Chapter 0291

The boy that fifteen-year-old me had fallen in love with. With trembling hands, I unfolded one of the letters, the paper soft and worn from years of reading and rereading.

“Dear Hannah,” it began. “My mom passed this morning. I can’t thank you enough for what you did for me this summer. Taking me to see her in the hospital… I’ll never forget that. You gave me a chance to say goodbye, and I’ll always be grateful. I don’t know how I would have gotten through it without you.”

I bit back tears as I read on. Noah wrote about his mother’s passing; his grief was palpable even through the faded ink. He poured out his heart to me in a way he never did anymore.

“Sometimes I feel so alone,” he had written. “But then I remember you, and I don’t feel quite so lost. Thank you for being my friend, Hannah. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

It took all my power not to crumple that letter in my hands. What happened to that boy? When did he turn into this cold, controlling Alpha who seemed to view me as nothing more than a broodmare and prisoner? The Noah who wrote these letters would never have locked me in a room, never have treated me like a possession. But now… now, he likely didn’t even remember these letters, just like he had forgotten everything else about our shared past.

Taking care to control my fury, I folded the letter neatly and returned it to the box. Part of me wanted to show these to Noah, to remind him of who we used to be. A smaller part of me wanted to toss them into the fire. But the largest part of me wanted to save them for myself, if only to show my future child that their father wasn’t always a brute.

As I put the box away, a small smile played on my lips. At least I had managed to outsmart him with those two-hour appointments. He would be too busy at work to bother coming home, and I would have some peace. It was a small victory, but right now, I would take whatever I could get.

Later that day, I settled into the living room with a new book, my feet propped up on the coffee table. Finally, some alone time without Noah hovering over me. The house was quiet, peaceful in a way it hadn’t been in a long time. I had just gotten through the first chapter when the front door burst open. Noah strode in, looking slightly out of breath, his tie loosened and his jacket slung over his arm.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said, hanging his jacket on the coat rack.

I stared at him, so dumbfounded that my book slipped from my fingers. “I thought you were at work.” Noah’s eyes met mine, a knowing look passing between us. Clearly, he knew I had intentionally scheduled our time during his work hours, but here he was anyway.

“Loft early,” he said simply. “What do you want to do for our two hours?”

I blinked, unable to process what was happening. “You left work early? For this?”

Noah nodded, a hint of amusement in his eyes. “Is that so hard to believe?”

“Yes,” I said bluntly, “You’ve never canceled work for me before.”

“Well, I am now,” Noah replied. He hung his jacket on the hook and kicked his shoes off, striding over to me. I was still too stunned to move or even pick up my discarded book.

“Well?” he asked, placing his hands on his hips. “What do you want to do today?”