Nobela ni Reda Ndem

They reached the top, breathless, and he pushed open the door to their suite. It was breathtaking — glass walls that looked out over the endless ocean, white sheets rippling in the breeze from the open balcony, sunlight spilling across the bed. He turned to her, still holding her hand, eyes dark with amusement and heat. Aurelia was laughing, breathless, her cheeks flushed, her hair wild from the run. The door closed behind them with a soft click. Outside, the sea kept roaring — waves crashing softly against the cliffs as if applauding what was to come. And somewhere below, the mansion hummed with life — children laughing, champagne glasses clinking, the air sweet with joy. But for Lucas and Aurelia… the world had just narrowed down to the sound of their breathing and the ocean beyond their window. ---- The late morning sun hung lazily above the ocean, spilling gold across the rippling waves. The air smelled of coconut oil, salt, and fresh sea breeze. Laughter drifted

Jake stood beside Aurelia, grinning like a mischievous child — and then his grin widened as a tall, tanned man with sun-streaked hair appeared at the top of the staircase. “Roland!” Jake called, his voice brimming with excitement. The man turned, his face breaking into a wide smile. “Jake!” The two met halfway, hugging tightly before their fingers laced together naturally. “You look gorgeous,” Roland murmured, eyes dancing with affection. “You say that every time,” Jake teased, cheeks pink. “And I mean it every time.” Hand in hand, they strolled off, laughing softly to themselves, disappearing through one of the arched corridors. Aurelia smiled faintly at the sight — love always had a way of warming her heart, especially when it was simple and free like that. But when she turned, she realized Eloise, Max, and Kyle had already vanished. She scanned the wide terrace and caught a glimpse of them near the palm-lined path to the pool — Eloise’s yellow sundress fluttering as Max ca

“Careful, you’re gonna spill that on me, sunshine!” Jake teased, grinning. “Then don’t move so much!” she shot back, smirking, her waist swaying in time to the music. Sue, stretched out beside him in a tiny red bikini and oversized sunglasses, tossed her blonde hair and laughed. “God, Aurelia, you’re too hot to be domestic. Let the man spill it!” Aurelia rolled her eyes, laughing. “Behave!” Eloise, sitting nearby in a mellow yellow bikini, smiled over the rim of her coconut drink. The sun loved her — her skin glowed, her eyes relaxed, her laughter soft. Max, in his bright blue trunks, sat next to her, grinning like a schoolboy. “Don’t look now, but I think someone’s smitten,” Sue whispered loud enough for Aurelia to hear, nodding toward Eloise and Max. Aurelia giggled, pouring herself a small drink. “Let her live a little.” Not far off, little Kyle was by the railing, his red-and-white button-up fluttering in the sea breeze, white shorts gleaming against his tanned legs. He wa

They sat for a while after that, not speaking much. Aurelia’s story—hung between them like the fragile glass of a chandelier: easy to shatter, but breathtaking while it held. When she finally rose to go to the bathroom, Lucas stood and came with her, watching as she moved with a care he admired. She paused in the doorway, looked back at him, and said, almost to herself, “I don’t want to run anymore.” “They will do the running this time,” he answered without hesitation. It was not a grand declaration filled with fireworks—just two quiet people in a large room with a promise hard-earned and unlikely to be broken. ----- The hum of the jet was steady, a deep, gentle vibration that felt almost like a lullaby. Through the small oval windows, clouds stretched endlessly, soft and golden under the morning sun. The world below was a watercolor blur — distant and quiet. They were heading to Santorini, to Lucas’s private island just off the coast — a piece of paradise that most people didn’

Her hands clenched in her lap. “He was married. I didn’t know that for a while. He lied. He told me he loved me in ways that made me feel like a person again. I was foolish. I wanted him to see me. We met in motels. It was messy and secret and dangerous because I thought—if I had him, maybe I was not the girl who ate dinner in her bed and brushed off insults from her stepmother.” Lucas’s face was unreadable, the lines around his mouth taut with the effort of containing himself. Aurelia didn’t look at him; she looked at the space where the shadows pooled in the corner. “Eloise found out.” The word landed like a stone. “She saw him at a café with his wife. She followed him and saw him go home with her. She came home and told me. I… I went to confront him. I was furious, humiliated. He didn’t deny it. He looked at me like I was a foolish child and then—then his wife followed. She was not the quiet type. She burst into the motel we were meeting, and everything was chaos. She beat me. Sh

Lucas’s bedroom was quiet save for the low hum of the heaters and the city noise muffled by thick drapes. He sat on the edge of the king-size bed—shirt sleeves rolled, trousers neat—looking every part the composed man the world expected. Aurelia paced in front of him, he poured her a drink. “Thank you,” she said, taking the glass with hands that still shook. She set it down on the bedside table and inhaled. "I have not told this story like this. But I'll try." Lucas watched her with the patience of a man who’d learned to wait for the real words. “Tell me when you’re ready,” he said softly. She sat on the arm of a chair, then on the floor and started, voice low and steady at first, then gathering strength as she moved through the years. “I don’t really remember my parents,” she said. “Not the way other people remember—there was my mother's picture, only one. The first clear memories I have are of these crowded foster home. I learned very fast that being small didn’t mean you got n