\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 283\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 283\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe spoke,\u201d I said softly. August didn\u2019t acknowledge our reactions at all, his wide, stormy eyes were fixed on the door, on his father.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan stepped inside, flanked briefly by Cassian and security before they peeled away to give us space. His movements were slower now, the adrenaline finally fading, but his presence filled the room instantly-solid, grounding, familiar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The boys were reaching for him before he could say a word.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan crossed the room in three strides and dropped to his knees in front of us, ignoring the sharp inhale from somewhere behind him as it pulled at his injury. He gathered August and Ian into his arms without hesitation, pressing his forehead to theirs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m here,\u201d he murmured. \u201cDada is here. You\u2019re safe. I\u2019ve got you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That was all it took.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The last of their fear broke, not into screams this time, but into exhausted relief. August clung to his neck, Ian curled against his chest, their little bodies finally relaxing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I watched Nolan hold them, his eyes closed, jaw clenched like he was containing something enormous inside himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knew that he was.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I thought of my visions of him, his wolf form fierce and protective as he stood with our boys. Their carefree smiles and laughter were watched over and protected by his presence. It was the same now.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They ran to him when they were afraid. His touch, his voice reassured them enough to melt the terror that had seized their tiny bodies.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart swelled to see it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance cleared his throat quietly. \u201cYou sure about this?\u201d he asked, not accusatory, just needing to hear it said aloud. \u201cAbout stepping away?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan looked up at him, expression calm in a way that felt final.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d he said without hesitation. \u201cI\u2019ve never been more sure of anything.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cassian nodded once, already moving into action. \u201cWe\u2019ll get you out quietly. The boys first.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lance helped Nolan stand carefully, then gently took August into his arms. Cassian coaxed Ian away next, murmuring reassurances as he did. The boys protested weakly, but they were calmer now, soothed by Nolan\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
presence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll be right here,\u201d Nolan promised them. \u201cI\u2019m not going anywhere.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
When the door closed behind them, the room felt suddenly oo quiet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was just us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nolan turned to me then, really looked at me, and something in his expression softened completely. The alpha, the warrior, the candidate-all of it fell away, leaving just the man.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d he said quietly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head, stepping toward him. \u201cDon\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 283\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t plan it,\u201d he continued. \u201cI didn\u2019t think it through. Ijust-\u201cHe exhaled. \u201cI couldn\u2019t stand there knowing what almost happened.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I reached for him, hands curling into the fabric of his ruined shirt. \u201cYou protected us,\u201d I said. \u201cYou chose us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His hands came up to frame my face, thumbs brushing gently beneath my eyes. \u201cI would do it again,\u201d he said. \u201cA thousand times. There is nothing-nothing-more important than you and the boys.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The truth of it settled between us, heavy and undeniable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love you,\u201d I said, the words breaking free before I could second-guess them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His breath hitched.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve loved you for a long time,\u201d I continued, voice trembling. \u201cBefore I really knew what that meant. When I thought that you would never feel the same. But today\u2026 today you showed me who you really are. And I love that man too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He rested his forehead against mine, eyes closing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI love you,\u201d he said hoarsely. \u201cI didn\u2019t think I was capable of this. Of feeling love like this. Of choosing peace. Of choosing happiness.\u201d He opened his eyes. \u201cYou changed ma, Ellie.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tears finally spilled, but they weren\u2019t from fear this time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were from knowing-really knowing that the man holding me was no longer the one who\u2019d once ruled through anger and isolation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He had changed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And not because of a crown.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because of love.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Outside the room, the kingdom reeled. Narratives shattered Power shifted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It all mattered; it would all echo for years, and those echoes would dictate our actions for the foreseeable future.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But here, in this quiet moment stolen from chaos, Nolan held me as if nothing else existed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And for the first time since the campaign began, I believed him when he said he was done.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not because he was giving up.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But because he was choosing something better.\u00a0<\/p>\n
ENJOYING THE BOOK?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Give it a rating to show your support!\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
A Cold Marriage That Turned Warm 283 \u00a0 Chapter 283\u00a0 +25 Bonus\u00a0 Chapter 283\u00a0 \u201cHe spoke,\u201d I said softly. August […]<\/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-23852","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\/23852","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=23852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23852\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}