Chapter 1184
Lysander lifted his head, gazes like deep pools of midnight gazing into hers.
Thalassa couldn’t hold his stare. Her eyes darted away in a futile evasion.
He shifted closer, pulling her into an embrace that was both unexpected and inescapable. Thalassa squirmed briefly.
Lysander’s arms were unyielding, his voice a low command, “Time for bed.”
At his words, Thalassa realized he had no ulterior motives and ceased her struggles, allowing him to hold her.
Her ear pressed against his chest, the steady thrum of his heartbeat echoed, causing her own to quicken with a mixture of alarm
and something else at the memory of his earlier
question.
“Being pregnant on your own must’ve been tough,” Lysander’s voice was a husky whisper in the darkness.
Thalassa floundered, caught off guard by his sudden reference to her past pregnancy.
She had gone through the experience once before, giving birth to quadruplets.
Perhaps he’d brought it up because she’d mentioned children taking four to five months before they start to stir in the womb. He
must have realized she knew the ropes of pregnancy well.
“It was alright,” Thalassa said, her voice a soft murmur, “I had food and shelter, and a hospital ready to welcome me when it was
time. There were people to take care of me; everything went smoothly.”
Her pregnancy and childbirth had been overseen by her mother’s vigilant care.
Without her mother, the journey would have been a harrowing one.
But with her mother’s help, it wasn’t all that bad. And afterward, having her adorable children for company made life seem full of
fight and hope.
Over the last five years, aside from the fatigue of earning a living and the sting of gossip for being an unwed mother, she had her
children’s company, and that healed all wounds swiftly.
Thalassa left much unsaid, but Lysander could sense the bittersweet struggle of a single mother in her gentle words.
He pulled her petite body closer, resting his chin atop her head as he held her, drifting into sleep together.
11:44
Chapter 1184
Four days later.
Hertha reached out to Thalassa, urgency lacing her words over the phone.
“Thalassa, you’ve got to take the day off and be with me. I can’t handle this on my own.”
“What’s the matter? Why the panic?” Thalassa asked with concern.
“My mom went through the whole extended family to set me up on a blind date with this guy. He’s a hotshot with a Ph.D., makes
a cool half a mil a year, never dated, total brainiac, polite, and decent-looking. Basically, she’s saying if I don’t snag this guy,
she’s disowning me,” Hertha lamented.
At twenty-seven, Hertha was single, and her mother had been on her case about marriage for ages, only for Hertha to dodge the
topic every time.
But now her mother was at her wits’ end, insisting on the blind date or threatening to cut
ties.
Hertha was out of excuses.
Hence the call to Thalassa, looking for a lifeline.
“How are things going with Alaric?” Thalassa inquired, aware of Hertha’s crush.
“Not great,” Hertha answered without hesitation, the annoyance palpable in her tone.
Thalassa heard the disappointment in her friend’s voice and asked, “So, do you want to go on this blind date?”
“My mom’s playing the disowning card. If I don’t go, she’ll act like it’s the end of the world,” Hertha replied, which meant she was
resigned to going through with the date.