ANMELDENISABELLE’S POVMy chest tightened as I slammed the door in his face. My eyes burned, but I refused to cry.My fingers stayed wrapped around the door handle, frozen. I tried to pull them away, but something inside me screamed to open the door again… to let him in.I let go so suddenly it felt like the handle had burned my skin.When I turned, Matthew was staring at me, shaking his head slowly, his hands planted on his waist.“I’m so sorry that happened,” I said quietly, even though a part of me felt I didn’t need to apologize at all. Matthew had been violent toward me lately, and deep down… a small, bitter part of me hoped he had gotten a taste of his own medicine.He scoffed. “You’re sorry? Shit.”I shook my head and started walking toward my room. I was too exhausted—too stressed—to exchange another round of curse words with him.Before I could take two steps, his hand shot out and gripped my arm painfully.“Don’t you dare walk away from me, Isabelle,” he sneered, his jaw tightening.
ADRIAN’S POV“Give me both of them,” I told the storekeeper, my voice tight with a mix of urgency and anxiety. He nodded and added them to the cart. I glanced down, the cart already loaded, but it felt empty—way too little for my baby.I looked at the shelf again, picking up a tiny pacifier. The colors were soft, perfect, but I froze, my chest tightening. Which one the fuck should I pick?“The blue color is for a boy, and the pink is for a girl,” the storekeeper announced again. I swear, he’s said it three times already, and I got it, damn it.“I’ll take both,” I said again, my fingers trembling as I dropped the colors into the cart.I wandered to the shoe section and froze. My mind betrayed me, flashing memories of shopping for baby things for Helena—her bump, her laugh, and the cold, ugly truth that the child was never mine. My throat burned. My hands shook as I reached for a brown little shoe with soft fur inside.“Do you have another color of these shoes?” I asked the storekeeper.
ISABELLE’S POVMatthew’s jaw tightened, and he shook his head, pacing the sitting room like a caged animal. His fists clenched and unclenched at his sides, and every step he took made the floor feel smaller, the walls closer.Guilt flashed across my eyes, and I nodded slowly, my chest tightening as if my ribs were being squeezed. He shook his head, pacing the sitting room like a predator circling its prey. The floorboards groaned under his heavy steps, each one echoing like a warning.“You need to divorce him!” he growled, and my body jerked backward, my hands trembling as though I’d been physically struck.“I can’t!” I shot back, my eyes widening, heart hammering against my chest. My pulse pounded in my ears, drowning out every other sound.He laughed, a low, harsh sound that made my stomach twist, hands deep in his pockets. “You can’t divorce him, and you don’t want him… what sort of a fucking confused woman are you?!”“Don’t you dare insult me!” I pointed at him, chest heaving, swe
ISABELLE’S POVMy eyes snapped open, and I let out a sleepy, tired breath. I rubbed my eyes with my hands and then patted my face, noticing the dry streaks of tears that proved I had cried myself to sleep.I couldn’t stop thinking about him.Even in my dreams, I still saw him kneeling there, waiting for me to come to him. It broke my heart to see him like that, but I had to bear it. If I let him back in, he might disappear again and choose other people over my baby and me.I yawned hungrily as my stomach growled loudly.Slowly, I swung my legs off the bed, tapping my feet on the floor a few times before carefully standing up.“Phew.” I wiped the tiny beads of sweat from my forehead.Standing up was becoming harder day by day, and I was almost seven months pregnant. Sometimes I wondered if I would even be able to stand up by myself when I reached nine months.I tightened my robe around my body and walked toward the kitchen, but I couldn’t see Matthew anywhere.I turned and walked back
ADRIAN’S POV.I felt like a needle was twisting deep inside my chest. My heart hammered loudly against my ribs, each beat painful and heavy.I didn’t even know how many hours I had been kneeling there, staring at her window, hoping—praying—that she would open it for me.I know I fucked up.What I did can never be erased in this lifetime. But shit… I’m sorry. I have never felt this remorseful about anything before.I had never felt my heart twist in such cruel pain, and the worst part was that I couldn’t stop it. My body stayed frozen in place, like it was waiting for the only medicine that could heal it.Her.The cameras clicking around me didn’t make me flinch. I didn’t move at all.“Adrian. Man, get up.”Steve’s voice sounded like a whisper in my ears. Around me, the murmuring crowd grew louder, mixed with the endless clicking of cameras.He had to hit my shoulder three damn times before I snapped out of the trance.I slowly lifted my head and looked at him. His eyes were filled wit
ISABELLE’S POVHe didn’t flinch. His eyes burned with quiet fire. “Then I’ll wait. I don’t care how long it takes. I’ll wait as long as I have to. Because no one else… no one else matters but you, Isabelle.”His eyes darkened, and the warmth in his voice hardened into something sharper. “Isabelle… I need you to promise me something.”I blinked, heart thudding. “What is it?”“Never speak to him again,” Matthew said, his jaw tight, every muscle in his body taut with control and warning. “Adrian… he’s chaos. He’s dangerous. And I won’t let him hurt you—or this baby—again.”I froze. My throat went dry. I wanted to argue, to tell him that he had no right to control who I spoke to, that Adrian was still part of my life, whether he liked it or not. But the way Matthew’s eyes bore into mine—I felt the weight of it all press down on me.“I… I can’t just… erase him, Matthew,” I whispered. My fingers clenched tighter over my bump. “He’s… part of my life. Part of this baby’s life, too.”Matthew s
ISABELLE’S POVI need help. I need help. I badly need helpppp. I can’t breathe. The butterflies in my stomach are becoming too much. My face is so red—like a tomato. Maybe even redder than a tomato right now.Adrian drove in a sleek black car, with one of his hands on my bare thigh—bare thigh. His
ISABELLE’S POVI wake up slowly, like I’m being pulled out of deep water. My eyelids feel too heavy to lift, and when I finally manage to open them, the light hurts. Everything is blurry at first. White. Too bright.My head feels thick, stuffed with cotton. I try to move, but my body doesn’t liste
ADRIAN’S POVI trusted my best friend with my life. I had never disrespected him for anyone I loved—not even my late wife, Helena. But for Isabelle, I’ve done crazy shit, things that actually make me scared of spending too much time with her.“What did you just say?!” Daniel fucking questioned me.
ISABELLE’S POVMy eyes fluttered open, and a small yawn slipped out of me. When I tried to move, I couldn’t; it felt like something was gently holding me in place. Still half asleep, I slowly turned my head to the side and realized Adrian was right behind me. His head rested near my neck, and his a







