The moment her lips left mine, I smirked. “I didn’t know you already suck at kissing.” Eloise shot me a glare, still slightly breathless. “Excuse me?” I leaned in again, my lips barely brushing her ear as I whispered, “You pulled away first.” She scoffed and crossed her arms. “Because I need energy. Unlike you, I’m carrying a whole human inside me.” I chuckled, reaching for her waist, but she stepped back and grabbed her coffee like I wasn’t just kissing her senseless a few seconds ago. Damn, this woman. “You’re really just gonna act like that didn’t happen?” I teased, watching as she took a slow sip from her mug. Eloise raised a brow. “Act like what didn’t happen?” I narrowed my eyes on her. “Unbelievable.” She shrugged, turning away as if she wasn’t affected, but I didn’t miss the way her fingers slightly trembled against the mug. She was so full of it. I smirked, stepping closer behind her. “You can deny it all you want, Eloise…” I leaned in, my voice low. “But
I never really thought about what it would be like to give birth. I mean, it’s just one push, right? The baby comes out just like that—simple, like… pooping.Well, I was fucking wrong. This was nothing like pooping. The pain was unbearable—like my body was being ripped apart from the inside. I was sweating, panting, gripping the hospital bed so hard my knuckles turned white. I wanted to scream, curse, throw something—anything to make this stop. "You're doing great, Eloise!" one of the nurses said, her voice way too cheerful for my liking. "Great?!" I snapped, glaring at her. "If this is great, I don't want to know what bad feels like!" Farah was beside me, holding my hand, her face pale but determined. "El, you can do this." "I can't!" I groaned as another wave of pain hit me. "Just knock me out! Get this baby out of me already!" And where the hell was Elijah?! "He's on his way," Farah assured me, reading my mind. He better be, because if I was suffering through this
I hummed a lullaby softly as my son slept peacefully in my arms. His tiny chest rose and fell with each breath, his little fingers twitching every now and then. It was… surreal. This little human—so small, so fragile—was mine. Ours. Eloise was watching us from the hospital bed, her eyes filled with something unreadable. Love, maybe. Or maybe disbelief, just like me. I glanced at her. “We still haven’t really decided on a name.” She bit her lip, thinking. “I’ve been thinking about something…” I raised a brow, waiting. She took a deep breath. “Eloah.” Eloah. I looked down at my son, testing the name in my mind. It felt… right. “Eloah Hart-Dawson,” I murmured. Eloise nodded. “It means 'God is my light.'” I swallowed, my arms tightening slightly around my son. Eloah. My light. Our light. I looked at Eloise again, and this time, I didn’t hold back my smile. “It’s perfect.”As I drove us home from the hospital, I kept glancing at the rearview mirror, watching E
When I was not yet a mother I treated my car as my babies. I handle them with so much care only to end up crashing it into roadside trees and now that I'm a mother… Now that I'm a mother... I can only pray I don’t end up crashing my actual baby into something. Not literally, of course. But the fear of messing up? Of not being good enough? That was real. I used to think taking care of cars was already a responsibility—checking the engine, making sure there were no scratches, keeping them in perfect condition. But taking care of a baby? Completely different level. A car wouldn’t cry in the middle of the night. A car wouldn’t look up at me with big, innocent eyes, completely trusting me with its life. Eloah did. And that scared the hell out of me. I was about to reach for my coffee when I noticed Elijah standing near the doorway, his expression unusually serious. My brows furrowed. "What?" He hesitated, and that hesitation alone made my stomach drop. “Elijah,” I pressed,
Label? Label? Label! What are you now, Eloise? I mentally swatted away the nagging voice in my head and just continued kissing him. I was completely intoxicated—lost, overwhelmed, and entirely consumed by this moment. I let go of all my reservations, allowing my emotions to take control and surrendering to the intensity of it all. Everything happened so fast, and now we’re both here in my room. "Are you sure about this, Eloise?" he asked the moment our lips parted.“What about you? Are you really sure about me?”The side of his lips aroused before he kissed the tip of my nose. "I've never been this sure about someone before!" he said before capturing me in a deep kiss.I wrapped my arms around his neck, deepening the kiss, causing him to take a step back. He held my waist as I breathed him in through the kiss. It felt like I needed this, like I didn’t want to let go.I pushed him, making him fall onto the bed. I straddled his lap, my legs spread on either side of him. His grip
It was beautiful. The way her body fit against mine, the way her breath evened out as she lay on my chest—it was perfect. I ran my fingers through her hair, feeling the steady rise and fall of her breathing. For a moment, everything felt right. No worries, no fears—just us, wrapped in the warmth of our shared intimacy. I pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head. “Are you okay?” She hummed sleepily. “Mmm… yeah.” I chuckled softly. “That tired, huh?”She shifted slightly, resting her chin on my chest as her fingers traced random patterns on my skin. Then, after a moment of silence, she asked, “Elijah… what are we?”I felt my heart skip a beat. Of all the things she could’ve asked, I wasn’t expecting that.I tilted my head to look at her, trying to gauge what she was thinking. “What do you mean?”She sighed. “I mean… we have a child, we live together, we sleep together, and yet, we never really talked about what we are.”I smirked, unable to resist teasing her. “So, you’re sa
I’ve never thought I would come back here again with someone. I smiled down at Eloah, who was cooing softly in his stroller, his tiny fingers grasping the air as if reaching for something unseen. The autumn breeze was gentle, rustling the trees around us, making the leaves dance across the cemetery path. The bodyguards stood at a distance, giving me space, while the nanny quietly waited behind me. But even with their presence, it still felt like it was just me and Matthew. I knelt in front of his grave, brushing away a few fallen leaves from the marble. “Hey, Matt,” I whispered, my voice soft, almost hesitant. “It’s been a while, huh?” Eloah gurgled, as if agreeing. I chuckled. “I brought someone with me today,” I said, looking down at my son. “This is Eloah. My son.” The words felt surreal, but they filled my heart with warmth. “He looks a lot like Elijah, don’t you think? He even got his eyes.” Silence answered me, but I kept talking anyway. “I came here because I
Five months. I only have five months to prepare everything for my dream wedding. When I got married, I didn't do that much well I think except that I needed to walk down the aisle and say yes. This time, it was different. This time, I wanted to be part of every single detail—the venue, the flowers, the dress, even the tiniest decorations. This was *our* wedding, and I wanted it to be perfect. Elijah wasn’t the type to care about details, but to my surprise, he was involved in everything. From choosing places to picking out the invitations, he was there—opinionated, sometimes annoyingly so, but still there. I stared at him as he scrolled through photos of wedding venues on his phone. “You do know you’re just supposed to nod and say, ‘Whatever you want, baby,’ right?” He smirked. “Nope. This is my wedding too. I get a say.” I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help the smile tugging at my lips. Maybe planning this wedding wouldn’t be so bad after all.We spent the next few days vi
In one blink of my eye, I saw Matthew clutching his arm, blood seeping through his fingers. He gritted his teeth, but he kept moving, dragging me with him behind a broken wall for cover.“Elijah…” I whispered, almost like a prayer, my eyes desperately searching the scene. My heart refused to believe it wasn’t him.Matthew snapped his head toward me, his face twisted in pain and fury. “It’s not Elijah!”But I didn’t listen. I couldn’t. “It is him,” I said through shaky breaths. “I know it’s him. I can feel it—he came back for me, Matthew!”His jaw clenched, breath heaving. “I'm telling you, Eloise! This is not Elijah!” His jaw clenched, breath heaving. “I'm telling you, Eloise! This is not Elijah!”I snapped.I shoved him back with all the strength I had left, my hands trembling, my vision blurred with tears. “It *is* Elijah! I know it! Why can’t you just admit it?!”Matthew looked stunned, caught off guard.“Why can’t you just give me up to him, Matthew?!” I screamed, voice cracking.
Every night, my children and Elijah haunted me. I can't sleep well thinking about them.I can't sleep thinking about how Eloah’s asthma is. Does he still keep his inhaler beside him like I taught him? Is someone checking on him when the air gets too cold?I can't sleep thinking if Eliana can sleep without me by her side. She used to curl up beside me, her tiny fingers always reaching for mine in the dark.I can't sleep thinking if Elijah… is finding me. If he's trying. If he’s losing sleep too. If he's blaming himself.I feel like I’m going insane here, and all I want now is to go home. As hard as it is to admit, I don’t think I’ll succeed with my plan. There are too many guards outside—armed, built like tanks... I know they won’t hurt me because I’m sure Matthew told them not to. But I’m also certain he instructed them to keep an eye on me every minute, every hour. Damn it.Maren was gently brushing my hair, her touch light and careful. She offered to do it earlier, saying it would h
The cold air of Denmark greeted me the moment I stepped out of the car. The house in front of me wasn’t anything extravagant—it was small, modern, and tucked away in a quiet, remote area. But what caught my eye wasn’t the house.It was the men.They were everywhere. Standing guard, pacing silently, some eyeing me with suspicion. I held onto the strap of my bag tightly and followed Matthew inside. Every step felt heavier than the last.The house looked normal, cozy even. But I knew better—this wasn’t home. This was a cage dressed in warmth.Matthew placed his hand on my shoulder, gently but firmly, like he was trying to remind me of something—of who he was to me before.“Angel,” he said, using the old call sign he used back then. I flinched, but said nothing.“This will be our safe haven,” he added, gesturing around the place.He walked me through the house, showing me each room—the kitchen, the living area, a small library, and a guest room that looked more like a surveillance space t
I've thought about this one. Clearly. Logically. Heartly...And it still hurts.What kind of wife and mother am I? I keep telling myself that I can handle everything—that I'm doing this for them, for their sake, because I love them. But who am I really fooling? This isn’t what love is. Love doesn’t leave quietly in the middle of the night without them knowing. I closed my eyes, gripping the suitcase tighter. I hated myself for doing this—for even thinking this was the right thing. I closed my eyes, gripping the suitcase tighter. I hated myself for doing this—for even thinking this was the right thing.Then my phone rang.I froze, heart pounding as I looked down at the screen.Matthew.I stared at his name for a moment, my thumb hovering. But I couldn’t answer—not now. Not when everything felt this fragile. Not when I wasn’t even sure who I was anymore.So I let it ring.And when it stopped, I slipped the phone back into my pocket and stepped out into the night.Just as I opened the
I stood on the terrace, phone in hand, staring out at the quiet view outside. Rafael was calling. I answered immediately."Any updates?" I asked, straight to the point."I don't know how to describe it. Elisse is still grieving. Matthew—your brother—he's moving fast," Rafael said cautiously."What now?" I asked, already sensing where this was going."He's hired a lawyer. One of those quiet but deadly types. He’s pushing to revisit the inheritance division—yours, Veronica’s, and his."I let out a quiet sigh, rubbing the back of my neck. "Let him. I don’t care about the inheritance.""I know," Rafael replied. "But he’s spinning it like you’ve disappeared, like you walked away from everything. He wants full control.""Then let him think that." My voice was calm, firm. "I didn’t walk away from everything. Just from the parts that never mattered to me."There was silence for a moment on his end."Alright," he finally said. "Just thought you should know.""Thanks," I murmured, glancing back
I kissed her—Eloise—like I needed her to breathe. Her lips were soft, trembling beneath mine, but she didn’t push me away. She kissed me back.God, she tasted like longing and sadness all at once. But then— “Fuck…” A sharp pain shot through my lower lip. I pulled away, blinking, and reached up to touch the sting. Blood. She bit me.“Oh my God! I'm so sorry… I didn't mean it,” she panicked, dropping onto the edge of the bed like her world just caved in. I stared at her. She wasn’t looking at me—her eyes were somewhere far away. There was something… off. But my body was still buzzing, still aching from the way her mouth moved with mine. Her scent lingered on my skin, and pleasure drowned the alarm bells in my head. I should ask her. I should stop. But God—her lips were just on mine. And I didn’t want it to end. Not yet. “Hey, Eloise, I’m okay,” I said, trying to calm her down as I wiped the blood off my lip. I gave her a small smile. “It’s just a bite.” She didn’t
The night before we left the country, I stood in my study, eyes scanning the documents I was about to hand over.Rafael leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, his usual sharp gaze softer tonight. He didn’t say anything at first—he didn’t have to. We’d known each other too long. He knew what I was thinking, and I knew he was waiting for the moment I’d say it out loud.“I’m trusting all of this to you,” I finally said, holding out the envelope. “Business operations, legal matters, security around Elisse… even the situation with Noel. You handle everything while I’m gone.”Rafael stepped forward and took the envelope. “You really going off the grid?”“For a while,” I nodded. “Just a week or two. I need this time with my family, Raf. No calls unless it’s life or death. I want to give Eloise and the kids what they deserve. Peace.”He glanced down at the envelope before tucking it inside his coat. “You know I got you,” he said firmly. “Go be a husband and a father. I’ll take care of ev
Elisse was kneeling beside the stretcher, her fingers trembling as they brushed over her father’s hand. Her eyes were swollen, red, distant.“They found him by the shore,” she said, her voice barely holding itself together. “His body drifted for hours… They said he fell from a cliff.”“Fell?” I asked, stepping closer. “Or was pushed?”She laughed bitterly, shaking her head. “You think my father would just trip and fall off a damn cliff, Elijah? You know him. He wouldn’t even get near the edge. Someone did this.”“Who was the last person with him?”She swallowed hard, eyes drifting back to her father’s lifeless form. “He’s a fisherman, Elijah. The sea was his home. He knew the cliffs like the back of his hand. He wouldn’t just slip. No way.”I stepped closer, lowering my voice. “Do you have someone in mind, Elisse? Anyone who might’ve wanted him gone?”“My father is a good man, he doesn't have any beef with anyone,” she said, voice cracking as tears welled again. “Everyone in the villa
I sat across from Matthew in the private room of the restaurant, my fingers curled around the warm cup of tea the waiter had just placed in front of me. The man sitting across from me—my first husband—felt like a stranger. His aura was different now. Darker. He wasn’t the Matthew I used to know—the one who made me laugh, the one who always had a teasing smirk on his face. This Matthew was cold, unreadable. But still, I remained patient. I owed him that much. He leaned back in his chair, fingers tapping against the table. “You’re different,” he muttered, eyes scanning my face. “You’re calmer than I expected.” I offered him a small, tight-lipped smile. “I didn’t come here to fight, Matthew.” He chuckled, but there was no humor in it. “Then why did you come?” "To talk to you—”“About what?” Matthew cut me off, leaning forward with a smirk that didn’t reach his eyes. “About how happy you are with him? About how you moved on so easily while I spent years in hell?” I exhaled s