SOPHIA'S POV“Every day feels like a new day.” Was my first thought as I opened my eyes. Wait, what?That sounded like a broken record. Did I say that yesterday? I frowned as I tried to remember but nothing. “It doesn't matter.” I tell myself out loud as I stretch beneath the cotton sheets and smile as Alex’s little voice drifts from down the hall, followed by Alexia’s staccato giggle.I sit up and run my hands through my hair, already catching the warm scent of cinnamon and cocoa wafting from the kitchen.Nathan.He’s always up before me now, usually cooking breakfast with the twins perched on either side of him like mischievous sous chefs. It’s all so… perfect. The kind of morning I used to dream of when sleep was my only refuge from chaos.Padding barefoot into the hallway, I pause by the open door of the twins’ room. Alex is trying to get one of his socks on inside out while Alexia bosses him around like a tiny general.“You’ll freeze your toes off.” She declares. “And I’m not
SOPHIA'S POV“Every day feels like a new day.” Was my first waking thought as I stretched, sunlight pouring through the gauzy curtains, the warmth settling on my skin like a fuzzy hug. Somewhere down the hall, I can hear Alexia's excited snicker and very unladylike snort, followed by Alex's classic fake groan of defeat.“That’s not fair Alexia.” I can hear him shout. “You cheated!”“Did not!”“You used the mom voice! That’s cheating!”I laugh into my pillow. The kind of deep, unbothered laughter that bubbles from a heart too full of joy to contain it.Now this – this is what mornings were meant to be.I wrap myself in my fluffy robe and walk out of the room, my hair a sleepy mess, only to be greeted by the delicious smell of cinnamon and something buttery. My stomach rumbles in appreciation.In the kitchen, Nathan stands at the stove, shirtless, wearing the apron that says ‘Kiss the Chef – or else’, his back muscles flexing slightly as he flips something in a pan. The twins are sat at
NATHAN'S POVSophia lay in my arms, her body warm, but utterly still.We were deep in the woods now, far from the scorched earth Victoria had left behind, but the scent of her still clung to my skin — smoke and deception. I couldn’t shake it. Not when I still felt the sting of her spell trailing through my veins. Not when Sophia hadn’t stirred since I pulled her from that cursed place.I held her tighter.“Sophia.” I whispered, brushing a strand of hair from her cheek, “I’ve got you. It’s me. It’s Nathan.”No response. Not even a flicker beneath her lashes.The mate bond between us should’ve surged with recognition the moment I touched her, but now it felt… muffled. Like a voice screaming underwater.And that terrified me.I dropped to my knees beneath a canopy of whispering trees, heart racing, jaw clenched so tightly it ached. Her breathing was steady, slow — almost peaceful. But it was wrong. It wasn’t hers. It was something else. Something constructed. Manufactured.She was alive.
VICTORIA'S POVThe mirror stares back at me, silent and polished like a lie waiting to be told. I lean in, my breath ghosting over the glass, and for a second… just a breath of a second, I think I see her.Her.Sophia.Even trapped in that little illusion of a life, her face still dared to look peaceful.My fingers twitch. I want to smash the mirror. I want to crack that perfect little image down the middle, watch her smug smile bleed into shards.But I don’t.No – no, no. That would be too easy.Instead, I stand straight. Smooth down my silk sleeves, so pristine they might as well be painted onto my skin. My hair is still twisted in a perfect coil, not a strand out of place. Even my lipstick is flawless. Because I don’t fall apart. I recalibrate.“She’s dreaming of him right now,” I whisper to myself, my voice a slow purr as I tilt my head. “She thinks she has him. The house, the children, the little fairytale she stole from me.”My smile pulls too wide. I see the glint of it in the
SOPHIA'S POVThe sunlight was warm when it touched my skin, as though it knew exactly where I needed it most. It crept through the floral white curtains, brushing over my cheeks and cajoling me from sleep without the need for alarms or obligations. I stretched slowly beneath the sheets, savoring the familiar comfort of the linen, the softness of my pillow, the faint smell of cedar and citrus – Nathan’s scent – lingering in the room like a fruity embrace.And just as I smiled, eyes still closed, the mini stampede began.“Mama! Mamaaa!” Alexia’s voice was high pitched and scandalized, like she was traumatized. Oh the theatrics of children. “She started it!” Alex shouted, breathless and already laughing.Sigh. Oh my days. I cracked one eye open just as the door banged open. Two little whirlwinds burst into the room – Alex clutching what looked like a piece of syrup drenched pancake, and Alexia chasing him like a tiny, furious avenger in pink pajamas.“I did not!” Alex insisted. “She sai
NATHAN'S POVI should’ve known.The moment I stepped into that clearing – just seconds after the scream tore the sky – I felt it. Something was wrong. Not just danger, but deception. A trap designed not to snap, but to suffocate. To tighten its grip on you till all life was slowly drained out of you.Sophia stood at the center of the stone ring, chest heaving, shoulders squared. Dirt streaked her cheek, and her blade was slick with blood – someone else’s, thankfully. Victoria was across from her, motionless, as if sculpted from marble, her black cloak torn and swaying in the breeze. She had her hand raised, not in surrender… but in control.“Victoria,” I growled, stepping forward, “enough.”She turned her head slowly, and for the first time in years, I saw her eyes without their mask. Not the flirtatious sparkle she used to manipulate. Not the false humility she wore like perfume.No.Just fury. And something deeper.Bitterness.“Look who finally shows up,” she said, voice like poison