Chapter 432
If he can lock onto the exact location, then maybe we can finally find Val and then this nightmare can finally come to an end.
Noah’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. “Are you okay p>
A soft, breathless chuckle leaves me before I can stop it. “You know this is the third time you’ve asked me that tonight p>
One corner of his mouth lifts slightly. “And yet you still haven’t answered me p>
I look at him for a long moment before finally sighing and sinking further against the couch.
“I can’t stop thinking about it… Thinking that maybe we can finally get Val back,” I admit quietly. “I can’t stop hoping, Noah, and that hope has grown so big that it terrifies me because I don’t want to be disappointed again p>
I stop and take a breath as emotions rise so quickly that they leave me overwhelmed.
“All I want is to hold her,” I whisper softly, my voice trembling despite my efforts to keep it steady. “I want to kiss her and touch her little face. I want to breastfeed her and rock her to sleep…I just want my baby back with me, where she belongs p>
For a second, Noah simply stares at me, and then he unexpectedly reaches for my hand. His fingers slide carefully through mine before he lifts my hand toward his mouth and presses a soft kiss against my knuckles.
The gesture catches me so off guard that I freeze.
“I want the exact same thing… I want to hold her and kiss her and stare at her beautiful little face.” His gaze softens almost painfully. “Especially because she looks just like her mother p>
My chest tightens instantly as Noah exhales slowly before continuing, his voice quieter now.
“I know it probably sounds strange hearing me say all this after… After not wanting her when she was conceived.” He swallows hard, pain flashing briefly across his face. “But now, all I want is our daughter back. I want the chance to love her properly and be the father she deserves p>
I don’t know how to respond. I look at him, then at the men working quietly, and realize Noah doesn’t seem to care that they can hear him and that realization alone says more than words ever could.
Months ago, Noah would have buried feelings like these so deeply that no one would’ve been able to pull them out of him, but now he’s laying them bare without hesitation.
I take a slow breath as I continue staring at him, my thoughts tangling together because I can see the change in him. I can see the regret. Can see how hard he’s trying to become the man I needed him to be all along, but despite all that, the truth still remains the same… He hurt me deeply and even though I’ve forgiven him, I still don’t know if forgiveness is enough to rebuild what we lost.
Noah’s thumb slowly brushes over the back of my hand, the gentle movement pulling me back to the present. When I finally meet his eyes again, I find him already watching me with longing.
“We’re going to find her,” he says softly, his voice filled with certainty. “We’re going to bring Val home and give her the kind of life every little girl deserves p>
My heart squeezes at the conviction in his voice and just as the words leave him, his guy suddenly looks up sharply from the laptop and Noah’s attention snaps toward him instantly.
“Did you find the exact location?” he asks immediately.
He hesitates for half a second before nodding slowly. “I did p>
Every muscle in my body tenses because I can already sense a ‘but’ coming.
“But…” His expression shifts into confusion. “The signal is showing that it’s coming from inside the Sahara Desert p>