Chapter 202\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
The drive to Moonstone had become almost routine now the familiar stretch of forest roads, the steady hum of tires over gravel, the faint ache of anticipation that started somewhere in my chest and grew stronger the closer!\u00a0<\/p>\n
got.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I told myself I was coming for the meeting. For diplomacy. For stability between the packs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I knew better.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The truth was, every mile that brought me nearer to Ellie\u2019s little apartment brought me nearer to something I hadn\u2019t realized I was starving for \u2013 belonging\u00a0<\/p>\n
That was the only word that I could put to the feeling I had when I saw the twins.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was a soul-deep feeling that this is where I belong, with them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance was waiting when I arrived, leaning casually against the railing outside Ellie\u2019s door. He looked as if he\u2019d just stepped out of some careless dream: sleeves rolled up, expression light, the faintest grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wasn\u2019t even sure why he was in Moonstone already. I hadn\u2019t asked. When I\u2019d called him last night, I wasn\u2019t even really sure why.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was anxious at the prospect of seeing the boys. It was ridiculous, I knew, but I couldn\u2019t shake the feeling, Lance had been a part of their lives from the beginning. The phone call had started with me asking if there was anything I should be aware of and ended with Lance agreeing to meet me at Ellie\u2019s apartment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was grateful to see him, even if I couldn\u2019t quite bring myself to admit it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re late,\u201d Lance said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re early,\u201d I countered, arching a brow.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI like to make a good impression.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I gave him a look. \u201cYou\u2019ve already met them.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTrue,\u201d Lance said easily. \u201cBut I\u2019m excited to see how you handle this. Seeing you as a dad is going to be something else.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite myself, I smirked. \u201cLet\u2019s see how long that lasts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance grinned, then knocked on the door.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When Ellie opened it, the air shifted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She looked different here, surrounded by warmth and light and the faint, sweet smell of the boys\u2019 things. Her hair was pulled back loosely, a few strands falling into her face, and there was a calmness in her eyes that made my heart twist.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was obvious that she was comfortable here \u2013 that she felt safe. It wasn\u2019t something that I had seen from Ellie often, and the thought sent a sour frisson of guilt through me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHey,\u201d she said, smiling politely. \u201cCome in.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped inside, trying not to stare. The apartment was small but bright \u2013 books stacked on the table, toys scattered across the floor, the faint sound of the twins babbling from the next room. It felt lived-in. Safe.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 202\u00a0<\/p>\n
Home.\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance moved easily through the space, clearly at ease. He crouched near the play mat where the boys were sitting, letting them grab at his fingers, laughing when Ian managed to pull a button loose from his shirt.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve gotten stronger,\u201d Lance told the baby, mock-scowling. \u201cYou planning to challenge me for my title already?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ian squealed in delight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stood by the edge of the rug for a long moment, watching. My throat felt tight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This was a side of my little brother that I\u2019d never seen. It seemed so natural to him, and something about seeing him so happy and playful made me freeze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ellie caught my expression and smiled softly. \u201cThey\u2019ve been excited all morning. I think they knew you were coming.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knelt slowly, careful not to startle them. \u201cHey, little ones, I murmured, my voice gentler than I\u2019d expected. Miss me?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
August looked up at me with wide eyes, then crawled forward and reached for me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I froze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ellie watched quietly, her expression undreadable, as I gathered the baby into my arms. I moved awkwardly at first uncertain, careful \u2013 but the moment August relaxed against my chest, my entire body seemed to ease.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2014\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance glanced over and smiled faintly. \u201cYou\u2019re a natural.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I huffed a quiet laugh. \u201cFeels like I\u2019m learning to breathe again.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBabies\u2019ll do that to you,\u201d Lance said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked down at the tiny face pressed against my shoulder, the dark hair so much like my own. The baby\u2019s weight was warm, grounding. For the first time in years, the world felt still.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a second, I thought that I was going to cry.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I glanced at Ellie, who was sitting cross-legged on the rug, smiling softly as Ian clapped his hands.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve done an incredible job with them,\u201d I said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ellie\u2019s cheeks flushed. \u201cI\u2019ve had help. Cassian, Rae, Claire\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 202 Chapter 202\u00a0 Nolan POV\u00a0 The drive to Moonstone had become almost routine now […]<\/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-23771","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\/23771","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=23771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23771\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}