NovelBookThe Alpha King is unavailable 62
moonberry and mint, designed to help clear my head from Victoria's wine attack.
His breath caught audibly as he noticed what | was looking at. | felt rather than saw him move closer, until he
stood just behind my chair, looking over my shoulder at Lily's notebook.
| turned the page, revealing Lily's childish handwriting. The words were carefully formed, each letter a testament
to her concentration.
"Mommy said it's true. Daddy will celebrate my birthday withalone."
The next entry, dated the night before her birthday: "My wish has ctrue. | am super happy."
Ho <
- Chapter 46. Broken Promi
And finally, the last entry she'd ever make: "Tomorrow, | will be the happiest child in the world."
She'd drawn several smiley faces around this declaration, emphasizing her joy and anticipation.
| felt Ethan stiffen behind me. His breathing changed, becoming shallow and uneven. | refused to look at him,
keeping my eyes fixed on Lily's hopeful words.
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"She called to confirm," he said quietly, his voice rough with emotion. The night before her birthday."
| remained silent, letting his guilt build with each passing second,
"I remember being annoyed when she emphasized the word alone," he continued. "But her voice was so
sweet, so excited. | couldn't say no."
His words hung in the air between us, heavy with the weight of what had happened next.
"But you did say no," | finally responded, my voice barely above a whisper. "Not with words, but with actions. You
never showed up."
| turned another page in the notebook, revealing more drawings. Stick figure Ethan holding Lily's hand as they
walked through the entrance of Moonlight Fair. Ethan carrying Lily on his shoulders to see over the crowds. Ethan
giving Lily a piggyback ride when her legs got tired.
In each scene, Lily had drawn herself with an enormous smile, radiating the pure happiness and anticipation
she'd felt about spending her birthday with her father.
| heard a choked sound from behind me. When Ethan spoke again, his voice was thick with emotion.
"I'm sorry."
Those two simple words snapped something inside me. | whirled around to face him, my emerald eyes burning
with five years of accumulated rage and grief.
"Sorry?" Il spat the word back at him like poison. "Ethan Stone, your apology is worthless!"
His amber eyes widened at my vehemence. For once, the mighty Alpha King looked genuinely shaken.
"Do you remember how | begged you?" | continued, rising from the chair to stand before him. "I knelt on the floor
of your office and begged you to keep your promise to Lily."
| saw the memory flash across his faceon my knees, tears streaming down my cheeks, pleading for just one
day of his tfor our dying daughter,
"You said you couldn't because Emma needed treatment for silver poisoning." | reminded him bitterly. "But that
was a lie, wasn't it? Because you took Emma to Disney instead."
Guilt shadowed his features. He set the bowl of tea down on Lily's desk with unsteady hands.
"lI was wrong," he admitted, his voice carrying an unprecedented humility, "I will make it up to Lily."
A harsh laugh escaped my throat. "Make it up? How? Do you know how long Lily waited for you at the Moonlight
Fair?"
| stepped closer to him, my grief transforming into righteous fury.
"She waited from morning till night, Ethan. More than ten hours in the freezing cold. It was below freezing.
day! Even adults couldn't bear it, let alone a five-year-old child with a failing kidney."
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that
Tears flowed freely down my cheeks now, but | made no move to wipe them a
away.
n
Chapter 46 Broken Prom
"And where were you?" | demanded, my voice breaking. "You were at Disney, buying Emma the sprincess
dress that Lily had begged for. You were carrying Emma on your shoulders while our daughter stood alone in
the cold, watching other fathers with their children, making excuses for why you weren't there yet."
Ethan's face contorted with pain as my words painted the vivid picture of Lily's lonely vigil. | could see him
envisioning it-Lily's small figure at the entrance, her hopeful eyes scanning each approaching adult, her
condition gradually deteriorating in the cold.
"She refused to leave," | continued, my voice dropping to a whisper. “She kept saying you promised, so you
would come. She believed in you until the very end."
Ethan's composure finally cracked. A single tear escaped his amber eye, tracking down his cheek before he could
wipe it away.
"Tell Lily to cback," he choked out, his voice raw with emotion. "I promise her, from now on, whenever she
wants to go to the Moonlight Fair, | will take her."
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