LESLIE’S POVWe stroll along the nearly empty street, our fingers entwined, and I can’t help but notice how natural this feels, walking with him in the quiet night air. My cheeks ache from smiling so much; I feel like a teenager again. “You’re keeping me guessing tonight, you know.”Kian looks over
“It was…a process,” I begin slowly, feeling his hand warm in mine. “The first year was the hardest. After I left I had to figure out who I was without you, without our history, without my father and every crafted part of my past.” Whenever I think of my father, my heart aches. I want to ask Kian ho
LESLIE’S POVTonight feels like a delicate balancing act of past and present. Kian’s beside me, his hand brushing against mine as we walk toward Madam Annie’s front door. The warmth of the dim porch lights casts over us as we stand in front of it without knocking immediately. We’ve talked about thi
He skips them most of the time because of Mallory and I know by the look in his eyes that he is here because Kian came. He doesn’t miss out on anything he considers fun. “I’m genuinely surprised you’re here.” Kian says and Cole snickers.“Don’t look at me like that, I’m family too.” He then sniffs
KIAN’S POVThe dishes clink softly, echoing through the small, cozy kitchen as I lean against the wall, watching Leslie. She’s laughing with Madam Annie and Mallory as they wash up, the three of them sharing inside jokes I’ll likely never understand. Each giggle and exchange between them is intimat
KIAN’S POVThroughout the drive back to her place, I find myself looking forward to the final thing she wants to show me. The night we just had is an indication that whatever Leslie wants to show me will be just as amazing as dinner with her family. We arrive at home and she leads the way, turning
LESLIE’S POV The look on Kian’s face as he reads through my résumé is priceless. His eyes dart between the lines, lingering on each detail as if he’s trying to grasp the reality of what I’m offering him. The disbelief, the shock—it's all there, etched across his face. He keeps looking from me to t
KIAN’S POV I’d always thought starting over would feel like failure, but after this month, I know it’s nothing like that. However, what I feel is also something as scary as failure. It feels like starting at the bottom of a mountain with no harness—no security to catch me if I slip.For a month, I’
CHAPTER 106 [A Rebound] ~SOPHIE~ I stared at my reflection in the mirror, tilting my head to the left, then the right. My dress fit like a second skin—black, sleeveless, simple but elegant. It wasn’t over-the-top, but it hugged me in all the right places. Still, I felt uncertain. “Do I look l
CHAPTER 106 [A Rebound] ~SOPHIE~ I stared at my reflection in the mirror, tilting my head to the left, then the right. My dress fit like a second skin—black, sleeveless, simple but elegant. It wasn’t over-the-top, but it hugged me in all the right places. Still, I felt uncertain. “Do I look like
CHAPTER 105 [Erasing Him] ~SOPHIE~ I’d made up my mind to erase Travis totally. In my thoughts, in my future and even in my memories if I could help it. I had decided, and now, I was beginning the painful process of erasing him. The first conversation I had that morning was with my father. I’d ti
CHAPTER 104 [ Another lost kid] ~ELAINE~ (8) I kept my gaze locked on the food, my hands gripping the edge of the blanket wrapped around me. My stomach twisted painfully, but the fear in my chest held my body in place. I didn't trust it. I didn’t trust him. He didn’t look like he was trying to
CHAPTER 103 [The Lesser Evil ] ~ELAINE~ (7) I curled up tighter on my bed, pulling the covers around my frail body even though I wasn’t cold. It wasn’t the temperature that made me tremble—it was the growling in my stomach and the pounding in my head. Hunger had a way of distorting everything, e
CHAPTER 102 [No String and a Billionaire’s Name] ~SEBASTIAN~ (3) The moment I stepped into the house, silence greeted me like a sneer to the face. No voices, no footsteps, no Sophie playing the dutiful daughter as I ordered her to do. Just silence and the faint creak of floorboards as I shut the
CHAPTER 101 ~TRAVIS~ I didn’t know what it was or what to call it exactly; that feeling that curled in my chest the moment Sophie looked at me like a stranger and walked away with an actual one. But whatever it was, it was familiar. I’d felt it before on the very night she ended things. That
CHAPTER 99 [You Heard The Lady ] ~SOPHIE~ The can of juice in my hand was already warm. I hadn’t taken more than two sips, but I tossed it into the nearest trash can like it had personally offended me. Coming here was a mistake—again. I shouldn’t have let my father’s excited words or Travis’ i
AUTHOR’S NOTE 📝 Hi, everyone. I know. I have done the unforgivable—leaving without a word and not updating for a long period of time. I sincerely apologize to everyone of you who has dedicated your time to reading my book. I didn’t intend to but I was in a terrible place last month—mentally—