[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her":3,"chapter-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-114":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","My Sister Stole My Mate, And I Let Her",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},764688,1010,"Chapter 114 TOO LITTLE TOO LATE","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-114",114,"\u003Cp>SERAPHINA’S POV\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment my gaze landed on him, the good mood I’d fought so hard for scattered like startled birds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was almost cruel, how quickly the lightness in my chest dimmed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One second, I’d been clutching Daniel’s memory close, imagining the way his laughter might sound if he were here with me, and the next—there was Kieran.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Other than that ridiculous drunken phone call and the brief clash in Celeste’s hospital room, I’d been doing really well with avoiding Kieran, and I wasn’t interested in breaking that streak anytime soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pivoted slightly, intent on leaving and vanishing back into the quiet of the trees. That was when his voice carried across the park.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sera.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I froze. Something in his tone—steady, gentle, almost...careful—made my stomach turn. I should have kept walking, but against my better judgment, I looked back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had stood from the bench, his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket, shoulders slightly hunched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked...off. Nothing like the arrogant Alpha who bent the very air around him to his will. He looked tired. Weary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I raised my brows, feigning indifference. “What is it now, Kieran? I don’t have the energy for theatrics today.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His jaw tightened, but instead of snapping back, he exhaled. “It’s not theatrics. I just... I want to talk. About Celeste. About everything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My arms folded across my chest instinctively, a shield between us. “You’ll forgive me if I don’t jump for joy at the idea.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped closer, not enough to invade, but near enough that I could see the faint shadows under his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although it manifested itself externally, his exhaustion didn’t seem physical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Celeste’s out of the hospital now. Your family doctor has been by her side twenty-four seven. She’s recovering quickly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His words hit like a stone skipping across water, surface ripples that never reached the depth of my anger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I arched a brow. “And I’m supposed to care because...?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because,” he said carefully, “I don’t believe you pushed her.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The certainty in his voice made my heart stutter. For a moment, I wasn’t sure I’d heard him right. My mouth went dry. “Excuse me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He met my eyes then, and for once, there was no accusation, no bitterness, no presumption. Just honesty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I said, I don’t believe you pushed her. I’ve thought about it a lot, and it doesn’t make sense. You wouldn’t do something like that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a second, I simply stared at him. This man—my ex-husband, who had doubted me at every turn, who had never once stood on my side even when we were married—was now standing here saying he believed me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell had he and Ethan been smoking?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The deja vu and irony almost made me laugh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tilted my head, letting sarcasm curl around the words. “Well, that’s a refreshing change of heart. What prompted this revelation, Kieran? Did the moon rise differently last night? Or, more likely, is this another ruse? Celeste put you up to this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His lips pressed into a thin line, but he didn’t lash back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, he shook his head faintly, as though chastising himself. “Believe what you want. But I mean it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I let the silence stretch. A small, dangerous part of me wanted to feel relief, vindication. But I refused to give him that satisfaction. I wasn’t foolish enough to lean on his words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, just like Ethan, this change of heart was too little too late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well,” I said, turning away again. “If there’s nothing else—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The rogue case,” he said, halting my steps. His shoulders straightened slightly, as though bracing. “There’s been progress.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something inside me jerked upright at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What kind of progress?” My voice came out sharper than intended, betraying the thin thread of hope that suddenly coiled in my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the rogue case was solved quickly, that meant I was safe—and Daniel could come home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kieran softened, just barely. “I’m sorry it’s taken this long. I know how much it’s cost you. But we’re close now—closer than ever. I think I’ll be able to resolve it fully soon. When that happens, Daniel can come home.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a heartbeat, the world tilted. My knees nearly gave beneath me, but I locked them, swallowing hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The very thought of my baby coming home was enough to send light flooding into the cracks of my heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you,” I whispered, the words slipping out before I could stop them. Then louder, steadier: “Truly, thank you for that—for everything you’ve done for him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kieran frowned, looking offended at my gratitude. “Sera, he’s my son. I would do anything to keep him safe.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused, and my heart clenched when he added softly, “You too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And with those words, I forced myself to step back emotionally, forcing logic over the ridiculous hope that swelled in my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My smile was faint, restrained. “But that doesn’t change anything else between us.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His brows furrowed. “Nothing changes? Sera, I’m trying—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s exactly it,” I cut in, voice firm. “You’re trying to blur the lines again. But there have to be boundaries, Kieran. Clear ones. For both our sakes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A muscle in his jaw twitched. His temper, always so quick to rise, flickered in his eyes. “Boundaries? When we share a child?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes.” My chin lifted. “Especially because we share a child. Everything happened too fast after we got divorced that we never had a chance to iron out those factors.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a deep breath. The timing and place weren’t exactly ideal, but there was no time like the present.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ll have visitation rights—I won’t interfere with that. I would never dream of keeping Daniel from you. But don’t expect him to spend too much time around Celeste. Not after...everything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His jaw clenched. “She’s going to be his stepmother.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Like hell she’ll be.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sera—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You say you believe I didn’t push her, right?” I pressed. “So how did she end up in the street? I can promise you she didn’t trip and fall in front of that car.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The way his face darkened told me he hated admitting I had a point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His silence stretched, taut and tense, before he finally ground out, “Celeste has been... different lately. Erratic. I can’t deny it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a brief moment, he seemed almost lost, almost human. Then his gaze shifted, searching mine. “Maybe Ethan was right all along—I hurt you both. If I hadn’t been caught between you two, if I’d done things differently...maybe you could’ve been good sisters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bitter laugh tore out from me. “Don’t flatter yourself, Kieran. You’re not the tragic centerpiece of our story. Celeste and I weren’t exactly painting each other’s nails and borrowing each other’s clothes before you came into the picture.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d known a long time ago that Celeste and I weren’t and would never be normal sisters. I’d made peace with it, no matter how much it stung.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even now, despite what she might think, I am not fighting with her over you. She wants you. I don’t. Simple.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He flinched, as though my words had struck deeper than intended. Good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve moved on, Kieran,” I went on, softer but sharper. “I have a new life. And if you can accept that and stop meddling, maybe we can actually co-parent Daniel and give him some semblance of stability without tearing each other apart.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The calm in my own voice startled me. Months ago, I never could have spoken to him this way—steady, unwavering, not begging for scraps of his belief or affection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now... Now I could.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He studied me, long and hard, as though searching for cracks in my armor, scraps of the Sera he thought he’d known.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, his voice dropped low, and his question came out of nowhere. “Is Lucian really that great? Is he the reason you’ve changed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The question made my lips twitch despite myself. He sounded almost...jealous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I let the smile spread, slow and deliberate, meeting his gaze without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lucian wasn’t the reason I’d changed, but the answer to his first question was easy. “Yes. He’s that great.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And with that, I walked away, unflinching, letting my words hang heavy between us.\u003C\u002Fp>",1361,"2026-06-03T02:27:49.404Z",1,"novelbin.me","e9ac6d45afc439fdc8581426318dd5f00e94924e9c924ec2d74baada62995788","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-115","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-113",488,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-cover.jpg"]