LOGINAnna barely made it past the doorway before Jason caught up with her. His hand closed around her wrist, stopping her so abruptly she almost stumbled.“What are you doing?" She wriggled her wrist, trying to break free. "Let me go, Jason.”“Let them be.”Anna stared at him. “What?”He released her wrist but stepped in front of her before she could continue toward the courtyard. “Let them be.”Outside, Leah had already made it halfway across the courtyard with Gideon right behind her.“Lee, please.”“Don't.”“Just stop for a second.”“I said don't, Gideon.”Anna's heart broke at the sight. How had they gotten to this? She stepped forward without realizing, her eyes fixed on them."I should—"Jason moved, blocking her path. "No."Anna glared at him. “Excuse you?”Jason nodded toward the courtyard. “Let them hash it out themselves.”“But Leah wants space and I betrayed her trust. I need to—"“If you get in between them right now, your supposed betrayal becomes the thing they talk about ins
Anna sat cross-legged on the quilt, staring out into the night, a thin blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She reached for another tissue from the box beside her and wiped beneath her nose, sniffing as she did.She'd changed out of the loose shirt and shorts she'd worn earlier, trading them for a thin, soft camisole and loose pajama trousers. Since she'd made her way to her room, she'd been resisting the urge to text Leah. To ask how she really was. She'd had to keep reminding herself to be patient. But tomorrow suddenly felt too far away.Tears clung to her lashes, her cheeks still wet. Just as she dropped the tissue onto the small pile of crumpled tissues beside her, a soft knock came at her door. She glanced toward the door, her brows furrowing.The knock came again, soft and hesitant in its rhythm.Elena?Once she'd convinced Gideon to go home and come back tomorrow afternoon, she'd headed upstairs immediately. She was probably here to ask what was really going on. Turning away,
Handsome,This is probably the last time I'd get to call you that. I couldn't text or call you to say this, so I'm writing it instead.I'm sorry.I know you probably won't understand why I'm doing this. I don't fully understand it myself.The past months has been harder than I've let you see. I thought I was getting better. I thought if I went back to normal, kept busy, smiled and laughed when I was supposed to, eventually everything would stop hurting. But it hasn't. And lately, I've started feeling like I'm standing beside my own life instead of actually living it.You keep telling me that we're okay. That losing our baby didn't change us. That what the doctors said doesn't change the future we imagined.I want to believe you. I really do.But every time you talk about our future, I find myself wondering whether I'm enough to be part of it anymore. I hate that I've started thinking that way. I hate even more that I haven't known how to tell you.You have been patient with me. You ha
WE MADE THAT?Anna scoffed for the umpteenth time as she stitched the deep laceration across the shoulder of the man who'd been brought into the ER earlier that morning.Why had she gotten so affected by that? Why had she been stupid enough to give that buccaneer of a man any encouragement?Her eyes narrowed at the memory.Knightmare☺️: It is. Still can't believe we made that.She'd stared at the message for another good thirty seconds before finally typing:Anna: My next doctor appointment is in two weeks.She'd hesitated, biting down on her lip as she debated whether to send the next message.Anna: ...you can come, if you want to.The response had come so quickly, she'd barely had time to regret sending it.Knightmare☺️: Sure. Day and time?Anna groaned low in her throat again. THAT had been her mistake. She'd thought she was simply giving him an opportunity to be present for his child. Instead, apparently, she'd handed Jason Knight an open invitation to become a full-time pregnancy
What was happening right now?Anna stared at the man in front of her as though he'd grown two heads. She couldn't wrap her head around the fact he was standing in front of her right now, refrigerator open, asking what she wanted to eat. Not just that—planning to cook for her.It felt like ages since he'd done that. It felt like decades had passed since he'd stocked her kitchen and made dinner for her. Before everything went to hell. Before he'd said those words.You're dead to me.Let's end this cursed fate between us.Jason raised an eyebrow when she just continued to stare at him.Was he serious?"Are you planning to just stare at me?"Anna's lips parted, her eyes dropping from his. She looked up when Jason sighed."What do you want to eat?" He asked again."Um... anything is fine.""What's anything?""I don't know.""Then think."Anna gave him an exasperated look, crossing her arms again. Jason straightened and faced her fully, one shoulder resting against the refrigerator."Let's
He hated this house.It was driving him insane. Or maybe it had nothing at all to do with the house but a certain pregnant woman who wouldn't stop ruining his sanity.His resolve.He was going insane because they were living together. Because their history was complicated. Because he promised there would be boundaries.Because he shouldn't want her.Yet, he wouldn't stop noticing things about her. The way she talked to the staff. Laughed with Elena. The way she walked downstairs for her morning run, half-awake most times. The way she touched her stomach while running without realizing she was doing it.The east side of the estate was usually quiet at the wee hour of the morning. Jason knew because he'd been using the running path beyond the backyard since he moved in. And on his way back, he'd noticed the faint glow from one of the upstairs windows.Her window.One morning it was on. The next morning, it wasn't. One morning he saw her silhouette. Another morning, there was nothing. He
Jason tensed as Anna drew him down by the collar, her lips pressing into his, slow and deliberate. His brain fizzled like overloaded wires sparking and his hands clinched at his sides. If he let this become more than theatrics, everything he’d built—done— to get here would unravel like cheap stit
“Mom…” the woman, whom Anna had called Olivia, choked out, looking like she might collapse right there. Jason blinked, dazed, as Anna moved in a blur. One minute, she was standing by her door, brows furrowed at the woman, and the next…Her eyes widened in horror and she dashed out to the open door
One minute, she was crying in Jason's arms, the next, Anna was pushing away, wiping her face and asking him to drive her to the hospital. He did. Told Ethan he could go home. The moment they stopped in front of the hospital, she was out, rushing through the lobby. She didn't notice the looks thr
Anna tried to keep her eyes on the road, but they kept sneaking peeks at the silent man beside her. Her fingers tightened around his jacket and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She wasn't used to this… silence between them. Even at Elena's wedding, when they were still in their ‘I can't sta







