LOGINMonths passed and my body became stronger. My life became quieter. And Adrian became someone I barely recognized compared to the man I had first met. He still had his cold moments and that intimidating presence that could silence an entire room. But with me, he was different. One evening, I found him standing in the nursery. He was holding a tiny white blanket. “You’re doing it again.” He turned. “Doing what?” “Staring at baby things like they contain the answers to life.” He smiled. “I was thinking.” “That sounds dangerous.” He walked toward me. “I was thinking about how close I came to losing you.” My smile faded. He touched my cheek. “I spent years believing that if I controlled everything around me, nothing could hurt me.” His thumb moved gently across my skin. “I was wrong.” I looked into his eyes. “You’re still learning.” “I am and I don’t want to stop.” I smiled. He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “I love you.” “I love you too.” The following morning, I wo
Ava’s POV The next morning, I woke to the soft beeping of the monitor beside my bed. I must have been exhausted because I don’t remember sleeping . Then I felt a hand wrapped securely around mine. Adrian. He was asleep in the chair beside my bed, his head tilted awkwardly against the backrest. His suit jacket was draped over his shoulders, his tie loosened, and the exhaustion on his face made my chest ache. He had stayed even after I had urged him to go home last night he refused. I looked down at our joined hands and gently squeezed his fingers. His eyes opened immediately. “You’re awake.” His voice was rough with sleep. I smiled faintly. “You really didn’t go?” He straightened, rubbing a hand over his face. “I want to be here with you.” “Thank you.” I was grateful for him. A tired smile touched his lips. “How are you feeling?.” “Still sore, the doctor hasn’t come yet?” He shook his head as a no, I sighed. Shortly there was a knock on the door. The doctor entered with a
Ava’s POV The first thing I felt was pain. It was everywhere, dull and heavy, spreading through my body until even breathing felt like an effort. My head throbbed, my limbs felt strangely weak, and there was a sharp ache somewhere beneath my ribs that made me afraid to move. I opened my eyes slowly. White ceiling. Bright lights. The faint, sterile smell of antiseptic. A hospital. Memory came rushing back so quickly that my heart began pounding. The road. Chloe and Mia. The sudden impact. The terrifying sound of metal twisting. Then darkness. My hand instinctively moved toward my stomach. “The baby.” My voice came out barely above a whisper. Someone immediately leaned forward beside me. “Ava.” Adrian. His face was the first thing I truly saw. He looked exhausted. His hair was disheveled, his eyes red from what looked like hours without sleep, and there was something broken in his expression that I had never seen before. He reached for my hand. “I’m right here.” I stared
George’s POV The interrogation room felt colder than the warehouse had. I sat beneath the harsh fluorescent light, my wrists resting on the metal table while two detectives sat across from me. The clothes I had been wearing when they caught me were still damp from the rain, and I could feel the cold fabric against my skin. I hadn’t been given enough time to think. One moment, I had been running from the warehouse, desperate to get away from what had happened. The next, police officers had surrounded me. Now I was here, the detective opened a folder. “George Carter?” I nodded. “You were caught attempting to leave the warehouse where Victoria Blackwood’s body was discovered.” My throat tightened. “Her body was found hidden inside the building.” I lowered my eyes. “And your fingerprints were all over the area where she was found.” I swallowed. “It was an accident.” The detective leaned forward. “Then explain something to me.” I looked up. “If you claim Victoria’s death was
George’s POV The first thing I saw when I walked into the hospital was Chloe crying. My steps slowed. Something was wrong, very wrong. I had come looking for Ava, expecting to find her with Adrian after hearing about the accident. I thought it was a minor incident, instead, I found Mia sitting beside Chloe, both women looking exhausted and frightened. “Where is Ava?” Chloe looked up at me. “She’s in surgery.” My stomach dropped. “What happened?” “She was hit by a car.” I stared at her. “A car?” Mia nodded, her eyes red from crying. “It came out of nowhere.” Something cold moved through me. An accident. That was what they thought it was. But the more I listened, the less accidental it sounded. Ava had been walking back from the shops with Chloe and Mia when the vehicle suddenly swerved toward them. The driver hadn’t stopped. There had been no explanation, no warning, nothing. My mind immediately went somewhere I didn’t want it to go. Victoria. I stepped
Adrian’s POV For the first time in weeks, I allowed myself to believe that things might finally be getting better. Ava had not completely forgiven me, but she had allowed me to stay. She had listened when I spoke, even when some of my answers hurt her. Most importantly, she had stopped looking at me as though I were a stranger. There was still distance between us, but beneath it was something fragile that I was determined to protect. That morning, I stood beside her near the window of the cottage while she looked out at the ocean. The sunlight spilled across her face, catching the loose strands of her dark hair. “You should rest,” I said quietly. She glanced at me. “You say that a lot.” “Because you don’t listen.” A small smile appeared on her lips. “I listen sometimes.” “Not enough.” She laughed softly, and the sound loosened something tight inside my chest. I reached for her hand, intertwining our fingers. “I missed that,” I whispered. “What?” “The sound of y
Adrian’s POVI see her the second she looks up, I recognize her instantly. The woman from the club. Same eyes. Same composure. But this time, there’s no alcohol to soften the edges. No dim lights to blur the details.I don’t break stride as I walk into the room. I can feel the shift around me—conve
Ava's PovMia didn’t say anything at first. She just stared at me from across the kitchen, her fingers wrapped tightly around a mug of coffee that had long gone cold, like she’d forgotten it existed. Her eyes were locked on me—searching, calculating, waiting for me to say something that would make
Ava's PovI thought the sound of laughter coming from our bedroom was the TV I’d forgotten to turn off. But as I pushed the door open, I realized the sound was much deeper, much more intimate, and coming from a man whose voice I didn’t recognize, wrapped in the arms of the man I was supposed to mar
Ava’s POVThe door closes behind me, soft and almost weightless against the storm building inside my chest. I keep walking, one step after another, my heels striking the floor in a steady rhythm that doesn’t match the chaos in my pulse. I don’t stop in the hallway, not when the receptionist glances







