steady.

“I don’t really know how to say this,” Daisy started, lowering her voice. “I was in his room the other day. I didn’t mean to snoop, I swear, but I came across some emails.” She hesitated, then sighed. “He’s been rejecting recruiters.”

My head snapped up. “What?”

“I know,” she said quickly. “It doesn’t make any sense. This has always been his dream, and now it’s like he’s just… throwing it away.” She shook her head, worry etched across her face. “He wasn’t like this before. Something, or maybe someone, has to be influencing him.”

My chest caved in on itself.

Had Atlas really been turning them down because of me?

Before I could spiral any further, Daisy reached across the table and took my hand, her grip gentle but grounding.

“Do you know if he’s been spending a lot of time with someone lately?” she asked quietly. “I mean, even if he is… whoever it is, don’t you think it’s kind of selfish to make him give up his future for them?” Her eyes searched mine. “Don’t you think it would be better if that person stayed away from Atlas?”

I stared at her, my throat tight.

She hadn’t said my name.

She didn’t need to.

“Yeah,” I said softly, forcing the words out. “They should stay away.”

Relief spread across her face. She smiled, squeezing my hand. “I’m glad we’re on the same page, honey.”

“Me… too,” I whispered, even though my chest felt like it was cracking open.

Daisy let go of my hand with a satisfied sigh. “Oh, I feel so much better now. They’re right, you really do feel lighter once you share a problem. Sometimes it’s all it takes to solve it.”

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