Page 1

Chapter 1

Present: Eight Years After the Accident—Thirty-Two Years Old

For over two hundredyears, a rumor has loomed over my family—the Anderson men are cursed to be heartbroken and live a lonely life.

I don’t believe in curses, but I believe in heartbreak.

Eight years.I’ve been living with mine for eight years.

I stare outside the window of my private jet, watching workers load luggage into neighboring planes. Memories of better days crush me, making it hard to breathe.

This was supposed to be our trip. Now, it’s just mine.

“Mr. Anderson, sorry for the inconvenience. There’s a delay by air traffic control, but we’ll depart for Beijing soon, where we’ll refuel and go through customs before heading to Tibet. In the meantime, may I get you any refreshments?”

The flight attendant’s soft voice jolts me out of my thoughts and I swallow, failing to dislodge the lump in my throat. My fingers graze the silver and black cuff link peeking out under my suit jacket.

“No. Please don’t disturb me on this flight.”

Her eyes widen, and I know she’s going to turn around and tell everyone about my pissed-ass mood. She nods and disappears into the back of the jet.

I can’t muster a smile. Especially not today. Let them think I’m a cold bastard.

You are a cold bastard, Ethan.

Broken. Hardened. Unrecognizable.

It’d break her heart if she were here and saw you like this.

I stare at the cuff links—the black circular medallion carved in an intricate floral pattern, covering the secret underneath. It’s the only pair I own and wear.

The pair Lexy gave me. My Nova. The only woman who has ever made me feel alive. Unbidden, one of my favorite memories of her floats to my consciousness, and I close my eyes, trying to relive it.

Again.

“You’re my north star, Ethan. You anchor me. With you, I’m never lost.” She had grinned, her sky-blue eyes sparkling with life. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to my lips.

Warmth rushed through me and I pulled back, just long enough to stare at her beautiful face—her strawberry blonde hair brightening up the gloomy January skies with a flash of copper, her creamy skin pinkened from the blistering cold of the snowstorm.

Just like the day we met.

“And you’re ridiculous,” I murmured, tightening my arms around her waist. “Who on earth voluntarily goes outside in the middle of a blizzard?”

“It’s the first snow of the new year! The sign of new beginnings and fresh starts. Don’t be such a grump, you old man. And need I remind you if I didn’t go out in a snowstorm, we wouldn’t have met?”

I bit back a smile. I’d never forget how we met—two strangers becoming pen pals during a snowstorm much like this one. This was before I learned her real identity.

I was forbidden to love her but did anyway.

“I’m twenty-four and only four years older than you, Nova. If I’m old, then you’re getting there too. You know, they say men’s shelf life is longer than women’s.”

She mock scowled and before I knew it, a sharp, icy sting exploded across my face.

“What the—”

“Shelf life, huh? Keep that up and you’ll have the shelf life of this snowball!” She cackled and hurled another snowball at me.

Despite it being cold as fuck that day, Lexy only had on PJs and a fluffy pink bathrobe before she dragged me out of the apartment I shared with her older brother and my best friend, Liam.