The Alpha King is unavailable novel Chapter 61

I sat at Lily’s small study desk, my fingers tracing the worn edges of her notebook. The room felt frozen in time, preserved exactly as she’d left it. Her scent–a delicate mix of baby powder and moonflowers–still lingered faintly in the air, a ghost of her presence that both comforted and tortured me.

With trembling hands, I opened the notebook, revealing Lily’s Amusement Park Family Drawing. Three stick figures stood hand in hand–Lily in the middle, Ethan and me on either side. Above us, she’d drawn the colorful rides of Moonlight Fair with careful attention to detail, right down to the cotton candy stand she’d

been so excited to visit.

My heart constricted painfully in my chest. I knew the truth behind this innocent drawing. Ethan had broken his promise to Lily, leaving our daughter waiting for him in vain on her birthday.

Each crayon stroke represented not reality but Lily’s imagination–scenes of happiness with her father that had never materialized. The bright colors and smiling faces were dreams on paper, dreams that died with her.

Tears blurred my vision as I pictured Lily standing at the entrance of Moonlight Fair, her small face lighting up each time someone approached, only to fall when it wasn’t her father. Hours passing, her hope fading with the daylight.