All Chapters of The Forbidden Ties : Chapter 31 - Chapter 35

Happiness's POVThe next morning, I woke up to the warmth of Mason’s arms around me. His steady heartbeat was a comfort I had grown addicted to. I lay still for a moment, enjoying the peace, but the quiet didn’t last long. The weight of the secret we were carrying pressed heavily on my chest.Our relationship wasn’t supposed to happen. Not like this. Carefully, I slipped out of Mason’s embrace, wrapping the blanket around me as I walked toward the window. The morning light bathed the room in soft hues, but it did little to calm the storm brewing inside me.“Why are you up so early?” Mason’s groggy voice broke the silence, making me turn. He was sitting up, and even with his hair tousled he was still handsome, a sleepy yet concerned look on his face.I gave him a small smile, though it didn’t quite reach my eyes. “Just thinking.”“About what?” He swung his legs over the side of the bed, standing and walking toward me.“Mason…” I hesitated, my fingers tightening around the edge of the

The apartment felt colder without Mason. He’d left a few hours ago for a late shift, but his absence was heavier tonight. I tried to focus on my schoolwork, yet every creak of the floorboards and whisper of the wind against the windows had my nerves on edge.By midnight, I gave up. My books were abandoned on the coffee table as I curled up on the couch with a blanket, the TV humming in the background. Mason had promised to call when he was on his way home, and I was determined to wait up for him.I must have dozed off, because the next thing I knew, I was startled awake by a faint click.At first, I thought I’d imagined it. I sat up, blinking groggily at the TV, but the sound came again. A soft, deliberate noise, like a lock turning.My chest tightened.The apartment was still, the kind of stillness that prickled under your skin and warned you something wasn’t right. I glanced at the door, my breath hitching. The lock. Did I double-checke it after Mason left?“Mason?” I called out h

The next morning, I woke to an empty bed. Mason had already left for work, but the faint scent of his cologne lingered on the pillow beside me. It was a small comfort, though it did little to ease the unease stirring in my chest.The messages had stopped for now, but the silence felt more ominous than reassuring. Whoever was behind them had wanted me to find the connection to Sandra’s brother, and they’d succeeded. The next question was why and what they wanted from me.I forced myself out of bed, showered, and headed to campus. The routine of classes and tutoring was a welcome distraction, but even as I sat in the lecture hall, scribbling notes, my mind wandered back to Mason. To Sandra. To Charles.By the time I left campus, the sun was dipping below the horizon, casting long shadows across the streets. I pulled my coat tighter around me, quickening my pace. The feeling of being watched was hard to shake, though every time I glanced over my shoulder, the streets were empty.When I r