The Officer's Runaway Wife and Secret Son novel Chapter 346

A quiet, stable life, back on a normal track.

It was the return to normalcy everyone had been hoping for.

Noah's throat felt tight. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

"Clara, do you have any idea what that means to me?" he asked, his voice trembling slightly. "If you're only saying this because you saw Margot today and it upset you, you can take it back. I don't want you to have any regrets."

Clara shook her head.

She couldn't be a savior. She couldn't erase the bloody trauma of Rhys's childhood, nor could she fill the bottomless pit that was Margot.

More importantly, she didn't want Felix to have a father who could be emotionally blackmailed at any moment.

She had lived that life of constant anxiety once before, and she refused to let her child experience the same pain.

People can't live in the past, she thought. You can't throw your whole life away just because you can't let go of what might have been.

You have to learn to protect yourself first before you can even talk about love.

"Noah, you said you'd give me two weeks, but I don't think I need that long."

"I don't want to lie to you. My head is still a mess. I'm not sure if I can be a good wife, and I'm not sure I can love you the way you love me. If you're looking for some passionate response, I can't give you that right now."

"But if you don't mind me like this..." She smiled at him, the corners of her eyes turning a little red. "When you're done with your work this time, come back to Heron Bay. And when you do, we'll go put that ring on."

The sound of the wind faded as Clara was pulled into a warm embrace. Noah held her so tightly that his arms ached against her.

"Okay," Noah's voice was muffled against the top of her head. "I'll see you when I get back."

There was no heart-pounding thrill, no life-or-death passion.

It felt like a ship that had been drifting at sea for a long time finally reaching the shore. The shore might not have been the one she'd dreamed of, but at least it offered solid ground where her heart wouldn't drown.

Clara closed her eyes. "Thank you."

A pang of sorrow shot through Noah's heart.

Joy and bitterness tangled together, leaving him unsure of what he was even feeling.

His phone vibrated in his pocket.

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