Swapping a Broken Heart for a New Start novel Chapter 1262

When their eyes met, she was close to tears. Dennis saw it, and something inside him twisted tight. His chest ached with a deep, helpless pain.

He brought her back to Eagle’s Peak Estate, straight to their room. The rest of the day, they didn’t leave once.

The room was warm and soft around them, filled with the kind of closeness that made every second feel precious. They held each other, tangled up together, as if afraid to let go for even a moment.

It wasn’t until evening, when Camila’s stomach started to rumble, that Dennis finally carried her out to eat.

After dinner, Camila stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the ginkgo tree in the yard. The branches were bare now, leaves long gone, but the ground outside was covered in a blanket of golden yellow. A thin layer of snow dusted the tree, and a few flakes drifted down, swirling with the last fallen leaves.

“It’s so beautiful,” she whispered.

She’d always wanted to see the ginkgo in winter.

Dennis came up behind her, draping a blanket around her shoulders, then wrapped his arms around her. Camila leaned back against his chest, her eyes fixed on the glowing yard. Her voice was soft, longing. “I wish I could see this every year.”

Dennis’s eyes darkened. He bent down and gave her earlobe a gentle, teasing bite, as if to scold her just a little. “Don’t say things like that. You can see it whenever you want. Spring, summer, fall, winter... I’ll be right here, watching all of it with you.”

Camila wasn’t the type to believe in fairy tales. She knew how tough the whole process of finding a cure was. She hoped—she really did—that she’d get better. But she was also ready for things to go the other way.

She didn’t answer, just stood quietly, looking out the window.

After a while, she turned and looked up at Dennis. “Can I go outside?”

He looked at her, his voice gentle. “What do you want to do?”

“I want to pick up some leaves,” she said. “I want to make a leaf art piece. Will you help me?”

There was no way Dennis would say no to her, not now. It was freezing outside, but seeing her in such a good mood was rare lately.

He smiled at her, his eyes warm. “Of course.”

He hurried back to the bedroom for a thick coat, bundled her up until she looked like a marshmallow, then led her outside.

The ground was covered in golden leaves. The temperature had dropped so quickly, and Cabinda was so dry, none of them had rotted. Almost every leaf was perfect.

Camila crouched down to pick some up. Dennis knelt beside her.

“They’re so pretty,” she said. “They look like little golden fans.”

It was just like the pictures she’d seen in books.

Dennis kept glancing at her, worry obvious in his eyes. “Are you cold? If you are, let me do it. You shouldn’t get your hands wet.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify