LOGINEmily felt paralyzed. She blinked repeatedly at the sight before her,wishing it was all a figment of her imagination.
It wasn't. “Sophie” She managed to whisper. Her sister stared back at her with no remorse or shame. None of the cheaters looked shocked to have been discovered. Emily's mind was in a whirlwind of thoughts, trying to process everything. Never in a million did she imagine that Wesley could cheat on her and with no other person than her blood sister. She felt her heart ache from the betrayal. “How….how could you?” She mumbled,the words feeling heavy in her mouth. “Ermm….Emily,would you excuse us?We need to get dressed.” Wesley blurted out. Emily felt her mouth drop open in another wave of shock. “What?” Wesley repeated himself “Emily, don't make this harder than it needs to be. Go downstairs,we'll come meet you after dressing up.” Emily couldn't believe her ears. She caught them in bed and that was all he had to say. “Emily, please go downstairs. We'll talk about this when we come down.” Sophie added. Again, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. The cheaters were calm. Like they had done nothing wrong. Their relaxed expressions made it look like Emily was the outsider who had walked in on the couple's private time. Her body began to burn with rage. If she didn't leave, she was going to launch at both of them and plug out their eyes. Emily casted them one last look before quietly walking out of the room. Her world was spinning as she descended the stairs. The house that was once a safe haven to her suddenly became too stuffy. Afraid she was going to lose conscience if she stayed, Emily grabbed the car keys and bolted out of the house. Her hands trembled as she opened the car door. She needed to run as far away as she could from the betrayal. After everything they had gone through together, she couldn't fathom why he would do that to her. They had a good life, they were happy. Why would he throw that away? And with no other person than her sister. Her mind swirled with questions. How long had their affair been going on? Weeks,months, years? It all felt like a dream. She drove aimlessly for what felt like hours before she finally pulled up in front of her parents’ house. She broke down in tears. Years of love and commitment was down the drain. She gave up her dreams to make him happy. She built his career and this was how he chose to pay her back. After hours of crying, Emily finally left the comfort of the car and made her way inside. Immediately she saw her parents, she felt like breaking down again. Both of them had a curious look on seeing her swollen face. “Emily, what's wrong?” her mother asked in confusion. “I caught them.” the words slipped out of her lips. “Who?” John Park asked his daughter in confusion. She blurted out the heavy words. “Wesley is cheating on me with Sophie.” Instead of looking shocked, John and Susan Park gave each other a knowing look. At the same time, the doorbell rang. Susan went to get it while John asked Emily to sit down. Just when she began to wonder if her parents didn't believe her, Susan returned with Wesley, Sophie and Jane. Emily jumped to her feet as soon as she saw them. “What are they doing here?” She asked in a fit of rage. “Quit acting like a child and sit down.” her father commanded. She stared back at him in disbelief. “I'm acting like a child? I found my husband and sister together in bed. How should I act?” Susan snapped at her “Don't talk to your father that way. Sit down, let's talk about this like a family.” Emily was stunned by her parents’ words. Almost immediately, something seemed to click in her head. “You knew?” The reactions from her parents, sister, husband and mother-in-law was all the answer she needed. She fell back on the Sofa in shock. Her whole family knew about this affair. She had been betrayed by everyone. Susan shamelessly said; “Your sister and Wealey have fallen in love. Who are we to stop them? Love is natural and no one can choose who they fall in love with. The best thing you can do as a good sister is to support them.” If she wasn't still in shock from the multiple betrayals, she would have scoffed at her mother's words. Emily wondered why she was the only one who had to be a good sister. Her parents had always favored Sophie, but she couldn't believe they would in the situation. Emily let out a chuckle. What had she expected? Of course they would side with their favorite child. After all, they had Emily to save Sophie from cancer. She was their princess, the one they would do anything for while Emily was nothing but a spare part for her. “Do not laugh at us, Emily. We didn't mean to fall in love.” The sound of Sophie's pretentious voice ignited a flame of rage in her. “Shut up. You're nothing but a disgusting whore who slept with her sister's husband. You've always taken everything from me ,I guess you also had to have him.” Sophie began to shed crocodile tears while their parents began to scold her. “How dare you talk to your sister that way?Apologize at once.” John yelled at her. Emily stared back at him with nothing but coldness. All her life she had tried to please her parents so they could love her like they loved Sophie. She was done. All the love she had once had for them was gone. She rose to her feet. “You're disgusting parents. I don't want to ever see you again in my life.” She tried to walk away but was blocked by Sophie who grabbed her arm. “Please, Emily. Don't put your anger on Mom and Dad. Blame me instead, it is all my fault.” Emily could tell her sister was pretending. She yanked her arm free from her grip and Sophie immediately fell down. Before Emily could react, she felt a harsh sting on her cheeks. Wesley had slapped her. “How dare you be so cruel?” He yelled at her. Emily chuckled at the Irony. They had betrayed her but she was the cruel one. He rushed to join her parents who were already helping Sophie. Emily didn't know if she should laugh or cry. “You're a heartless monster. How dare you push a pregnant woman? I always knew Wesley married the wrong sister.” Jane yelled in her face. Sophie was pregnant. The words replayed in her head. “Leave, from now on you cease to be our child.” John said, his eyes burning with hatred. “Go and never come back.” All eyes were glaring at her like she was a witch. Emily ran out of the house with tears streaming down her face. She didn't know where she was going but she kept running. A bright light shone directly in her eyes. She had no time to react as the car slammed into her making fly in the air before landing hard on the ground. The last thing she saw was the silhouette of two men running towards her.Emily’s POVThe restaurant lights cast a golden glow over the table, soft and forgiving, as if even the room itself wanted to give us this fragile truce.Hours had passed since that first heavy silence, yet I still found myself glancing across the table at Ava and Ezra as though I had to keep checking, checking that this wasn’t a dream, that they were really here, that we were all still sitting together without the old wounds bleeding us dry.Ava was smiling, her cheeks flushed from laughter. Ezra’s hand rested casually on hers, a small gesture but one that spoke volumes. Across from me, Alex leaned close, his arm brushing mine on the seat. There was an ease to him tonight, something I hadn’t seen in far too long.And me, I felt lighter. As though some invisible chain I had dragged behind me for years had finally fallen away.When the plates were cleared and the laughter had settled into something quieter, we spilled out onto the street.The night air was cool, crisp with the kind of
Chapter 119Ava’s PovI’d been nervous before. Nervous before work presentations, before interviews, before seeing Ezra again but this, this was a different kind of nerves.Dinner with Alex and Emily. The four of us at one table. The thought was almost absurd, like we were characters in some play where every line carried the weight of the past.Ezra’s hand found mine as we stepped into the restaurant. His grip was steady, grounding, and I clung to it like it was the only thing keeping me upright.“You’re quiet,” he murmured as the host led us through the dimly lit space.“I’m trying not to throw up,” I admitted, and that earned a soft laugh from him.“You’ll be fine,” he said, but I could feel the tension in him too. His shoulders were a little too stiff, his jaw a little too tight.The host stopped at a corner booth and there they were.Alex looked up first, his expression unreadable, though I saw the flicker of surprise, maybe even relief when he spotted Ezra. Emily sat beside h
Ezra’s POVThe city outside my window hummed like it always did, a low, constant pulse of life that made silence impossible but somehow made the quiet moments feel sharper.I stood by the counter, pouring two glasses of wine, listening to Ava’s soft laugh from my couch.She was curled up there, barefoot, legs tucked beneath her, wearing one of my hoodies like she’d always belonged in it. Her hair was still damp from the rain we’d gotten caught in earlier, curling at the ends, clinging to her neck.It hit me then how easy this was, how natural it felt. For years I’d kept myself carefully walled off from anything that looked like romance, like intimacy. But Ava had slipped through the cracks before I even realized the walls were crumbling.I brought her the wine and sat beside her. “Here.”“Thanks.” She took the glass, fingers brushing mine, and gave me that small, knowing smile she had, half shy, half dangerous. “You’re quiet tonight.”“I’m thinking,” I admitted.“About what?” She tuck
Emily’s PovThe walk back from the restaurant felt endless.Every step was heavy with Jace’s words, echoing in my head like a song I couldn’t turn off.“I wouldn’t make you doubt yourself.”“You don’t have to keep bleeding for someone just because you loved him first.”“Love should be simple.”God.He was right. On some level, I knew he was.Being with Jace would be easy. He’d never once made me feel like I was too much, or not enough, or anything in between. He saw me, he really saw me and wanted me, even when I was at my lowest.And yet…When I closed my eyes, it wasn’t Jace’s voice I heard. It wasn’t his arms I remembered wrapping around me last night. It wasn’t his whisper that had pulled me out of the darkness I’d been drowning in for months.It was Alex.“I love you.”The words he’d finally spoken, the ones I’d waited for, clung to me like a second skin, and no matter how hard I tried to shake them, they rooted deeper, steadying me in a way Jace’s certainty couldn’t.By the time
The sunlight dragged me awake before I was ready.For the first time in weeks, I hadn’t fallen asleep alone. Alex’s warmth had been beside me, his words still wrapped around me like an anchor.I love you.They echoed in my mind, soft and steady, soothing every jagged corner of my heart.But when I blinked awake, he was gone.The sheets were still warm where he’d been, the faint trace of his cologne lingering in the air. A folded note sat on the nightstand.My chest tightened as I reached for it.Didn’t want to wake you.Call me when you’re ready.I meant every word -Alex.I pressed the note against my lips, torn between relief and fear. Relief that he was finally fighting for me the way I’d always wanted. Fear that letting myself believe him again might be the biggest mistake of my life.The day stretched forward, heavy with possibilities I wasn’t sure I wanted to face.I was making coffee when my phone buzzed. For a split second, I thought it was Alex, but when I glanced at the scre
Alex's PovThe moment stretched between us, heavy but alive. Emily’s words, “I don’t know if I can forgive you, but I’m listening” kept echoing in my chest like the only lifeline I’d been thrown in weeks. Listening meant hope. Listening meant I hadn’t lost her completely. I didn’t push closer right away. One wrong move and she’d shut me out again. Instead, I let myself breathe in the quiet, breathe her in, the lavender and candle smoke lingering on her skin, the warmth of her presence that I’d missed more than I could admit. Her eyes flicked down, then back up, guarded but soft around the







