I Was His Wife, Then His Widow, Then No One's But My Own novel Chapter 62

Staring at her empty feed, Sienna bit her lip in frustration and scowled heavily. How could she have forgotten to restrict Nora from seeing it? It was such a stupid rookie mistake.

Their last chat was from Nora's birthday. Sienna had sent her a quick wish, Nora replied with a thank you, and that was the end of it.

Sienna had been having dinner with Seraphina at the time and couldn't be bothered to type a reply. The chat had simply drifted down her inbox, collecting dust.

Friends ignored messages all the time, right? Nora wouldn't be petty enough to get mad over something like this.

Sienna frowned. Surely Nora wouldn't ask about it?

She hated Nora's quiet, unbothered demeanor—it always made her nervous. Hesitating, she opened their chat and typed, "Did you see that?"

Her finger hovered over the send button for two seconds before she deleted the text. Whatever. Nora wasn't the type to hold a grudge.

Sienna switched over to Seraphina's chat. "Let's hit the mall tomorrow. Chanel just dropped their new collection."

Seraphina replied instantly. "Sounds great. It's the weekend anyway."

"Perfect. See you at ten at our usual spot."

Sienna set her phone face down on the table, letting the thrill of shopping wash away her lingering unease.

The next morning.

Nora woke up naturally. Sunlight squeezed through a gap in the curtains, landing perfectly on the edge of her pillow. She rolled over and checked the time on her phone. It was nearly ten.

She hadn't slept this well in a long time.

Her lock screen was filled with unread messages from Bonnie.

The first was a voice note. Tapping it, she heard the little girl's sleep-heavy voice. "Good morning, Nora."

Another message had come in around eight. "I already brushed my teeth!"

The latest one had just arrived. "We get to see each other tomorrow! Are you excited?"

Listening to the messages with the phone pressed to her ear, Nora's heart melted completely. She sent a quick "Good morning" back and set the phone on her nightstand, ready to get up and wash her face.

Suddenly, her ringtone blared.

Assuming it was a telemarketer, she reached to decline the call, but her finger froze in mid-air.

It wasn't a call. It was a calendar reminder.

It was reminding her that her 10th Wedding Anniversary was approaching.

Tomorrow marked exactly ten years since she and Finnegan Fletcher tied the knot.

Finnegan had just stepped out of the conference room, a trail of assistants following behind him with stacks of documents.

Pushing open his office door, he tossed his suit jacket over the back of his chair, loosened his tie, and sat down.

His eyes immediately landed on the desk calendar.

A specific date was heavily circled in red marker, with the words 'Wedding Anniversary' scrawled next to it.

He paused. Time flew by; the date had crept up on him once again.

For the past five years, Nora had faithfully celebrated this anniversary alone. He knew all about it, but he had never shown up. Now, living under the guise of Seraphina's fiancé, he couldn't exactly make an appearance anyway.

Knowing Nora's deep devotion, she would definitely celebrate it again this year. No matter what happened, she would never cancel their anniversary.

Finnegan leaned back in his chair, a faint smirk playing on his lips.

He knew Nora well. Once she set her mind to something, nothing could sway her. She hadn't missed a single year, and this one would be no different.

A woman that dedicated would never remarry.

His phone rang, snapping him out of his thoughts. The caller ID read 'Sera Babe'. Smiling, he answered the call.

"Finn," Seraphina's sweet laugh floated through the speaker. "Tomorrow is our five-year anniversary. Let's go out and celebrate."