Too Late for Sorry, Mr. Billionaire (Chasing my Wife Back) novel Chapter 16

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**TITLE: Hands Trembled Before Goodbye — Ryan Ellis 16**

SHE remained silent, her focus absorbed by her phone, fingers dancing nervously over the screen. Amelia’s gaze sharpened, suspicion creeping into her voice.

“Claire… what’s with all the fumbling?”

Claire was perched at the far end of the couch, a position that felt like a fortress against her sister’s probing. The phone had been buzzing incessantly, its screen lighting up in a relentless rhythm that seemed to taunt her. Each vibration drew Claire’s attention, yet her fingers merely hovered, hesitating before she pressed the side button to silence the persistent noise.

“Nothing,” Claire mumbled, forcing a weak smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes as she flipped the phone face down onto the cushion. “Really, it’s nothing,” she insisted, the words tumbling out like a half-hearted promise.

“Nothing?” Amelia echoed, leaning back with her arms crossed, her posture radiating skepticism. “You’ve been dodging that call like it’s a snake. Who’s on the other end?”

Claire let out a laugh that was far too light, a sound that rang hollow in the air.

“Oh, come on, Amelia. Do you really have to interrogate me every time my phone rings? It’s probably just a wrong number or one of my friends being silly,” she replied, attempting to brush off the tension.

But Amelia’s eyes remained fixed on her, unwavering and unconvinced. She knew her younger sister too intimately; Claire’s nervous giggle was a telltale sign, a giveaway that something was amiss.

“If you say so,” Amelia replied, her voice tinged with doubt.

“I really should be heading out,” Claire declared abruptly, rising from her seat and reaching for her handbag. She avoided Amelia’s probing gaze, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, a nervous habit that betrayed her. “I didn’t even realize how late it had gotten.”

“So soon?” Amelia raised an eyebrow, disbelief etched on her features. “You promised you’d stay for dinner.”

*I’ll take a rain check, I swear.* Claire waved her hand dismissively, already making her way toward the door. “Don’t wait up for me.”

Before Amelia could voice her protest, Claire was out the door, her hurried footsteps echoing faintly on the tiled floor. Once outside, she didn’t stop until she was a considerable distance from the building, past the hedges and the gate, her heels clicking rapidly against the pavement. Her heart raced, breaths coming in anxious bursts. She fished her phone out of her bag just as it began to ring again, the same name flashing ominously on the screen.

This time, she didn’t hesitate. With a swift motion, she swiped to answer and pressed the device to her ear.

“Hey,” she hissed, her voice sharp and laced with tension. “What do you want? Are you trying to ruin everything already?”

A brief silence hung in the air before a calm, steady female voice broke through.

“Okay, just breathe,” the voice replied. “I haven’t ruined anything yet, so relax…”

Claire’s grip on the phone tightened, her pulse quickening. She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes darting nervously toward Amelia’s house in the distance.

“Don’t tell me to relax,” she whispered fiercely, her words barely escaping her lips. “If Amelia finds out this way—”

The voice cut in smoothly, almost mockingly.

“She won’t. Not if you keep playing your part well. By the way, where are you?”

“I just got to her place. I was supposed to have dinner with her and my niece, but it’s fine now, I’m out.”

“Oh! I see. Well, she still won’t find out,” the voice insisted, a hint of confidence woven into the words.

Claire rolled her eyes, exasperation bubbling up.

“What is it, please?”

“Alright. Just listen carefully—”

And just like that, the fragile line separating family loyalty from dangerous secrets began to blur, the stakes rising higher with every word exchanged.