Shadows Of A Forgotten Spring

Chapter 102

"My mother wants to see you before she leaves the hospital tomorrow," he said quietly, his voice almost breaking.

She hesitated, her eyes flickering with indecision. For a moment it looked like she might refuse. But then she exhaled slowly, the fight leaving her just a little. "I'll come by," she said, her voice weary. "Now, if that's all, goodbye." She turned to leave, her back to him, and he felt a sharp pang in his chest. He wasn't ready for this to end, for her to walk away again. The words rushed to his lips, propelled by desperation.

"Emma," he called out, his voice raw.

She froze, her hand gripping the doorframe so tightly her knuckles turned white. The silence between them stretched painfully.

Alexander's throat felt dry, his heart a leaden weight in his chest. He swallowed hard, forcing his voice to be steady even as he felt it splintering from within.

"My team told me about the house hunting," he said, his tone low, almost hesitant. "You can move into the house without paying a dime."

A bitter, humorless laugh escaped her lips, sharp as glass. She finally turned her head, just enough to let him see the cold disdain in her eyes. Her gaze sliced through. Her voice trembled with restrained fury as she spoke.

tired of wielding her sword. "You should stop the act. Mr. Alexander Black." She spat out his name like it tasted bitter on her tongue. "By

jaw clenched, her chin lifted as if

Alexander," she whispered, so softly it was almost lost to

locked it behind herself before he

thinking, he headed straight for the shower. This had become his nightly ritual recently. He let the scalding water run over him, hoping it would wash

was filled with just one person. Emma. Her name echoed through his mind, a whisper of regret that never ceased. Her voice, sharp and unyielding, replayed in his head: "I'm no longer the weak girl you sent away mercilessly five years ago." The words cut him deeper than he cared to admit, reopening

out of the shower, steam rising around him. He dressed for bed with slow, deliberate movements, each motion. heavy with exhaustion. As he walked through the door into the room, an emptiness gnawed at him. This house, which had been his sanctuary for years, now felt like a mausoleum - cold, silent, and haunted by what he had

sterile walls of the hospital where she had spent the last four years. The thought should have brought him joy, but it only made the ache in his chest sharper. He knew that the

inside him. Emma was the only person who could heal the wounds

11:08 Wed, Dec 18

Chapter 102

away. He owed her so much more than the house he has offered her. He owed her all the years she had spent building herself back up from

the

hair as he walked deeper into the bedroom. His cold gaze landed on Annie, curled up under the duvet, her face turned away from him. The room felt stifling, despite the silence. She had been quiet lately and he prefers that. He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, the weight of his thoughts pressing down on him. The room was thick with unspoken words,