He Knows the Door to My Soul and Who Forgot to Novel 27

Natalia and Damon return to her room after a tense and exhausting day filled with confrontation, a fall, and a rescue. Natalia is overwhelmed by the sudden reappearance of Andrei, a figure from her past who stirs up old wounds and unresolved emotions. Damon senses her turmoil and gently urges her to explain, but she resists. They agree to leave town early the next morning to avoid further complications, as Andrei’s presence threatens Natalia’s safety and anonymity.

The next day, they stop at a small café for breakfast, trying to keep a low profile. Damon mentions that Natalia’s twins have been asking about her, which brings a bittersweet moment as Natalia video calls them. The brief connection with her children provides comfort and a temporary escape from the tension looming over her. However, the peace is shattered when Andrei and Lilith enter the café, confronting Natalia and Damon with a charged and hostile encounter.

Lilith attempts to twist the narrative of the previous night’s events, accusing Natalia of wrongdoing, but Damon sharply calls her out for rewriting the story. Andrei remains silent but visibly conflicted as the tension escalates. Natalia stands her ground, insisting that Lilith was the aggressor. Feeling overwhelmed, Natalia excuses herself to the restroom, but Andrei follows and confronts her privately, demanding answers about her secrecy and her relationship with Damon.

The confrontation reveals deep emotions and unresolved issues between Natalia and Andrei. He is shocked to learn that she is Damon’s mate and that she is unmarked, which puzzles and hurts him. Natalia firmly refuses to explain further or justify her choices, asserting her independence and loyalty to Damon. She walks away from Andrei without looking back, determined to move forward despite the storm of feelings and conflicts stirred up by his return.

NATALIA

By the time Damon and I got back to my room, I was shivering–less from the chill in the air, more from everything that had unraveled over the past twenty–four hours. I sat down on the edge of the bed, towel still looped around my shoulders, and tried to process it all.

The confrontation. The fall. The rescue.

Andrei.

Alive in front of me again. Real. Demanding. Unchanged.

I’d spent years convincing myself that I could bury the past in silence, that motherhood and duty would erase the ache he left behind. That I’d moved on.

But then he said my name like a wound. Like he’d never stopped bleeding from it.

Damon was pacing the small room, hands folded behind his back, his expression unreadable. But I could tell he was holding himself back.

“So,” he said finally, his voice calm but clipped, “do you want to explain what the hell that was?” 1

I sighed. “Not really.”

He gave a quiet snort and stopped moving..

But then he softened. “You alright?”

I nodded, but it was the kind of nod that didn’t convince either of us.

He sat beside me, hands braced on his knees. “We leave first thing in the morning.

“No argument here,” I murmured.

“Too much attention now,” he added. “We can’t protect your anonymity anymore. And if Andrei really is planning to stay longer-”

“Then I need to be gone.”

He nodded. “I’ll have the car ready by sunrise.”

We didn’t say much after that. Just sat there, damp and drained. I watched the rain tap lightly against the windowpane and let the quiet settle around us.

***

We stopped by the restaurant early the next morning, hoping to grab breakfast and disappear before anyone realized we were still in town.

It was small–more rustic café than fine dining–with thick wooden beams and soft morning light spilling

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through gauzy curtains. A fireplace crackled quietly in the corner. The scent of cinnamon and brewed coffee warmed the air.

I barely touched my tea. My nerves were still frayed.

Damon, as always, looked unbothered. He stirred his espresso with the tip of his spoon, glancing down at his phone.

“The twins were asking about you,” he said casually.

My chest clenched. “Already?”

“You’ve never been away from them this long,” he said gently.

I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “I’ve never been away from them at all.”

He gave me a sympathetic look and tapped the screen. “Want to call?”

I nodded.

Seconds later, he set the phone on the table and hit video call.

Jane’s face filled the screen first–her dark curls in disarray, her cheeks puffed with a dramatic pout.

“Mommy!”

I smiled before I even realized it. “Hi, sweetheart.”

Max slid into view beside her, more composed as usual, but I saw the tiny flicker of relief in his eyes.

“Hey,” he said, “are you done working yet?”

“Almost,” I said, blinking quickly. “We’ll be home soon.”

Jane huffed. “You left for forever.”

“It’s been two days,” I laughed.

“That’s forever in kid time,” she declared, arms crossed.

Damon leaned in slightly. “I missed you two too.”

Jane brightened. “You did?”

“Of course,” he said. “I had to eat pancakes without you.”

Max raised an eyebrow. “Did you use the syrup Mom hates?”

Damon grinned. “Obviously.”

Laughter bubbled up, warm and bright. For a few minutes, everything else faded. Just their voices, their squabbles, the way Jane blew me a kiss with sticky fingers.

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It grounded me. Pulled me back from the unraveling.

Until the bell above the café door chimed.

And I looked up.

Andrei.

And Lilith.

I froze.

Damon noticed first. His hand reached for the phone, subtly ending the call before I could even think. The screen

went dark.

Andrei spotted us almost immediately.

His jaw set. His pace didn’t slow.

Lilith followed closely behind, her expression already twisting into something unpleasant.

They stopped beside our table.

Andrei’s gaze was on me. Unflinching. Intense.

Lilith, of course, jumped in first.

“Oh–how funny running into you two,” she said, her voice just a little too high. “I was just telling Andrei that last night must’ve been a misunderstanding. I’m sure you didn’t mean to push me into the pool. These things happen when emotions run high.”

I stared at her, blank–faced.

She turned her smile to Damon. “You’re such a protective Alpha. It’s sweet. Clearly you adore

She looked to Andrei then, clearly expecting backup.

He didn’t say a word.

your Luna.”

Damon leaned back in his chair, lazy and cold. “You always this good at rewriting your own drama?”

Lilith’s eyes narrowed. “Excuse me?”

“You starred in it, directed it, and now you’re trying to revise the script. Impressive.”

Her mouth opened in indignation. “That’s completely uncalled for.”

Damon shrugged. “Not if it’s true.”

Andrei finally spoke, voice low and clipped. “Damon. That’s enough.”

The warning was clear. But so was the simmering frustration in his tone.

He wasn’t defending her. Not really.

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I folded my napkin and placed it on the table. “Lilith has no right to play the victim. Not when she was the one who cornered me. You were there. You saw how it started.”

Lilith’s expression soured.

Andrei looked between us, conflicted. Silent.

The tension wrapped around the table like a noose.

I stood. “I need to use the restroom.‘

Neither man stopped me.

>>

But when I stepped out again minutes later, Andrei was there.

Leaning against the wall near the hallway.

Waiting.

His eyes snapped to mine instantly.

Before I could move, he crossed the space in two strides, grabbed my wrist, and pinned me gently—but firmly- against the wall just outside the corridor.

“You’re really going to pretend like nothing happened?” he demanded, voice low and furious.

My heart thundered, but I kept my voice calm. “Let me go.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

I glared at him. “Tell you what?”

“}

“That you were alive. That you were in Ashmoor. That you were with-” he cut off, his breath catching.

“With Damon?” I finished coldly.

His jaw clenched. “You’re his Luna?”

“Yes.”

“You didn’t even tell me-

“I didn’t owe you that.”

He swallowed. “And the child?”

“What child?”

He stared at me like I’d slapped him. “You know what I’m talking about.”

“No, I don’t,” I said coolly. “Now let go of me. If Damon sees what you’re doing to his Luna, he’s going to split

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you in two.”

His right eye twitched at the word Luna–a tic he’d had for years that came out when he was upset or angry. But he didn’t move.

His eyes dropped–swept along my neckline.

And froze.

His expression shifted. Twisted.

“You’re not marked,” he said, stunned.

I yanked my wrist free and stepped back. “So?”

“If he’s your mate, why haven’t you-?”

I wanted to remind him that I’d been his mate for five years and he hadn’t marked

Instead, I said, “Because that’s none of your business.”

His face was a storm. Hurt. Anger. Realization.

I didn’t give him a chance to speak again.

I turned and walked away.

This time, I didn’t look back.

D

me, either.

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The chapter delicately unravels the tangled emotions Natalia wrestles with as past and present collide, forcing her to confront wounds she thought had healed. The tension between her loyalty to Damon and the unresolved history with Andrei creates a poignant exploration of trust, identity, and the complex ties that bind. Through their charged interactions, the story reveals the raw vulnerability beneath Natalia’s composed exterior, highlighting the enduring impact of secrets and unspoken truths.

Amidst the storm of confrontation and quiet moments of tenderness, the chapter underscores the fragile balance between protection and exposure, love and pain. Natalia’s connection to her children and Damon offers a grounding force, a reminder of what she fights to preserve even as shadows from her past threaten to unravel her carefully constructed world. The emotional undercurrents leave us poised on the edge of change, with hearts heavy yet hopeful for what lies ahead.

The next chapter promises to deepen the tangled web of emotions and loyalties that Natalia finds herself caught in. With Andrei’s sudden reappearance and the raw intensity of their confrontation still fresh, the simmering tension between past and present threatens to boil over. Natalia’s resolve will be tested as she navigates the fragile balance between protecting her family and confronting the unresolved wounds that Andrei’s presence stirs within her.

Meanwhile, Damon’s quiet strength and protective instincts will face new challenges as he grapples with the shadows of Natalia’s past creeping into their carefully guarded world. The uneasy truce at the café hints at underlying conflicts that could disrupt the fragile peace they’ve built. As secrets linger just beneath the surface, readers can expect the emotional stakes to rise, forcing each character to confront truths they’ve long avoided and make choices that could change everything.

Sara Lili

Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.