Loved You Once But He's My Forever (Chloe)

On a bright and breezy day, Carter drove to the seaside, carrying Eleanor's urn.

I didn't go with him for the final send-off. After all, I hadn't spent much time with Eleanor.

If anything, the few times she did see me, she was probably busy scheming how to get rid of me.

Compared to her, I much preferred Amber, who got up at three in the morning to make breakfast for me.

I watched them from a distance by the shore. Amber was crying her heart out, with Dominic by her side, comforting her.

Pushing the stroller, I stood with the children, gazing at the vast ocean.

The sea breeze swept past us as the little ones reached out, trying to catch the seagulls soaring overhead.

I tapped Everett's tiny nose. "You have to grow up fast. When you're older, Mommy will take you clamming. The beach is so much fun-there are tiny shrimp, little fish, and even seaweed."

They had no idea what I was talking about, but since I sounded so serious, they listened just as seriously.

Everett and Everly were almost seven months old now. They could already sit up. In fact, Everly had even started showing signs of crawling these past two days.

Right before my eyes, the children were growing, little by little.

I gazed out at the deep blue sea, but the wind couldn't blow away the heaviness in my heart.

My sister, are you doing alright on the other side?

Everyone had given up searching for Alice. It had been over a year-if she were dead, her body would have been gone by now.

And if she were alive, why hadn't she reached out?

Even Amber hadn't received any news confirming that Taylor was still alive.

By all accounts, Alice was most likely dead. But I couldn't shake the lingering hope in my heart, wishing for a miracle.

One day, Alice would return.

She would be in for a shock when she did-back then, I had just gotten pregnant, and now, my babies were all grown up.

After staying in Snowville for a while, another winter arrived. Carter had finally settled matters with the Bolton family, and he took me back to Jaford.

We flew on a private jet. Though the flight was long, being with family made it feel easy.

Once we reached cruising altitude, I placed Everett and Everly on the carpet. Everly sat and played with a rattle, while Everett lay on his stomach, trying to crawl.

At his age, though, he had all the intent but none of the strength. His soft belly pressed against the floor, his limbs flailing like a tiny turtle-it was ridiculously cute.

Lucian, ever the troublemaker, plopped right onto Everett's back, shouting, "Giddy-up! Giddy-up!"

Bill grabbed him by the back of his collar and lifted him up. "Kiddo, that's not how you play!"

The little rascal blinked his big, innocent eyes, as if asking why not.

But didn't you always let me ride on your back?

"Daddy, giddy-up."

Bill gave him a light pat on the bottom. "You can play horsey all you want when we get home, but not on the plane. It's dangerous. Now go sit in your seat like a good boy."

Philippa emerged from her nap, stretching lazily. "What now?"

The moment Lucian saw his backup arrive, his arrogance vanished. His little face scrunched up in grievance. "Daddy is being mean."

That was when I truly understood the phrase: As long as your acting is flawless, you will always be in the right.

Philippa immediately smacked Bill hard on the back. "What did you do to my son?"

Bill seemed completely unfazed as if he was used to this. Without even explaining himself, he simply peeled an orange and handed it to her. "You just woke up- have some fruit."

The way he acted like a devoted pushover made me start to wonder ... Had Bill been possessed or something?

I quickly averted my gaze. I didn't need to see that lovey-dovey scene between my parents.

Carter had been exhausted lately, so he was catching up on sleep during the flight.

Unfortunately for him, in the next cabin over, Harlan stood pitifully by the door, knocking. "Zoey, darling, let me sleep with you. I swear I won't snore or fart."

Zoey didn't open her door. Instead, Carter's door swung open.

Standing there with a cold expression, he didn't even wait for Harlan to say another word before grabbing him and hauling him inside.

Ah, so Carter gets grumpy when he's woken up.

Recalling his murderous look, I silently said a prayer for Harlan.

Good luck.

With all the bickering and chaos, the plane finally landed, and after several twists

and turns, we made it back to the small town.

The moment we stepped off the helicopter, I saw a tall figure standing not far away.

Nicholas had come to pick up Philippa.

He still had that same refined and gentle demeanor. As he approached, he took Lucian from Philippa's arms.

Lucian lit up the moment he saw him. He buried his little face into Nicholas's neck, rubbing and kissing him affectionately.

"Papa! Papa!"

So, this was how they could tell the difference between them.

To outsiders, Nicholas was just the children's godfather.

Nicholas stroked Lucian's head. "Did you miss Papa?"

"Miss! I miss Papa!"

"I missed you too."

His gaze landed on Philippa. "You must be exhausted."

"It's fine. How's everything at home?"

"Everything's good. Three new lambs were born, and we have a brood of chicks. The orchids you planted have bloomed. Also, Goldie found himself a girlfriend somewhere She's quite docile, so I took her in."

Their gazes practically sizzled with chemistry.

I had a bad feeling. Could Philippa really be choosing Nicholas?

Bill cleared his throat loudly. "Ahem!"

It was as if he wanted to remind them that he was still very much alive.

Nicholas, however, completely

ignored him and turned to the rest of

us. "Philippa told me you'd be

coming, so I've made all the arrangements. Please, make yourselves at home."

"Thanks, Nicholas."

He set Lucian down and knelt to play with Everett and Everly. "They're adorable."

Thinking back to the last time I was here, all I could focus on was Carter's so- called "death curse." I never even took the time to appreciate how beautiful this place was.

Now, with all my burdens lifted, even the air smelled sweet.

It was Harlan's first time here, and he stood there, carrying two oversized

suitcases, gawking left and right like a migrant worker who had just arrived in the

city.noveldrama

"So, this is the place you always sneak off to behind my back?"

Zoey ignored him.

Her last pure sanctuary had finally been discovered by this clingy fool.

But Harlan had clearly grown

shameless over time. Without the slightest hesitation, he walked over to Philippa. "Philippa, don't worry about preparing a room for me Zoey and I can share. I'm not picky."

Bill, already in a bad mood, shot him a deadly glare. "Stay away from my darling."

Harlan, completely serious, replied, "Bill, you and Philippa are divorced. That makes her your ex-wife."

I shook my head. This insolent fool ... If he thought he had a shot with Zoey, he

was dreaming.

We each went to find our rooms.

But when I turned a corner and saw Goldie's "girlfriend," I was stunned.

It was a wolf.

Nicholas, ever so gentle, reassured me, "Onyx is very well-behaved. She doesn't

bite."

Then, around another corner, I saw Bill pressing Philippa against the wall.

"Darling, you stared at him for three whole minutes today! That's not fair."

"You-ugh...!"

I turned away. Again, I didn't need to see that.

Then, as I went to wash the baby bottles, I spotted Nicholas hugging Philippa

from behind, whispering, "Philippa, I missed you so much."

The middle-aged romance was disgustingly sweet.

I turned, only to see Harlan standing there, slack-jawed.

I clamped a hand over his mouth and dragged him away.

His eyes were wide with shock. "Chloe, does this mean Zoey also wants to find

herself a pretty-boy lover too?"