The Alchemist of Broken Dreams by Sienna Rose Blackwell 45

Chapter 45 

Chapter 45 

DYLAN 

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79 

5 vouchers 

I wanted to stay. Every part of me screamed to go after Hunter. But I knew better. He needed space right now. And, if I was being honest, so did I. 

The moment he disappeared from sight, I felt the ache settle deep inside me, a mix of guilt and longing twisting in my chest. My emotions were a tangled mess I couldn’t even begin to unravel. 

I was confused about how I felt for Hunter. I knew my heart no longer beat the same way for Beckett. Somewhere between the fights, the sleepless nights, and the quiet indifference that filled our marriage, the flame had died out. I had spent years trying to convince myself that it was just a rough patch, that love could be built if I stayed long enough, if I loved hard enough. But love was never meant to be one–sided. 

I was trapped in that marriage, not because of Beckett, but because of the dream I refused to let go of. I had believed that if I endured, if I waited, Beckett would finally see me. But he never did. One phone call from Sarah–and he ran to her without hesitation. 

That was when I knew I had lost long before I ever started trying. There was never a competition. There was never me in his heart. It was always Sarah. Always. 

The day I walked out of our house, I thought I was leaving behind every piece of love I had left. I told myself I’d never feel that way again—that kind of foolish, consuming affection that left me vulnerable. But then came 

Hunter. 

He stirred something in me I didn’t want to acknowledge. The same rush of warmth, the same ache that used to come with Beckett–but this time, it was different. Wilder. Realer. It scared me because I barely knew him, yet somehow, he was already under my skin. 

Maybe it was my pride that kept me from admitting it out loud—that I’d fallen for him without even realizing when it started. I thought I was incapable of loving anyone after Beckett. I thought my heart was too tired, too bruised. But Hunter… he made it beat again. 

And maybe that’s what terrified me most of all. 

I took a long, deep breath before getting into the car. The door shut with a heavy thud, sealing me inside a silence that felt louder than any argument we’d ever had. The driver didn’t say a word. He simply started the engine, and we pulled away from the hotel. 

City lights blurred past the window, but my mind wasn’t in the car. It was out there somewhere with him. The quiet hummed around me, and all I could hear was my heartbeat pounding too fast, too unsteady. 

When we reached the house, I thanked the driver and stepped out. My footsteps echoed through the hallway as I entered the mansion. I slipped off my heels and walked straight to the bedroom, my exhaustion weighing down my limbs. 

I changed, washed my face, and turned off the lights. The bed felt bigger than ever. I lay down and pulled the sheets up, closing my eyes, willing myself to drift away. 

But I couldn’t. 

14:29 Sun, Dec 28 N 

Chapter 45 

Because the room smelled like him. 

The faint scent of his cologne lingered on the pillow