Chapter 0269 Hannah +25 BONUS I awoke with a start, the warm sun against my cheek doing little to quell my sudden jolt. The white sheets against my skin felt soft and warm but unfamiliar, and for a moment, panic gripped me.
This wasnât my bed. These pillows, though plush and stuffed with down, werenât mine. The curtains hanging from the windows were sheet, not thick and heavy with velvet and tassels.
And then it hit me.
Slowly, memories of the previous night trickled back. The gala, the nightmare, and then... Noah.
My cheeks flushed as I remembered the way he had carried me up the stairs, the feel of his lips on mine, the heat of his body against my flesh. His taut muscles as he moved above me. His long fingers gripping the headboard. His tousled hair falling into his eyes.
My name on his lips.
The scent of him still lingered on the pillows, indicating that he had only just recently left the room, although I was mercifully alone now.
Alone in the wake of a night of passion that I had never meant for.
A profound feeling of guilt immediately washed over me, my wolf whining softly in confusion. What had I done? This was only going to make things more complicated between us. We were supposed to be getting divorced, not... whatever this was.
My hand unconsciously drifted to my stomach, where our child was growingâstill unbeknownst to Noah, even though we had made love just hours ago. The secret felt heavier than ever. Liar, a little voice in the back of my head seemed to say.
Manipulator.
I sat up, making sure that Noah really was already gone. His side of the bed was cold, the sheets neatly tucked. Always the early riser. It used to drive me insane back when we still slept together every night, but it felt like a mercy this morning.
I slipped out of bed and quickly skittered down the hall to my room, which was not far. Once inside, I showered in tooâhot water, almost as if it would wash away what we had done the night before, make it unreal, clean.
Finally, I got dressed, and my fingers fumbled clumsily with the buttons of my blouse. The mirror reflected a woman I barely recognized anymore, a woman who I hadnât seen in a very logn timeâflushed cheeks, tousled hair, eyes bright with lingering pleasure.
Down below, in the pit of my stomach, there was still a pleasant emptiness lingeringâlike a weight had been lifted off of me. My inner thighs still seemed to burnâwith the sensation of his touch, my knees blissfully weak and soft.
It had, of course, been like heaven. It was the first time we had made love outside of our monthly intimacy nights in... Well, I couldnât even remember. A long damn time. But it would be the last time. It had to be.
As I made my way to my office, I tried to focus on the tasks ahead. Luna duties, paperwork, anything to +25 BONUS Chapter 0269 take my mind off the night I had spent with Noah. But my thoughts kept drifting back to him, to the way he had touched me, the way his green eyes grew husky and his eyelids drooped as he looked at me.
Did he think about Zoe the entire time? I didnât think so; it was my name he had said, after all.
But then, he had gotten up and left before I even woke. Maybe it was all routine to him; a quick release, something to quell the urges of his wolf. Yes, that was what it was for me, too. Relief. 2 My office was a sanctuary of order amidst my chaotic thoughts. I settled behind my desk, determined to lose myself in work. The expense reports Scott had completed lay in a neat stack, demanding my attention.
As I pored over the numbers, however, I frowned. Something wasnât adding up. I doubleâchecked the figures, my irritation growing as I lifted the page to the light to ensure that I hadnât missed anything.
Scott had messed up. Again.
âDammit, Scott,â I muttered, reaching for a pen to make the corrections. This wasnât the first time he had made mistakes like this in recent history, and the incidents were growing more frequent.
Noah needed to know about this; Scottâs errors could cost us dearly if left unchecked.
With the corrected report in hand, I made my way to Noahâs office. My heart raced as I approached his door, memories of our night together flashing through my mind for the millionth time.
I didnât want to look him in the eye right now, but this was important; so, I took a deep breath, steeling myself before knocking.
Part of me hoped that he wasnât there and that I could just drop the papers on his desk.
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