My Unchosen Ex Chases Reborn Me (Soren and Fiona) novel Chapter 156

11:31 Thu, Oct 16

Chapter 156 Quiet Undercurrents

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Chapter 156 Quiet Undercurrents

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+5 Free Coins

Naomi carried guilt for her elder brother. If anything truly existed between Fiona and Soren, it had to be because he forced it. When Soren refused, no one in this household could compel him.

“Naomi, Mdm. Winnifred.” Not seeing Soren around, Fiona knew he had not come openly. The fact that he could slip so easily into the Niven residence tightened the thread of caution in her chest.

“It has been more than half a year, Ms. Fiona. I nearly failed to recognize you.”

“How have you been lately, Mdm. Winnifred?”

“Life at the estate is the same procession of duties every day–dull, but tolerable.”

Fiona, you should visit the estate more often,‘ Naomi added on the side.

Fiona sent Naomi a curious glance; the girl was warmer than usual today, almost eager.

With onlookers around, Fiona could hardly press the hairpin into Naomi’s palm. She answered instead with a bright smile and a handful of agreeable phrases.

She soon noticed Soren at the bend of the veranda, half–hidden yet clearly waiting for her gaze. He wanted her to see him.

“Lord Soren, come with me,” Fiona whispered.

He had been studying her without a ripple of emotion. At her request, he set one deliberate foot forward, following at an unhurried distance.

Were any other corner secure, she would never have led him to Bamboo Lodge. Pearl saw Soren enter, complicated emotions flickering across her face before she slipped outside to stand guard.

Bamboo Lodge was Fiona’s private haven. Trinkets, dolls, and filigreed boxes filled every shelf, echoing the Radiant Lodge of her half–remembered dreams.

The abundance of charming curios distracted him; for a heartbeat, he simply stared.

“Please, Lord Soren, have a seat.”

Soren settled at the far edge of her bamboo daybed. The hush of her private chambers wrapped around him, laced with that faint gardenia scent that always clung to her skin. Out of

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11:31 Thu, Oct 16

Chapter 156 Quiet Undercurrents

+5 Free Coins

the corner of his eye, he saw her undergarments hanging over a folding screen. He allowed himself one brief glance, a flash of silk and lace, and a dozen forbidden images flickered through his mind before he dragged his gaze away and took a steadying sip of tea. For all his outward composure, he was still a novice at the mysteries of the bedchamber; the mere recollection of that single day was enough to set his ears ablaze. Fiona watched his sudden flush with puzzled eyes, unable to imagine what had provoked it.

Fiona placed the ivory tulip hairpin before him with slow, deliberate grace. “Not long ago you told me to forget it if I didn’t want it,” she said, lashes lowered, voice cool and edged with irony. “So how does the very same hairpin appear in my hands today?”

“Today is your coming–of–age ceremony. Wear it. You and I once…” He caught the way the color left her face at the words husband and wife, so he swallowed them and sipped his tea instead. “Rumors can wound. It is safer if you keep it in your hair.”

“Those are nothing but superstition,” she replied, eyes steady.

“I’m no believer in omens,” Soren answered, “but today it concerns you. As the man in question, I refuse to let your life derail over ugly talk.”

He told himself the gesture existed simply so he would owe her nothing. Yet she suspected another reason–should trouble ever find her, they would call it retribution, and the fallout would dog him endlessly. Soren, ever pragmatic, was cutting the weeds before they grew.

“Plenty of men visit brothels before their weddings, yet not one of them suffers some divine payback,” she murmured, gaze lowered. She almost added, ‘If none of it touches you, it won’t touch me,‘ but held her tongue.

Her implication was not lost on Soren. He rubbed his temple and said quietly, “I have never been with another woman. Perhaps your discomfort that day was because it was my first time as well.”

She had not expected him to remember. She had meant no insult, yet this was no topic for comfort; words failed her.

“Was it truly so unbearable?” he asked, eyes fixed on her.

“It is not a matter of any importance,” she answered.

The answer left him wordless.

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