Chapter 17 An Old Thing Never Felt Like Gift

Chapter 17 An Old Thing Never Felt Like Gift
Noah came back to the house that afternoon, and Elodie welcomed him more warmly than before. This reunion felt much better than the last time—when she’d run around like a cat with its tail on fire.

“Do you want to have lunch with me?”

Elodie asked as she walked into the kitchen. Noah followed at an easy pace.

“I’ve been studying your food habits,” she continued. “You don’t use salt much and rely more on the natural taste of things—like butter or the aroma of herbs. You don’t really like salty food, do you?”

“So what are you going to make?” Noah asked.

Elodie paused for a second, already building a menu in her head that felt right for the moment.
“Pasta,” she said finally. “Something simple. Cream sauce, mushrooms, a little rosemary. Nothing heavy.”

She sounded a little too cheerful, and Noah noticed it immediately.

“You’re getting excited,” he said. “I wish it wasn’t because of that day.”

Elodie froze for half a second. She knew exactly what he meant—the small garden, the silence, his fingers, her own breath breaking apart. The memory still lingered in her body in ways she didn’t fully understand.

“It’s not because of that,” she said quickly, brushing it off with a soft laugh, though her ears felt warm.

Noah leaned against the counter.

“I think I shouldn’t have done that to you,” he said. “I made you look… dirty.”

Elodie’s hands stopped moving. Her voice came out quieter, almost a murmur.

“Why do you sound like you regret it? Because… because I don’t think I do.”

Noah looked at her back. His face showed nothing—no smile, no tension—completely neutral, in sharp contrast to the weight of his words.

“I’ve never done anything like that before,” Elodie went on, still not turning around. “But I think things like that are never really seen as ‘clean’ in general. I mean… you shouldn’t say you made me look dirty.”

“But you thought you peed on the flowers,” Noah replied calmly.

Elodie turned around immediately and stared at him.

“Are you mocking me right now?”

Noah walked up behind Elodie and stopped just a step away from her. Slowly, he lifted something and let it fall into her line of sight—a delicate cross necklace, its chain glinting softly under the kitchen light.

Elodie froze mid-movement. Her eyes focused on it, and it didn’t take long before recognition hit.

“This… this is my necklace!”

Her voice lit up with happiness, but there was a strange weight underneath it, something that tightened in her chest.

She took it from him and held it carefully, staring at it as if it were fragile. The necklace didn’t just bring relief—it brought Ethan back into her mind.

Her smile stayed, but her eyes grew wet.

Noah noticed. He always did. He didn’t react right away, just watched—the way her breathing shifted, the way her fingers trembled slightly around the cross. He didn’t feel what she felt, but he observed it, studied it. Emotions, to him, were something to be analyzed, not shared.

When the first tear finally fell, Elodie quickly wiped it away.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I miss Ethan right now… This necklace was actually his. He was our pastor’s favorite. He got it from him, but he gave it to me because he thought I needed God’s protection more than he did.”

Her voice broke completely after that. She didn’t stop—she cried harder, the words dissolving into quiet sobs.

Noah pulled her into his arms without saying anything. He just held her there and let her cry against his chest.

He still didn’t speak, but he learned something important in that moment—about how deeply, how purely, Elodie loved her brother.

When Elodie finally calmed down, she lifted her head and looked at Noah.

“Where did you get my necklace?”

Noah’s gaze stayed on her for a moment before he answered.

“Do you remember the last time you wore it?”

Elodie frowned, trying to recall, but nothing came clearly—until Noah continued,

“The day you ran away with that man. You dropped it when you changed into the nun’s uniform.”

Her breath caught.

“So… you came to our church?”

“You outsmarted my men and disappeared when we already had an appointment,” Noah said calmly. “I had to retrieve my opponent. The game doesn’t start if one side is missing.”

Elodie stared at him, something clicking into place.

“So that’s why you said you’d never let me die that day.”

Noah didn’t reply. Instead, he gently took the necklace from her hands and fastened it back around her neck.

She hadn’t taken it off since Ethan gave it to her—when he was fourteen and she was eight. Having it back where it belonged felt like breathing properly again after being underwater for too long.

But the relief only lasted a second.

It would be better if she had news about Ethan.

She looked up at Noah.

“Did you find anything about Ethan? Is he okay?”

Noah didn’t answer immediately. He leaned back against the kitchen counter, then pulled her closer until they were standing face to face, their heights almost the same now.

“O’Connell knows you’re mine,” he said at last. “And he’s started sending me threats.”

Elodie’s eyes widened, worry instantly surfacing.

“Oh God… is he threatening you with Ethan?”

“No. He’s threatening me with my house. We’ve never been on good terms with his syndicate.” Noah’s tone remained steady. “I’ve sent my men to gather information. It would be best if I can get your brother out without turning this into a war.”

Elodie’s fingers tightened unconsciously around his shirt. Her breathing grew shallow, thoughts spiraling in all directions—but Noah’s hand closed gently around hers, grounding her just enough to keep her from breaking apart.

Then he said something that made her look up instantly.

“I’m going to take you out of this house.”

“What?”

“Publicly.”

“But you said I have to stay here for my own safety.”

“And you said I could use you as I please.” His voice was quiet, but firm. “Right now, I need O’Connell to see you in public. I want his attention on you, not on my men. It’ll be easier for them to slip into his territory and find something about your brother. Do you mind?”

Elodie didn’t hesitate.

“No. I don’t mind at all. As long as it’s for Ethan.”

Noah didn’t smile—but he lifted her hand and pressed a slow kiss against her knuckles.

And somehow, that small gesture made Elodie feel something she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Valued.