Please Come Back, My Love novel Chapter 124

Chapter 124

Elena: POV

The Uber pulled up to a small, pale yellow house with white shutters and a neatly trimmed lawn. Palm trees Hibiscus flowers blooming along the fence The kind of place that looked peaceful. Safe.

Nothing like Manhattan.

I paid the driver and dragged my suitcase up the short walkway. My wrists ached under the bandages, Everything ached.

Before I could knock, the door swung open.

‘Elena!”

Mom.

My breath caught.

She looked-wrong.

Her face was thinner. Cheekbones too sharp. Eyes sunken, with dark circles carved underneath like bruises. Her skin had a grayish tint, like she hadn’t seen

real sunlight in months.

And she was small. Smaller than I remembered.

What the hell happened to you?

But she was smiling. Wide. Bright. Pulling me into a hug before I could process anything.

“Oh, sweetheart, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said, voice

warm and familiar. “Come in, come in. You must be exhausted.”

I let her pull me inside. The house smelled like lavender and lemon cleaner, with something else underneath-something medicinal that made my stomach clench. Simple furniture. Cream-colored couch. A few framed photos on the mantel-me as a kid, her in her housekeeper uniform at the Connecticut estate, Arthur Sterling’s stern portrait.

A whole life distilled into one small living room.

“Sit, sit.” She guided me to the couch, taking my suitcase. “I made iced tea. And there’s key lime pie in the fridge-your favorite, remember?

I sat. Stared at her.

She was moving too fast. Talking too much. Fussing over me like I was ten years old again.

She’s trying too hard.

‘Mom, I said quietly. “You look-”

“Oh, I know, I know.” She waved a hand dismissively, disappearing into the kitchen. “I’ve lost a little weight. The heat here, you know? And I’ve been so busy setting up the house. Haven’t had much appetite.”

3:04 pm

Chapter 124

Bullshit.

MA

She came back with two glasses of iced tea, ice cubes clinking. Sat down beside me

“Now.” She turned to face me, hands folded in her lap. “Tell me everything. How’s work? How’s She hesitated. “How’s Julian?”

I looked down at my hands. The bandages on my wrists were hidden under my sleeves, but I could feel them. Tight. Itchy.

Where do I even start?

“We got divorced,” I said flatly.

The silence was immediate. Heavy.

I looked up. Mom’s face had gone very still.

“Last week,” I continued. My voice sounded hollow. “We went to the courthouse. Signed the papers. It’s done

She didn’t move. Just stared at me.

2

“Elena-

“And I lost the baby.” The words came out before

could stop them. Sharp. Blunt. “I was sixteen weeks pregnant. Someone- My throat closed up. I forced

the words out anyway. “Someone attacked me. Beat me. I was bleeding, and I couldn’t-I couldn’t-”

Stop. Stop talking.

But I couldn’t.

“I tried to save him,” I whispered. My hands were shaking. “I tried so hard, Mom. But he-he’s gone. And then I-*

I pulled up my sleeves.

Showed her the bandages.

Her face crumpled.

“Oh, baby,” she breathed. “Oh, my baby.”

She pulled me into her arms, and I collapsed against her fragile frame. The tears I’d been holding back for days finally broke through-ugly, wrenching sobs that seemed to tear something loose inside my chest.

Gasping. Choking on air.

She held me. Rocked me. Stroked my hair.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. I’m so, so sorry.”

I don’t know how long we sat there. Time blurred. Eventually, the sobs faded into hiccups, then silence.

3:04 pm

Chapter 124

MA

I pull back, wiping my face with my sleeve.

I couldn’t breathe in that house,” I said, voice hoarse. “Every room every corner-1 kept seeing him. The nursery. The crib we picked out. I kept thinking about what he would’ve looked like. And Julian”

I laughed bitterly, Julian kept apologizing. Kept trying to fix things. But that didn’t help at all.”

Mom’s hands cupped my face. Her eyes were red, shining with tears.

“You’re safe now,” she said firmly. “You’re here. With me. And you can stay as long as you need. Forever, if you want.”

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3:04 pm

MA

Please Come Back, My Love

hapter 125

I nodded. Swallowed hard

I just-I needed to get away. From New York. From him. From everything.”

“Of course you did.” She brushed a strand of hair behind my gr. “And you don’t have to go back. Not ever, if you don’t want to.”

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