BILLIONAIRE'S UNINTENDED BRIDE

Chapter 50: Silent Absence, Hidden Truths

Chapter 50: Silent Absence, Hidden Truths

"Luke, where were you?" My voice trembled as I clung to him, the floodgates of worry and relief opening all at once. I had waited through the endless hours of yesterday and the night, each tick of the clock amplifying my anxiety. Finding him next to me this morning was both a relief and a torment.

He looked at me, a flicker of something - guilt, hesitation - passing through his eyes before he averted his gaze. "I'm sorry, Emily. I..." His voice trailed off, betraying an inner turmoil. When he spoke again, his eyes were still not meeting mine. "I just had some urgent work stuff with clients. I got so caught up, I didn't get a chance to call or text. I didn't mean to worry you, okay?"

His apology did little to soothe the storm of emotions within me. Eighteen hours of absence, and not a single message. A simple text would have eased my fears, but there was nothing. Tears spilled over, emotions I had bottled up cascading out in silent sobs. I rarely cried, always seeing tears as a sign of weakness, but at this moment, I couldn't contain them.

He felt my tears soaking his shoulder and gently pulled back, his expression crumbling when he saw my face. "I'm sorry, Emily, I'm so sorry. Please don't cry, okay? I promise, I'll do better," he murmured, his voice thick with regret.

"Emily Please, don't cry because of me," he pleaded, his voice laced with a pain that mirrored my own.

His apologies came in a torrent, each word a desperate attempt to repair the hurt he had caused. He wiped my tears, kissed my forehead, and kept repeating how he couldn't bear to see me in pain.

All I could do was cry harder, his broken look only intensifying my own grief. Seeing him so distraught, so tormented by my tears, broke something inside me. It was as if a dam had burst, releasing a flood of emotions I didn't know I had been holding back.

"Luke, I was so afraid," I whispered through my sobs. "All I needed was to know you were safe. The fear was unbearable."

His embrace tightened, a silent vow to comfort and protect. We stayed like that, holding each other, as the morning light began to filter through the curtains. In his arms, amidst the tears and whispered apologies, there was a sense of healing, a promise of understanding and forgiveness.

But deep down, I knew there was more to his absence, a hidden truth lurking in the shadows of his hastily offered explanations. A truth I was both eager and afraid to uncover.