Chapter 269\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran folded his arms. \u201cI don\u2019t need chaos.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need disruption,\u201d Felicity countered. \u201cPeople don\u2019t abandon a comforting narrative unless they\u2019re forced to.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan interjected sharply, \u201cYou\u2019re overstepping.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity didn\u2019t even look at him. Her attention was fixed entirely on Kieran.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want the same thing,\u201d she said. \u201cNolan and Ellie broken up. Her, available for you. Him, free of her influence.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran\u2019s jaw tightened. \u201cEllie is not a prize.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity laughed. \u201cPlease. You of all people know this is about appearance. You know who she is, what she is. Her goddess visions will give you all the power you want.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words echoed too closely to thoughts Kieran hadn\u2019t admitted aloud.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd what exactly are you proposing?\u201d he asked cautiously.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity stepped closer, lowering her voice. \u201cPressure. Something that reminds people what\u2019s really at stake. What Nolan is capable of when he\u2019s threatened.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran\u2019s eyes narrowed. \u201cBe specific.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her smile sharpened into something ugly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFamilies are powerful symbols,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd symbols can be\u2026 damaged.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The air in the room went cold.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan spun toward her. \u201cAbsolutely not.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran\u2019s reaction was immediate and visceral.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStop,\u201d he snapped, stepping back as if she\u2019d struck him. \u201cDon\u2019t finish that sentence.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The tension in the room doubled in an instant. Kieran couldn\u2019t believe what was happening. He\u2019d drawn this line before. Made it clear that the kids were off limits. Felicity said she agreed, said that she\u2019d never hurt Nolan by hurting his children.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the look on her face right now said that line no longer mattered to her. It made Kieran\u2019s blood go cold.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity tilted her head, eyes bright. \u201cYou said you wanted to win.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNot like that,\u201d Kieran said, fury erupting. \u201cDo you hear yourself?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re his weakness,\u201d she pressed. \u201cYou break that image, and the whole narrative collapses.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re talking about children,\u201d Kieran roared. \u201cYou\u2019re talking about hurting children.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her expression flickered-not remorse, but irritation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 269\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t be dramatic,\u201d she said. \u201cI didn\u2019t say \u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t care what you didn\u2019t say,\u201d he cut in. \u201cThe fact that it even crossed your mind-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He pointed toward the door. \u201cGet out.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity stared at him in disbelief. \u201cYou can\u2019t be serious.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very serious,\u201d Kieran said, voice shaking with rage. \u201cYou\u2019re a monster.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The word landed like a slap.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her face hardened instantly. \u201cYou\u2019re a hypocrite.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI won\u2019t win by becoming something worse than him,\u201d Kieran shot back. \u201cI won\u2019t cross that line.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She laughed, sharp and bitter. \u201cYou already have. You just like pretending there\u2019s still a moral high ground.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan moved between them. \u201cThis conversation is over.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Felicity\u2019s gaze flicked to him, then back to Kieran. \u201cYou think kicking me out makes you clean?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it makes me better than you,\u201d Kieran said coldly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her smile vanished.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFine,\u201d she said quietly. \u201cProtect your conscience. Protect your precious image.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She stepped back toward the door, then paused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut don\u2019t mistake this for surrender,\u201d Felicity added. \u201cYou might not be willing to do what\u2019s necessary.\u201d Her eyes gleamed. \u201cI am.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
She left without another word, the door slamming behind her hard enough to rattle the walls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Silence followed-thick and suffocating.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran stood there, chest heaving, hands trembling with residual fury.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan exhaled slowly. \u201cShe\u2019s dangerous.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know,\u201d Kieran said, \u201cI misjudged how far she\u2019d go.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan studied him carefully. \u201cAnd you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran didn\u2019t answer right away,\u00a0<\/p>\n
His thoughts were a storm-Ellie\u2019s face, Nolan\u2019s hand on her back, the children laughing in the open. The polls. The inevitability slipping through his fingers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI won\u2019t hurt them,\u201d he said finally, \u201cNo matter what.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rowan nodded once. \u201cGood. Because if this becomes a war without limits, no one wins.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kieran sank into his chair, staring at the ruined tablet on his desk.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 269\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
He had lost control of the narrative.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And worse-he had underestimated the depth of his own obsession.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Across the city, in a dimly lit apartment filled with glowing screens, Felicity watched the same images on repeat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan smiling. Ellie radiant. The boys safe, cherished, adored.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her hands curled into fists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This farce couldn\u2019t continue.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If Kieran lacked the will to tear it down, then she would act alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Whatever it took.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because some things were too precious to let go.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And some victories were worth any cost.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan had made her a promise, and she would be damned if she was going to let him break it for a rogue bitch like Ellie.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 269 Chapter 269\u00a0 Kieran folded his arms. \u201cI don\u2019t need chaos.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cYou need disruption,\u201d […]<\/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-23838","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\/23838","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=23838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23838\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}