What She Overheard in Her Own Marriage novel Chapter 296

"Yeah. But I gave it to Rafael years ago. He said he lost his and needed one urgently."

Noelle's smile froze entirely.

"What? You gave it to Rafael?"

Finnian nodded. "Yeah. I think it was the night of your eighteenth birthday. He suddenly asked to borrow it, and I haven't seen it since."

Noelle's mind went entirely blank. Her heart slowed to a crawl, the bitter disappointment written all over her face.

How could this be? The box didn't belong to him? It was Rafael who had kept her blood-stained dress all these years?

She was utterly speechless.

Watching her expression shift wildly, Finnian asked with mild amusement, "What's in the box anyway? It's definitely his stuff. I have no idea what he kept in there."

Noelle stood rooted to the spot as if nailed to the deck. The ocean breeze whipped her hair around her face.

It felt as if a bucket of freezing water had just been dumped over her head, instantly extinguishing the burning hope in her chest.

The harbor was close now. The yacht was slowly docking, and the people waiting on the pier were coming into clear view.

But something inside Noelle had completely shattered. She clenched her fingers, tucked her hair behind her ears, and forced a strained smile. "Ava and I were cleaning out your room recently and I saw it. I didn't know what was inside, which is why I asked. If it belonged to Rafael, I'll go check what it is later."

"Alright," Finnian nodded. "We've docked."

"Yeah," she said, hiding her reluctance. She had desperately wanted to use this two-day trip to bond with him. But because Quentin and Chad were there, and because she absolutely refused to let anyone capture compromising photos of her, she had suppressed all her desires and kept her distance from Finnian the entire time.

She lowered her head, a hint of moisture gathering in her eyes out of sheer frustration.

That box meant everything to her. It was the linchpin of her next plan.

Now, she was completely lost all over again.

Noelle walked down the gangway and stepped onto the pier. Finnian asked if she had driven herself, and she nodded. He told her to drive safe before getting into his own car and leaving.

Around 9:30 PM, Finnian's car pulled up outside the Veridian Future apartment complex.

He glanced at the top floor. The lights were still on.

Walking to the elevator, he swiped his access card and rode up to Kaia's floor.

The doorbell rang. Layla asked curiously, "Who could be visiting this late?"

"Layla, don't open it," Kaia called out instantly.

Layla paused.

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