Chapter 0345
Hannah
“How did the meeting go?”
Noah pulled out of the driveway leading to Luna Alanna’s vast estate, the car tires crunching on the pebbles. He turned onto the main road, which wound through rolling hills topped with thick forests of tall pine trees.
Luna Alanna’s words rang in my head-“In the event of a divorce, I will vouch for you”-and for a moment, I considered telling him that the meeting was fine and nothing else. There was no real need to tell him about the conversation the Luna Queen and I had had in private.
But then I remembered that I had made a promise. We both had-for the sake of our child.
No more lies. No more secrets.
I took a deep breath. “It went… surprisingly well,” I began, recounting the details of the meeting.
I told him about the other Lunas’ reactions to the forum scandal, how they had been unexpectedly supportive and understanding.
I told him about my presentation, how my penpal program would be implemented in the children’s summer program in just a few weeks.
When I got to the part about my private conversation with Alanna, I hesitated for a moment, my fingers fidgeting with the hem of my blouse.
“There’s something else,” I said slowly. “Luna Alanna… She figured out that we’re going to get divorce. And she said she would vouch for me when it happens!”
Not if, like she had actually said.
When.
Because even though I had fallen for him, I still planned on divorcing him. 1
Noah was silent, his expression unreadable as he drove. The only sound was the soft hum of the engine and the occasional click of the turn signal, the only indication that he had even heard me a slight tightening of his fingers around the steering wheel.
I felt my stomach clench, worried that I had hurt his feelings, that I had upset him. The silence stretched on for far too long, becoming almost unbearable. 12
But to my surprise, he simply pulled off the main road and into a parking lot. A sign for a restaurant came into view, the scent of food already making my mouth water.
“Noah?” I asked, confused not only by his lack of response but also by this unexpected detour.
“Come on. Let’s eat,” was all he said.
Inside, we were seated at a booth near the back of the restaurant. The waitress took our drink orders and left us to decide what we wanted to eat, but the words on the menu swam before my eyes.
Nothing. He had said… nothing. He hadn’t even gotten angry. Somehow, this was worse.
+25 BONUS
Chapter 0345
Finally, unable to bear it any longer, I said, “What’s this for?” I gestured to the restaurant around us.
Noah set his menu down, his eyes finally meeting mine for the first time since we had arrived. “It’s congratulatory,” he said, matter-of-factly. “Clearly, your Luna Council meeting went very well. I’m happy for you, Hannah.”
I felt an unexpected warmth spread through my chest at his words, a flutter in my stomach that had nothing to do with hunger. This man, so different from the cold, distant husband I had known for years, was becoming harder and harder to reconcile with the idea of divorce as the days went on.
I had indeed fallen for him, hard, and moments like these only made it more difficult to remember why we needed to end our marriage.
“You’re not… upset?” I found myself asking.
He c***d his head to the side. “Why would I be upset?”
“Because Luna Alanna promised to vouch for me in the divorce.”
He simply shrugged and said nothing.
Blissfully soon, our meals arrived. I ordered a pasta dish dripping with alfredo sauce and golden shrimp, the smell making my mouth water. I hadn’t realized how hungry I had gotten during my meeting.
Chapter 0346
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Alpha's Regret After Her Rebirth (Hannah and Noah)