CHRISTIAN
I didn’t look back.
Not once.
Even as I felt Stella’s anger burning into my back, even as I knew she was standing there, fuming, I didn’t spare her a second glance.
Because she didn’t matter.
Not anymore.
Instead, I focused on Isabella.
She walked beside me, her grip firm around Nova, her posture stiff. She wasn’t saying anything, but I could feel the tension rolling off her in waves, like she was bracing herself for something—like she expected me to say something that would ruin whatever fragile peace we had.
But I didn’t.
I knew her well enough to recognize when silence was better than words.
So I kept quiet, letting my hand rest lightly against the small of her back, guiding her away from Stella, away from the weight of the past that always seemed to find a way to c
