تسجيل الدخولHi everyone ⸜(。˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡
We’ve officially wrapped up Book One, and Book Two kicks off right away with a time skip. I hope you’re all ready for it!
I want to thank each of you from the bottom of my heart for sticking with me this far. I truly hope we can keep going on this journey together.
That said, I’ll be honest: the interaction has been pretty quiet lately, so I’m never quite sure if anyone’s still waiting for the next chapter even though I try to update every day. If you’re enjoying the story, a comment, like, or review would mean the absolute world to me. I’d love to know what you’re thinking and feeling.
Still, thank you so much for all your support—it really does keep me going.
I appreciate you more than you know (*ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ*.゚
Hi everyone ⸜(。˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡We’ve officially wrapped up Book One, and Book Two kicks off right away with a time skip. I hope you’re all ready for it! I want to thank each of you from the bottom of my heart for sticking with me this far. I truly hope we can keep going on this journey together.That said, I’ll be honest: the interaction has been pretty quiet lately, so I’m never quite sure if anyone’s still waiting for the next chapter even though I try to update every day. If you’re enjoying the story, a comment, like, or review would mean the absolute world to me. I’d love to know what you’re thinking and feeling.Still, thank you so much for all your support—it really does keep me going. I appreciate you more than you know (*ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)ꕤ*.゚
Sophia’s gaze flicked between us and I could see the war happening behind those beautiful eyes.My throat felt tight. I wanted to reach out and pull her into my arms right then, but I knew better. Gage’s hand found mine on the floor between us, his fingers threading through mine. He gave me the smallest nod — Your Move, Baby — letting me lead while staying right there.I swallowed and kept my voice gentle, almost a whisper. “Sophia… we have a big house with a room that’s waiting for someone special. Lots of space to draw, to read, to be however quiet or loud you want to be. And we’d really love it if you wanted to come home with us.” I paused before adding, “To be part of our family.”Her eyes widened, the amber centers flaring brighter for just a second before she looked down again. She hugged her knees once more, but it wasn’t as tight this time. Then her small voice came out shaky, barely louder than a breath.“Yes.”My heart slammed against my ribs so hard I thought she might h
The day finally arrived.My heart hammered the entire drive to the adoption agency. Gage’s hand stayed firmly on my thigh the whole way, grounding me through my jeans. We were supposed to pick up a baby boy who was just a few months old, the little one we’d been matched with after months of paperwork, home visits, and careful hope. A fresh start. A tiny life who would never know the pain of waiting.But the moment we stepped into the bright visitation room, something shifted.While the social worker went to fetch the baby’s file, my eyes drifted across the large play area attached to the main room. And there she was.A cute nine-year-old girl sitting alone in the far corner, knees drawn up to her chest, arms wrapped tightly around them. Her dark hair fell in soft waves around her face, partially hiding her features, but when she glanced up, shy, almost startled, her eyes stopped me cold.Central heterochromia.A striking ring of warm amber-brown in the center of each iris, bleeding
THEA°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・Only then did I turn.I shifted slowly in his arms until I was facing him, our noses inches apart. “You… you want that?” I kept my hand pressed to his chest, feeling the steady thump of his heart under my palm. “Even though it won’t be… ours? Not from me?”Gage’s arm tightened around my waist, pulling me impossibly closer until our bodies were flush, my forehead resting against his. His free hand came up to cradle the back of my neck, thumb stroking slowly along my jaw in that commanding-yet-gentle way only he could manage.“Baby,” he murmured. “Look at me.”I did. Those steel-gray eyes held mine without flinching.“Any child we bring into this family will be ours. Blood or not, it doesn’t matter to me. Not one damn bit.” He pressed a slow kiss to my forehead, then another to the tip of my nose, his breath warm against my skin. “I’ve watched you survive things that would’ve broken anyone else. If we adopt, that kid gets the strongest, bravest, most loving mother on the
For a second I could only stare at him, caught off guard by the sheer, uncomplicated joy in his grin. I lowered the window a few inches, the cool evening air slipping inside along with the faint scent of wet pavement and lilies from the shop next door. “Where are your parents, little man?” I asked, keeping my voice gentle. The boy giggled, rocking back on his heels like this was the best game he had ever played, and in that moment a woman hurried around the corner of the building, coat flapping open, followed closely by a man who looked just as flustered. She scooped the child up in one smooth motion, settling him on her hip with the practiced ease of someone who had done it a number of times before. The boy laughed louder, wrapping his arms around her neck as if he had not just tried to climb into a stranger’s car. “I’m so sorry,” the woman said, breathless, her eyes meeting mine through the open window. “He got away from us for two seconds while we were grabbing flowers for
❁✿❀ We left the hospital two days later, the discharge papers signed in silence while the nurse offered us the same practiced smile everyone had been giving us since the fall. Thea didn’t say much on the ride home. She stared out the window at the gray stretch of highway, one hand resting lightly on her stomach out of habit, the other limp in her lap. I kept glancing over at her, waiting for something—anything—but she only nodded when I asked if the seat heater was too warm. The first week back was the worst kind of quiet I had ever known. Thea moved through the house like a ghost in her own life. She would drift from room to room in the soft robes she favored, hair loose and unbrushed, eyes distant in a way that made my chest hurt every time I caught her staring at nothing. Mrs. Harlan tried to keep things normal, fresh flowers on the dining table, meals left warming under silver domes, but Thea barely touched any of it. She would sit at the long table with a plate in f
Ellis nodded like that explained everything. “Ah. The classic Noah limbo. Women hate that shit, bro. They want labels, clarity, whatever. Me? I stay single for a reason. Girls are complicated as hell. One minute they’re cool with casual, next minute they’re crying because you didn’t text back fast
I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding, the tension in my shoulders easing as his words sank in. “Okay,” I whispered, squeezing his hand back. “I believe you.” The waiter appeared then with dessert menus. Gage released my hand only long enough to take one, then passed it to me with
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・ The morning light sliced through the penthouse windows like a hangover headache, unforgiving, and way too bright. I’d gotten back sometime after three, showered off the night’s residue, and collapsed into bed still tasting sweat, and Amelia’s fear. Sleep had been shallow, fractured b
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:・ The drive home was quiet, but not the awkward kind. Gage’s hand stayed on my thigh the entire time, thumb tracing slow, absent patterns through my jeans. Every once in a while he’d squeeze lightly, a silent reminder that he was thinking about me. I stared out the window, watching the







