CHAPTER 383

ADAM’S POV

The house feels quieter tonight without Aria, almost too quiet. I sit in the living room, trying to focus on the television, but my mind is elsewhere. It’s a relief, in a way, to have her out with Stella, allowing me a few hours of reprieve from the constant need to conceal the truth. But the silence brings its own burdens. The weight of what I’m hiding hangs heavy in the air, like a storm cloud ready to burst.

I never imagined that being with Aria again could feel like this—like walking a tightrope, where any wrong step could send me plunging into the abyss of our past. Every day is a delicate dance of keeping up appearances, of maintaining the façade that everything is fine, that our lives are unblemished by any shadows. However the truth is, the past is always there, lurking just beneath the surface, threatening to erupt at any moment.

Aria’s presence in my life now is a gift I never thought I’d receive again. After the divorce, I was certain I had lost her forever. Thos