Chapter 104\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance didn\u2019t knock. He never did. He just pushed the door open and came inside, his jaw tight, his movements\u00a0<\/p>\n
restless.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d been in my office all morning pouring over employment records for every person that had worked in the pack house in the past five years. I was already high strung, the revelations from my meeting with Cassian yesterday at the forefront of my mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My wolf stirred instantly, wary. Lance only carried himself like that when he was about to start a fight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I set my pen down and leaned back in my chair, narrowing my eyes at him. \u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou really going to play dumb with me?\u201d he shot back, closing the door a little harder than necessary. His eyes were burning, the same fire I\u2019d seen in him since we were boys. That old rage he always carried toward me. \u201cEllie told me about Felicity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My stomach dropped, but I forced my face to remain calm. \u201cWhat about her?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t start with me, Nolan.\u201d He stepped closer, bracing his hands on my desk. \u201cEllie told me everything. The way Felicity cornered her. The things she said about you-about the two of you.\u201d His voice cracked, anger sharp at the edges. \u201cAnd you didn\u2019t think you should mention that?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I straightened slowly, letting the silence stretch before I answered. \u201cLance, what are you talking about? When did this happen?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYesterday,\u201d Lance snapped out. \u201cDo you really expect me to believe that you don\u2019t know?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words grated. My wolf snarled, furious that he was questioning me. \u201cWatch your tone,\u201d I warned. \u201cNo, I don\u2019t know. Ellie hasn\u2019t said anything to me, and I haven\u2019t spoken to Felicity today. I\u2019ve been busy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s always your excuse.\u201d He leaned forward, voice low and unyielding. \u201cNot this time. This isn\u2019t just about Felicity. This is about you, about whatever it is you\u2019re hiding.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I frowned. \u201cWhat the hell are you talking about?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His gaze\u00a0<\/p>\n
searched mine, like he was digging for something I\u2019d buried deep. \u201cFelicity told Ellie that she\u2019s got some dirt on you. She said there\u2019s some secret between the two of you that makes it impossible for you to leave her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words hit like a blow to my ribs. My breath caught, and for a moment I couldn\u2019t speak. Memories surged, the rogue lands, the blood, the weight of promises I could never unmake.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My jaw flexed, but I kept my tone cold. \u201cDrop it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He slammed a hand against the desk, rattling the pens. \u201cDon\u2019t tell me to drop it! Is she blackmailing you or something? Is this about what happened to our parents?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stood abruptly, my chair scraping back against the floor. My wolf pressed hard against my skin, demanding I shut him down before he crossed any further lines. \u201cI said drop it, Lance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But he didn\u2019t. He straightened, shoulders squared, and voice like steel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not going to stand by and let you subject her to this bullshit again. You swore that you would protect her from Felicity if she came back. I\u2019m not going to allow you to break your promise to her, not gain.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s none of your damn business, Lance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 104\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love her, Nolan. I love Ellie.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The world went still. For a heartbeat, I thought I\u2019d misheard him. But the conviction in his eyes made my wolf snarl so loudly inside me I almost flinched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you just say?\u201d My voice was low, dangerous.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou heard me.\u201d His chin lifted, defiant. \u201cI\u2019ve loved her for months now, maybe longer. And I can\u2019t keep pretending I don\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rage, white-hot and consuming, surged through me. My wolf clawed at me, demanding I tear the room apart. She\u2019s my wife,\u201d I growled, every syllable laced with warning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance didn\u2019t back down. \u201cShe\u2019s miserable, Nolan. She doesn\u2019t want this life with you. And you know it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
((\u00a0<\/p>\n
The accusation cut deep because there was truth in it. But hearing it from him, my own brother, was unbearable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think you know what she wants?\u201d I snapped. \u201cYou think you understand her better than I do?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think, I know.\u201d His voice cracked again, softer now, raw. \u201cI see the way she looks at me. I see the way she breathes easier when I\u2019m around. She deserves more than your anger and your secrets. She deserves someone who can make her happy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head, disbelief warring with fury. \u201cAnd you think that\u2019s you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d he said simply, no hesitation. \u201cIt\u2019s me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a moment, the air between us vibrated with violence. My wolf was pacing, howling, demanding blood. But beneath the fury was something else. Fear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because as much as I wanted to deny it, as much as I wanted to tear his words apart, some small part of me knew he wasn\u2019t wrong.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I forced myself to steady my breathing, to lock away the storm clawing at my insides. \u201cYou\u2019re out of line,\u201d I said finally, voice low.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe I am.\u201d His expression softened, though his resolve didn\u2019t waver. \u201cBut I can\u2019t keep pretending. I want to be with her. And I\u2019m asking you-\u201d he swallowed hard \u201c-to back off. To let me try.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The audacity of it made my vision blur. My fists clenched at my sides, every muscle taut. \u201cYou\u2019re asking me to step aside,\u201d I repeated, almost disbelieving.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d His voice was quiet, but steady. \u201cI\u2019m asking you to let me love her the way she deserves.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Silence stretched between us, thick and suffocating. Finally, I exhaled, dragging a hand over my face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t understand,\u201d I said, forcing the words out carefully. \u201cEven if I wanted to-\u201d my throat tightened, the lie bitter on my tongue \u201c-it\u2019s not possible right now. The media are circling like vultures. Every move we make is being scrutinized. The council\u2019s breathing down my neck. Ellie is under a spotlight she never asked for, and any scandal, any shift in her place here, would be dangerous for her. We still don\u2019t know who targeted her or why.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was an excuse. A weak one. And we both knew it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance\u2019s lips pressed into a thin line. \u201cSo you\u2019re keeping her locked in a cage, for her own good?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m protecting her,\u201d I snapped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Nolan.\u201d His voice was sharp, cold now. \u201cYou\u2019re protecting yourself. From the truth. From me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 104 Chapter 104\u00a0 Nolan POV\u00a0 Lance didn\u2019t knock. He never did. He just pushed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-unremembered-mate-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23673","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23673"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23673\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}