+15 BONUS
Chapter 545
I sit in the stillness of my room after finishing the call with Aunt Ava. A tired sigh escapes my lips as I lean back against the headboard as the weight of her request settles heavily on my chest. What on earth did I just get myself into?
I meant it when I said I’d do anything for Aunt Ava and I know I agreed to her request, but this feels
different. This feels like I am about to open a can of worms.
Noah and I have a history. Not the kind people smile about when they’re older and wiser. No, ours is made of jagged edges and silent wounds. For reasons only known to him, he’s always hated me. From the very first moment we met, it was like something inside him decided I was the enemy.
I tried everything to make him like me; God, how I tried. I’d chase after his approval, desperate for a sliver of kindness, only to be met with cruelty that left me shattered and in tears. No matter what I did, how
hard I tried to be liked or noticed, nothing ever worked.
He would always say something hurtful and demeaning and I would always end up crying and feeling sorry for myself. I never got it, honestly. Sure, I came on a little bit too strongly, but I doubt that is reason
enough to hate someone.
I was only eight. He was nine. But even at that age, the hostility in his eyes was unmistakable. He always treated me like the damn antichrist. It always puzzled me how such a small boy could carry so much hate at that age. It would have been different if he hated others too, but it wasn’t. He had no trouble showing the best parts of himself to others… But never to me.
Being around each other never ended well, especially for me, so eventually, I learned to stay clear of him.
It hurt less that way.
I haven’t seen or talked to him in years, so why did I agree to be the one to search for him? The last time I saw him was at his wedding. I watched him getting married and told myself that was it. That was the last time I’d allow myself to feel anything for Noah. I made a promise that day: I would not break my heart again for someone who never saw it in the first place.
It was a decision I made for my own peace of mind and I have never looked back. Not until now.
So here I am. Heart racing. Gut twisted in knots. About to go looking for the one person I’ve spent years
trying to forget.
Feeling a familiar heaviness in my heart, I push those painful memories away. I’ve come a long way from the girl I was. The girl who had her heart trampled over and over again by the boy she loved. There was no way I was going to allow old griefs to resurface.
Instead of focusing on the past, I pick my phone back up and call Lilly. The phone rings twice before going straight to voicemail. I try again; nothing. A frustrated grunt leaves my mouth as I try once again, only to be disappointed.
1/2
Chapter 545
+15 BONUS
“Fuck!” I hurl the phone onto the pillow beside me, startling Blackie, who gives me the filthiest look a cat
can manage.
“Sorry, my sweet girl,” I say, guilt creeping in. “I wasn’t cursing you.”
She hisses softly before leaping off the bed.
With a sigh, I push myself up and head to the bathroom. After brushing my teeth and washing my face, I stare at my reflection in the mirror and tired eyes stare back at me. My heart feels heavier than it should.
I grip the edges of the sink, bracing myself against the rising tide of dread. This isn’t just a favor. This is a return to a past that nearly broke me.
Am I really ready for this? Am I really ready to face Noah again?
It’s been six whole years. Six years of peace. Six years of tranquility. Six years of healing. Am I really ready to throw it all away? Because that’s what will happen if I go ahead with this. The man has hated me since I was eight. I doubt he would have had a change of heart in the six years I avoided him like the damn plague.
My hand tightens around the bathroom sink as my dilemma eats at me from the inside out. I already promised Aunt Ava. She has never asked anything of me that she wouldn’t do herself if she could, so how could I back out now?
With a shaky breath, I straighten my back and shoulders, I stomp back into my room and head straight for my closet. I throw on the first clothes I see–a baggy T–shirt and soft sweatpants.
Chapter 545
+15 BONUS
“Fuck!” I hurl the phone onto the pillow beside me, startling Blackie, who gives me the filthiest look a cat
can manage.
“Sorry, my sweet girl,” I say, guilt creeping in. “I wasn’t cursing you.”
She hisses softly before leaping off the bed.
With a sigh, I push myself up and head to the bathroom. After brushing my teeth and washing my face, I stare at my reflection in the mirror and tired eyes stare back at me. My heart feels heavier than it should.
I grip the edges of the sink, bracing myself against the rising tide of dread. This isn’t just a favor. This is a
return to a past that nearly broke me.
Am I really ready for this? Am I really ready to face Noah again?
It’s been six whole years. Six years of peace. Six years of tranquility. Six years of healing. Am I really ready to throw it all away? Because that’s what will happen if I go ahead with this. The man has hated me since I was eight. I doubt he would have had a change of heart in the six years I avoided him like the damn plague.
My hand tightens around the bathroom sink as my dilemma eats at me from the inside out. I already promised Aunt Ava. She has never asked anything of me that she wouldn’t do herself if she could, so how could I back out now?
With a shaky breath, I straighten my back and shoulders. I stomp back into my room and head straight for my closet. I throw on the first clothes I see–a baggy T–shirt and soft sweatpants.
Chapter 546
+15 BONUS
Chapter 546
