All Chapters of WillowRidge: Chapter 21 - Chapter 29

Beatrix: The air in WillowRidge had shifted, and it wasn’t just because of the media frenzy or the hotel project. It was the weight of secrets—ones I didn’t know I was carrying, ones tied to the two men orbiting my life like restless moons. I woke up that morning with a strange resolve. Whatever tethered me to Sebastian and Adam, I had to find the root of it. I couldn’t let their emotions dictate my life, not anymore. The cafe was a safe space—my haven amidst the storm. As I stepped in, Nina greeted me with her usual bright smile. “Bea, we’re officially the most talked-about café in the region. You should see our social media; people are begging for updates about you and ‘the billionaires.’” I groaned, running a hand through my hair. “Please tell me you’re not encouraging this.” “Me? Never,” Nina said with a smirk. “But I won’t lie, the attention has been good for business. Uncle Peter even said a journalist tried bribing him for access to the resort after they couldn’t find you.

Beatrix The silence in the community hall felt like a living thing, pressing down on my chest as I waited for one of them to speak. Sebastian stood rigidly near the door, his eyes locked on Adam with a fire I didn’t understand. Adam, on the other hand, was calm but unyielding, his gaze fixed firmly on me, as though I might disappear if he looked away. I had questions—so many questions—but the weight of everything they’d said so far had left my mind a tangled mess. I didn’t know where to start. “You want me to trust you,” I said, breaking the silence. My voice trembled, but I forced myself to meet Adam’s eyes first and then Sebastian’s. “But all you’ve done is keep me in the dark. If I’m as important as you say I am, I deserve to know why.” Adam took a step closer, his movements deliberate. “You’re right, Beatrix. You do deserve the truth. And this time, I won’t hold anything back.” Sebastian bristled, crossing his arms over his chest. “You’re not going to sugarcoat it, are y

SebastianThe night was suffocating, the weight of everything pressing down on my chest. I walked through the quiet streets of WillowRidge, the familiar sights blurred by the haze of my thoughts. Her voice, her words“You don’t get to decide who I let into my life”repeated in my mind. She had chosen him. Maybe not fully, but she had let him stay while I was forced to leave. And the worst part? I couldn’t even blame her. My anger, my possessiveness it was all too much. But how could I not feel this way? When she was near him, when she looked at him with even a fraction of the softness she used to reserve for me, it was like a fire consuming me from the inside.I made my way to the lake, the place where we’d spent so much of our childhood together. The moonlight reflected off the still water, but tonight, it offered no peace. My hands clenched into fists as I thought about Adam. About the way he always managed to position himself as the calm, composed one. The savior. The better man.Bu

Sebastian The night was cold, the kind of cold that seeps into your bones no matter how many layers you wear. But standing on Beatrix’s porch, waiting for her to open the door, I didn’t feel it. My chest burned with the weight of everything unsaid, the things I needed her to hear before it was too late. When the door creaked open, she looked at me with a mixture of surprise and wariness. “Sebastian,” she said, her voice soft but guarded. “It’s late.” “I know,” I admitted, my hands shoved deep into my coat pockets. “But I need to talk to you. Please, Bea. Just… hear me out.” She hesitated, her eyes searching mine as if trying to gauge my sincerity. After what felt like an eternity, she stepped aside, allowing me to enter. The warmth of her home enveloped me, the familiar scent of lavender and coffee calming and torturing me all at once. This was her space, her world, and I’d done so much to hurt her in the past. But I couldn’t walk away again without trying to make things right.