NORA'S POV
The cab ride from Charles de Gaulle Airport to my apartment felt longer than the entire flight from New York. Paris loomed heavy around me, the city of love and dreams now shrouded in shadows of worry and dread. The last time I’d been here, it had felt like a refuge, a new start. Now, it felt like a prison I was walking back into, chains and all.
I unlocked the door to my apartment, exhaustion weighing on me like a physical force. My mind was so clouded with everything that had happened—the whirlwind of leaving Sam, the chaos of Milo’s threats—that I didn’t immediately register the woman sitting in the middle of my living room.
SAM'S POV I sat in my office, leaning back in my chair, staring at the ceiling as the weight of the past few days bore down on me like an anvil. My phone lay face down on the desk, and I hadn’t had the courage to pick it up, to see if there were any missed calls or messages from Nora. She was in Paris. Gone. And I was here, in New York, feeling more powerless than I ever had in my life. My chest tightened at the thought, a hollow ache that gnawed at me relentlessly.The door swung open, and Jacob sauntered in, his usual cocky demeanor making my teeth grind. He flopped into the chair across from me, his gaze flicking around my office before settling on me. “You look like shit,” he commented, a smirk playing on his lips. &l
NORA'S POV I moved to open the door, but my mother’s hand shot out, stopping me. Her eyes had gone cold again, wary. “Who is it?” she whispered.I shook my head, my nerves frayed. “I don’t know,” I said, my voice trembling.Slowly, I twisted the doorknob and pulled the door open. My heart stopped.Daniel stood in the doorway, his hair disheveled, his eyes wide with relief and something else—something I couldn’t quite place. He looked out of breath, as if he’d run all the w
SAM'S POVThe boardroom went dead silent as Milo Romano swaggered into the room. His sleek black suit was immaculate, but his eyes glittered with a dangerous glee that made my blood boil. I shot up from my seat, the chair scraping loudly against the marble floor.“What the hell is this?” I roared, slamming my hands on the polished table. My voice echoed, filled with raw fury. “Who let this scum into the Bennett building? Are we really sin
SAM'S POV The world tilted and spun around me, disbelief and rage twisting together in a storm I could barely contain. My father’s words echoed in my head, louder and louder, until I could barely breathe. Call Nora? The audacity of it, the sheer betrayal, made my blood boil.“Are you serious?” I demanded, my voice cracking as I stepped toward my father. The rest of the boardroom faded into the periphery, the faces of my uncles, aunt, and cousins blurring as all my focus zeroed in on William Bennett. “You never cared about Nora when we were married,” I said, my voice rising. “How many times did you even call her back then, when she was part of this family? And now you want to drag her into this mess when
NORA'S POV I was shocked and for a heartbeat, all I could do was stare at my phone, my heart pounding in my chest.“You there Eleanora?” The voice was unmistakable, deep and commanding. William Bennett. A man who had once been a towering figure of respect and admiration in my life, almost like the father I had always wanted. I could practically see his steely blue eyes and the way his mere presence could command a room. As a child, I had idolized him, as had every boy in the Bennett family who aspired to be like him. Genevieve had been adored by him, treated like royalty, the beloved princess of their empire. I remember
SAM'S POVThe boardroom buzzed faintly as my father held the phone to his ear, his face unreadable. He was speaking to Nora. Every fiber of my being wanted to snatch the phone from him, but William Bennett didn’t tolerate interruptions, not even from his son.“Eleanora,” he said again, his voice firm but laced with a practiced charm. “You’re in Paris, I take it?”I could hear the faint sound of her voice through the receiver, soft and hesitant. My chest tightened painfully.“Yes,&rdquo
NORA'S POV The apartment was quiet, the kind of silence that bore down on me, heavy and oppressive, you could have heard a pin drop. I stood in the middle of the room, my hands clasped tightly in front of me, trying to steady my breathing. My mother sat on the edge of the couch, her expression unreadable, while Daniel leaned casually against the wall, his arms crossed, watching me like he was trying to figure out what I was about to say.This is it, I thought, bracing myself. This is the moment I decide.Before I could speak, my phone buzzed loudly on the coffee table, cutting through the silence like a knife. I frowned, reaching fo
SAM'S POVThe drive home was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. Nora leaned against the window, her fingers absentmindedly brushing over her stomach. The image tugged at something deep inside me—love, protectiveness, a desperate need to make everything right. I hadn’t felt this much clarity in a long time.When we arrived at the penthouse, I watched her expression carefully as I held the door open for her. She paused, her gaze sweeping over the familiar space. “It feels… like I have been gone for long,” she murmured.I smiled. “Maybe because you have…
NORA’S POVThe sun bathed the Bennett estate in a golden glow, filtering through the canopy of white roses and twinkling fairy lights. It was the perfect day, the kind of day that had once seemed impossible. But here we were. I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the delicate lace sleeve of my gown. It was nothing like the dress I had once imagined wearing for my first wedding to Sam. No, this was something entirely different—something that felt more like me. The gown hugged my frame, elegant and timeless. Soft ivory fabric cascaded down in delicate layers, embroidered with tiny pearls that shimmered when I moved. My hair, styled in loose waves, was pinned back with a single white rose, and a sheer veil trailed behind me like something out of a dream. But it was Sam’s face I longed to see the most. "Are you ready?" Genevieve appeared in the doorway, looking radiant in a soft emerald gown. Her usual sharpness was softened by the emotion in her eyes. I turned, feeling my he
NORA’S POVThe moment the plane touched down in New York, a flood of emotions surged through me. Relief. Exhaustion. Gratitude. I was alive. I was going home. Sam held my hand the entire drive from the airport, his grip firm yet tender, like he was afraid that if he let go, I’d disappear. My heart ached with anticipation; my mind consumed by a single thought—Zoe. I had spent weeks away from my daughter, missing the warmth of her tiny body against mine, the sweet scent of her skin, the sound of her giggles. The separation had been unbearable, and now, every second that kept me from holding her felt like
SAM’S POVThe fluorescent hospital lights hummed softly above me as I lay in the hospital bed, the sharp scent of antiseptic lingering in the air. I had never been afraid of pain—I had endured beatings, betrayals, and the weight of an entire empire on my shoulders. But this? This was different. Because this time, it wasn’t about me. It was about her. Nora. She lay in the bed
NORA’S POVThe beeping of machines was a constant rhythm, a reminder of the fragile line I was walking. The Parisian hospital room was bathed in soft golden light from the setting sun, but I felt cold. Not the kind of cold that came from the air conditioning or the evening breeze slipping through the cracks in the window—this was deeper, bone-deep, a chilling awareness that my body was failing me. Every breath felt like a borrowed one, shallow and effortful. The weight of exhaustion pressed down on me, heavier than it had ever been. My fingers tingled, my limbs felt distant, like they didn’t belong to me anymore. A part of me wondered if this was it—if I was already standing on the precipice between life and d
SAM'S POV The jet sliced through the cloud cover with the precision of a predator on a hunt, its hum a constant in the background as my thoughts drifted. Paris was just hours away, but I was already a prisoner of the distance—caught between two worlds, neither of which felt truly mine anymore.I had fought wars before, faced battles in boardrooms and beneath the weight of expectations. But none of those had ever felt so personal, so destructive. This fight had torn apart the very fabric of my family, shattered everything I had worked for, and left scars on my soul that would never fully heal. And the worst part? It had nearly cost me Nora—the one person I couldn’t afford to lose.
JACOB'S POVThe courtroom had emptied, but I remained frozen in my seat. The sound of the gavel still echoed in my ears. Life in prison. Isabella was gone.I watched as the guards led her away. She didn’t cry. She didn’t beg. She didn’t even look at me.She only turned once, just before disappearing through the doors, and for a fleeting moment, I saw it—regret. But it wasn’t for what she had done. It was for losing.I exhaled slowly, rubbing a hand over my face. Was this how it was all supposed to
SAM'S POV The boardroom was suffocating, thick with tension and the scent of expensive cologne and polished wood. New York’s most powerful investors sat around the long mahogany table, their sharp eyes locked on me. Margot Moretti sat at the far end, composed as ever, but I could see the cracks beginning to show.For the past two hours, I had been fighting for control of what was left of my father’s empire. The Morettis had leveraged Aunt Marion’s shares and were dangerously close to tipping th
NORA'S POVThe hospital room was eerily silent except for the rhythmic beeping of the monitors and the quiet hum of the machines keeping me tethered to this world. The walls were painted in soft, sterile white, and the air smelled faintly of antiseptic. I had spent countless hours in this bed, staring at the ceiling, counting the tiles, trying to ignore the way my body felt weaker with each passing day.But today was different. Today, the doctors would begin the experimental treatment—the last chance I had.Sam was pacing. He had been pacing for the last twenty minutes,
SAM'S POV The Paris clinic was quiet, almost unnervingly so. The soft hum of machines filled the room as Nora slept peacefully, her breathing steady but shallow. I sat in the corner of her room, the faint glow of my laptop illuminating the stack of documents Alaric had sent over that morning.Balancing the weight of the Bennett empire and being here for Nora felt impossible, but I had no choice.The reports from New York weren’t promising. Despite the rise in stock prices following Alaric’s press conference, the Morettis