All Chapters of Faded Winter Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

Sierra's POV"Jasmine's flight gets in tomorrow. She doesn't have anywhere to stay yet, so she'll be staying at the Lakeside Estate for the time being."Tristan Webster leaned back against the car seat and loosened his tie. I turned away from the window and looked at him."Okay."My calm response seemed to catch him off guard. He turned toward me and studied my face for several seconds before speaking again."You drove her out of the country years ago. Now that she's back, don't even think about trying anything."His hand came up to the back of my neck, his fingers squeezing firmly."I don't have the energy for that anymore," I murmured, lowering my eyes.He chuckled, apparently pleased with my answer. "That treatment center really did wonders for you. You're much more obedient now."He pulled me into his arms and kissed my forehead. "For the wedding next month, I'll have Jasmine be your maid of honor. Think of it as a fresh start for the two of you.""Okay. Whatever you thin

There were two weeks left until the wedding, and the estate was already overflowing with preparations.Boxes of decorations and supplies were stacked in nearly every corner, while Tristan seemed determined to turn the ceremony into the social event of the year, inviting nearly half of the city's high society.I was sitting in the living room sorting through the guest list when he came over and placed a gold-embossed invitation in front of me."Take a look at the design. Jasmine helped choose it," he said.I glanced at the invitation. Our names were printed across the front, but the faint watermark behind them was a pattern of hibiscus flowers—Jasmine's favorite."It's nice." I set it aside and went back to checking the names on the guest list.Tristan sat beside me and casually flipped through the papers. "As for your parents, I had Tomas arrange their flights and hotel."Then he added, as though it were a minor detail, "There wasn't enough room at the head table, so I put them

The wedding march had long since faded out, leaving an awkward silence hanging over the ballroom.The officiant stood onstage, clearly unsure whether to continue, while guests whispered among themselves and kept stealing uneasy glances at Tristan, who stood alone at the end of the aisle.He was dressed in an impeccably tailored black tuxedo, a white boutonniere pinned neatly to his lapel, but the composure he was known for had completely disappeared.His face was dark and tense, and his jaw was clenched so tightly that a muscle kept twitching.His childhood friend, Chad Thornton, pushed through the crowd and whispered, "Tristan, what happened? Where is Sierra? Tomas went to pick her up, but nobody was at the estate."Tristan tightened his grip on his phone until his knuckles turned white."Her phone is off, and her location is gone!" He gritted his teeth, squeezing each word through the gaps. "She played me!"Another friend, Cole Sloan, edged closer. "Is this because you went af

Sierra's POVWinter in Anchorage was brutal, with snow burying the streets and piling against the rooftops.I rented a small one-story cottage on the edge of town. There was an apple tree in the yard, and every morning I scattered a handful of birdseed beneath its branches for the sparrows that braved the cold.Three months had passed since I left Eldeanford, and in all that time, I hadn't logged into any of my old social media accounts or contacted a single person from my former life.I found a job as a cashier at a neighborhood grocery store. The pay wasn't much, but it was enough to cover the basics and leave me with enough money to buy fresh meat and vegetables without having to count every dollar.The hearing in my left ear had continued to deteriorate.The doctor told me the damage from the medication was permanent, but I wasn't particularly upset about it. Without all those insincere voices filling my head, the world had become quieter, calmer, and somehow easier to bear.

That night, a blizzard swept through Anchorage.In the middle of the night, violent pounding on the gate woke me.I threw on a coat and stepped outside. Through the narrow opening in the door, I saw Tristan kneeling in the snow, dressed in nothing but a thin hospital gown.His face was burning with fever, and every breath came with a harsh, violent cough. Dario Cooper and Chad were trying desperately to pull him back toward the SUV."Sierra..." Tristan clung to the gate, his fingernails digging into the wood hard enough to leave bloody marks. "Please, just let me see her. I only want to see her one last time."He broke free of Chad's grip and slammed his forehead against the gate. "Sierra, I'll pay for everything I've done with my life. Please... forgive me."I stood on the other side of the gate and listened to him beg, but I had no intention of opening it. In the end, I just turned around, went back inside, and switched off the lights.Eventually, his friends managed to drag h