Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! novel Chapter 127

Chapter 127: Chapter 127

Aria’s POV

"Aria?"

His voice shattered something inside me.

That single word. My name. Spoken in that voice I’d spent three years trying to forget.

I couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t do anything except kneel there on the floor like an idiot, clutching moonlight flowers against my chest while water soaked through my skirt.

This wasn’t happening.

This COULDN’T be happening.

I’d been so careful. So cautious. Had done everything right. Kept my head down. Stayed invisible. Built a new life brick by painful brick.

And now...

Now he was standing in the doorway. Those black-gold eyes fixed on my face. That massive frame blocking any chance of escape.

Kael Blood Crown.

In the flesh.

Right in front of me.

My heart slammed against my ribs. Once. Twice. So hard I thought it might crack through my chest and fall right onto the floor between us.

Run.

The word screamed through my brain. Primal. Desperate.

RUN.

But my legs wouldn’t move. My body wouldn’t obey. I was frozen. Paralyzed. A deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming truck.

"Aria." He said my name again. Softer this time. Almost reverent. Like he was afraid I might disappear if he spoke too loud.

I opened my mouth. Nothing came out.

What was I supposed to say?

*Hi, Kael. Yes, it’s me. The woman you paid off like a prostitute three years ago. The one you told to disappear. Surprise! I’ve been delivering your mail for weeks. Small world, isn’t it?*

Hysterical laughter bubbled in my chest. I swallowed it down.

"You..." His voice cracked.

He took a step forward.

I scrambled backward.

My back hit the desk. The wood dug into my spine. I couldn’t go any further. Couldn’t retreat. Couldn’t escape.

Trapped.

Kael stopped.

Something flickered across his face. Pain. Raw and unexpected.

Like my instinctive retreat had physically hurt him.

We stared at each other across the ruined office. Water dripping from the desk. Documents soaked and ruined. Moonlight flowers crushed in my trembling grip.

Three years.

Three years since I’d looked into those eyes. Three years since I’d heard that voice. Three years since he’d ripped my heart out and left me bleeding on the floor of that apartment.

He looked different.

Older. Harder. The playful arrogance I remembered was gone, replaced by something sharper. More dangerous.

But still devastatingly handsome.

Still the kind of handsome that made your chest hurt just looking at him. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

I hated it.

Hated that even now, after everything, some stupid part of me still responded to him. Still noticed the way his shirt stretched across his shoulders. Still remembered how those arms had felt wrapped around me.

Pathetic.

NO.

I tried to step back. Tried to retreat.

But my legs wouldn’t move.

His scent was everywhere. Wrapping around me. Pulling me in. Making it impossible to think clearly.

Without Artemis, I shouldn’t have been affected like this. Shouldn’t have felt this pull. This need.

But I did.

God help me, I did.

Kael stopped right in front of me.

Close. So close.

I could feel the heat radiating from his body. Could see the individual flecks of gold in his dark eyes. Could count the faint lines around his mouth that hadn’t been there three years ago.

He raised his hand.

Slowly. Giving me time to pull away.

I didn’t.

Couldn’t.

His fingers touched my cheek.

The contact sent electricity shooting through my entire body. Every nerve ending lit up. Every cell screamed in recognition.

His palm cupped my face. Warm. Gentle. So painfully gentle.

"Aria." His voice was barely a whisper. Rough with emotion. "Where did you run off to?"

I couldn’t answer. Couldn’t speak past the lump in my throat.

His thumb brushed away a tear I hadn’t realized was falling.

"Do you know..." His voice cracked. Actually cracked. Those black-gold eyes were shining with something I’d never seen there before. "Do you know I’ve been searching for you for three years?"