The Billionaire’s Fight For Redemption (Noah and Sierra) novel Chapter 265

[Hey Loves, I want to apologize for the repeated chapter. I was uploading to Ex-Husband’s Regret and that’s where I mixed things up. I didn’t even realize what had happened until I was about to post this new chapter.

I’m really sorry that I keep making that mistake and since I know some of you already used coins, here is a free chapter to make it up to you. Thank you so much for your patience and continued support 🤍]

***

NOAH.

It’s been months, and this still doesn’t feel normal.

I park outside Sierra’s place and cut the engine, my gaze lifting to the front door before I can stop myself. I don’t come inside anymore. That was one of her boundaries and I respect it even though it sometimes burns.

Slowly I get out of the car and walk towards the door. It opens before I can knock.

“Hi, Dad,” Nolan says, his hands still clutching the doorknob.

“Hey.” I ruffle his hair, then look behind him when I don’t see Nova. “Where is your sister?”

“Aunt Sierra is helping her with her hair.” He answers. “She got some mud on it when we were playing with Blackie.”

“Okay, are you ready?”

“Just a second,” he says, before slinking away, leaving me standing awkwardly at the door.

“Daddy!” Nova squeals minutes later as she comes barreling straight into my legs.

I crouch slightly as she wraps herself around me and then press a kiss to her hair before standing up.

Sierra and Nolan follow at a calmer pace, backpack slung over his shoulder. They come to a stop and I just stare at Sierra, my mind going blank for a minute.

She has one hand resting instinctively over her belly, while the other holds Nova’s bag. She’s glowing; there’s no other word for it. Her hair is pulled back loosely, her face softer and fuller. The baby bump is unmistakable now, beneath her dress.

My chest tightens. She looks good. Too good and maybe I’m high or something, but damn… she looks better than any pregnant woman I’ve ever seen. Better than even my mother. Better than Chloe.

My gaze is fixed on her, but she’s not looking at me. She never does. It’s like I don’t exist.

“Ready?” I ask my kids

“Yes,” Nova says, then pauses. “But Sierra has snacks for later.”

“I packed them already,” Sierra says, her attention entirely on the kids. She hands Nolan a small bag, then adjusts Nova’s jacket. “Call me when you get home, okay?”

Nova nods enthusiastically. “I will.”

She hugs Sierra hard, pressing her cheek to her stomach. Nolan does the same before whispering something to her belly.

I stand there, like I’m invisible. Like I’m an outsider and they're the real family. It shouldn’t sting but it fucking does and I hate to admit it.

Sierra finally looks up at me. Our eyes meet for half a second, but I don’t see anything in them except politeness and distance.

“Have a good evening,” she says.

“You too,” I reply.

That’s it. That’s all that ever happens. She barely talks to me and when she does, it’s with detached interest, like I don’t matter.

She tells the twins goodbye one more time before she closes the door behind them without another glance.

The drive home is loud. Nova talks nonstop about school, about a drawing she made, and about a song she learned. Nolan adds commentary here and there, correcting details and filling in facts.

The noise should be enough to quiet my thoughts, but it isn’t. Sierra’s behavior has been bothering me for months now, and no matter how much I turn it over in my head, I can’t figure out why it gets under my skin so badly.

I should be fucking happy. Elated that she’s finally keeping her distance but no matter how hard I try to convince myself, I can’t accept that she’s doing exactly what I told her to do.

This arrangement has been in place since the week after Sierra left my home. The twins have unlimited calls and visits, and sometimes they even have sleepovers at her place.

As her relationship with the twins improved and the bond between them grew stronger, my relationship with her grew more strained

“Daddy,” Nova says, swinging her legs in her seat and pulling me back from my thoughts, “We think Sierra has a boyfriend.”

My grip instinctively tightens on the steering wheel.

“What?”

“She has a boyfriend,” Nolan repeats calmly, but there is something under that calmness that reminds of a caged animal.

I glance at them through the rearview mirror. “Why would you think that?”

Nova shrugs. “She smiles at her phone a lot… and talks on her phone for hours after we go to bed.”

“She might be talking to her mom or Lilly.”

“No, that's not it,” Nolan adds thoughtfully. “She sometimes receives flowers and chocolates and gifts. I don’t think that’s something Aunt Lilly or her mom would do for her weekly.”

A sour taste hits instantly, leaving an unwelcome taste in my mouth.

“Have you met him?” I ask.

They shake their heads.

“No. We haven’t seen him and she hasn’t said anything, but we are sure she has one.” Nova replies.

Fuck, why is it suddenly so fucking hard to breathe? This information shouldn’t affect me, yet it fucking does.

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