Melissa walked out of Bellmonte Luxe like a woman in a trance. Her legs moved mechanically, carrying her through the elegant entrance, past the valet stand, toward the parking area where Richard's Bentley waited. She heard nothing. Saw nothing. The world had narrowed to a single point of focus: the crushing, unbearable weight of what had just happened.She reached the car and climbed into the passenger seat, pulling the door closed with more force than necessary. The leather seats that had seemed so luxurious on the drive here now felt suffocating. She stared straight ahead through the windshield, her jaw clenched, her hands balled into fists in her lap.Richard appeared a minute later. He'd stopped to speak briefly with the valet, his movements stiff and controlled, his face carefully blank. He climbed into the driver's seat without looking at Melissa, started the engine, and pulled out of the parking space.The Bentley glided through the streets in silence. Expensive cars always ran