Vex doesn’t say another word as he disappears outside, and Kyler slumps back into his chair, exhaling sharply.I watch him for a moment.He’s trying, but trying doesn’t count for much around here.Survival does.
Chapter Three
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Hannah
The kettle whistles, steam curling into the air as I pour boiling water into my favorite teapot.As the scent of strawberries and cream tea fills the kitchen, a small smile tugs at my lips.It’s my morning ritual, the one little indulgence I allow myself every day besides my hidden stash of chocolate.
Life is so different here.In LA, it was get up, get dressed, wolf down breakfast, and pour my tea into a travel mug before heading out the door.There was no time to breathe, no time to just exist.But here?Here, I can take my time.I sit down.I savor the warmth of my cup and the quiet that surrounds me.It’s strange, almost foreign, this peace I’ve never known.It’s a quiet that doesn’t feel forced but earned.I’ve come to realize it’s a small way that I’m healing, slowly learning to live in this new normal.
Alaska, with all her wild beauty, is the one thing I didn’t know I was searching for.It’s as if the landscape mirrors what I feel inside—a place where I can slowly rebuild, unhurried, without the constant hum of my old life trying to pull me back.
Grace, my fluffy gray menace of a cat, jumps onto the dining chair and fixes me with her usual demanding stare.
“You’ve been fed,” I remind her, setting the teapot on a tray with its matching cup.
She meows long and loud.
“No.I’m not feeding you more.Have you seen your ass?Hell, have you seen mine?No more food for either of us until lunch.”
Her tail flicks.Her judgment is clear.With an exaggerated sigh that only a cat could manage, she hops off the chair and pads to the living room, gracefully leaping onto the window seat.Sunlight streams through the glass, pooling around her as if she owns it.I swear she’s muttering curses under her breath as she settles in for her morning nap.
Grace has been my steady companion through all of this, her presence a constant reminder of the life I’m rebuilding.My small apartment in LA was hardly big enough for both of us, and when Travis and I became an item, it was almost impossible.Travis never liked her, and well, Grace hated him.He would lock her in the bathroom or a closet and then pretend he hadn’t seen her.
I shake my head, grab the tray with my teapot and cup, and carry it to my office.Thinking of Travis always makes me feel as though I let Grace and myself down.If I hadn’t had my accident and ended up with scars, I might have married that jerk, and it could have taken me longer to realize he was never right for me.
My house is huge compared to my apartment, but in terms of the homes surrounding me, it’s small.At first, the quiet would unnerve me as LA is so loud that even at night, the light was always there.Here, it’s dark, quiet, and everything feels so big.As I put the tray on my desk, it signals the start of my workday and makes me smile.
Bookkeeping is perfect for me.I can work from anywhere, and even back in LA, it was rare to meet clients in person.COVID changed everything and made working from home normal, even expected.It gave me the freedom to leave the corporate grind and start my own business.It was a blessing in disguise, especially after my accident.
I didn’t have to face anyone or endure their awkward, sympathetic stares.I didn’t have to hear their pity or feel their eyes lingering too long on my scars.Even Travis, my boyfriend, or at least I thought he was, couldn’t bear to look at me.
I shouldn’t have gotten on that bike.I never liked motorcycles, but Travis lived to show off, and I lived to keep him happy.That night, we were coming back from a party.He’d been drinking just enough to feel invincible.
“Slow down,” I’d shouted over the roar of the engine, my fingers digging into his waist.
