We Will Love Again Episode 7

📖 The Story Continues

Alaina was still trying to bury the emotions stirred by Noah’s interview when Sophie rushed in with news bright in her eyes. “Alaina. Oh my God. Guess what I saw today.”

There was only one subject capable of producing that mixture of excitement and concern. “Noah Preston’s interview?” Alaina asked. She tried to sound indifferent, though every word he had spoken remained painfully clear.

“I know. I saw.” Her admission drained some of Sophie’s enthusiasm. Unlike Alaina’s coworkers, Sophie knew the identity of the woman Noah had described to the world.

“Are you okay?” Sophie studied her best friend’s face. Five years had not erased the history between Alaina and her former fiancé, no matter how thoroughly they avoided saying his name.

Alaina wanted to dismiss the concern, but Sophie continued. “I mean, your ex-fiancé is back in the States. And not only that—he’s back in Los Angeles. What if you run into him?”

“Los Angeles is a huge city.” Alaina held on to the fact as if size alone could protect her. “There’s no way I’m going to run into him.”

The reassurance sounded reasonable. Noah moved between television studios, boardrooms, and private cars, while Alaina disappeared into long hours at a small entertainment company. Their lives occupied different worlds even when they shared a city.

“Besides, we haven’t spoken in five years,” she continued. The silence between them had lasted longer than some relationships. It ought to have hardened into permanence by now.

Alaina glanced away. “He’s the Noah Preston now—the CEO of Triple AI, a multibillionaire. And I’m a nobody.” The contrast was too close to the cruel prophecy Noah’s mother had once delivered in a hospital room.

His success seemed to prove Mrs. Preston right. Once Alaina removed herself, Noah had soared. Every headline and billion-dollar valuation became evidence that loving her had kept him small.

“It just goes to show his mother was right about me,” Alaina said. “I was dragging him down the whole time.” Saying it aloud hurt, but the pain had become part of the sacrifice she chose.

Sophie’s expression hardened. “Okay, don’t talk about my best friend like that.” She refused to let Alaina reduce her life to the cruel judgment of a woman who had cornered her beside her dying mother.

“Plus, he wouldn’t be where he is without you,” Sophie insisted. Noah’s heartbreak had fueled him, whether he understood the truth or not. Alaina had pushed him toward a future he once meant to abandon.

That argument offered little comfort. Noah had publicly thanked the woman who broke him for teaching him to trust no one. Alaina could not celebrate a success built partly from pain she had caused.

“Why don’t you just tell him the truth?” Sophie asked. Five years of misunderstanding could end with one honest conversation. Noah deserved to know that Alaina had never chosen Peter or money over him.

Alaina shook her head. “There’s no need for that. It’s all in the past.” The words were a defense against hope. Noah had built a life without her, and revealing the truth now might serve only to ease her guilt.

Sophie moved closer. “You did the best you could. You took care of your mom and stayed with her until her last days.” Her gentleness brought grief into the room alongside Noah’s memory.

“Then you let Noah go pursue his dreams,” Sophie continued. “You’re one of the kindest people I know.” Where Alaina saw weakness, Sophie saw a young woman forced to choose between the two people she loved most.

Alaina managed a faint smile, grateful but unconvinced. Tomorrow she would go to work at ten, pick up coffee and snacks for some important guest, and continue the modest life Noah’s success could never touch.

She went to sleep trusting the vastness of Los Angeles to keep the past away. Across the city, Noah Preston prepared to acquire her company—and by the time Alaina learned who the important guest was, he would already be waiting for her.