Semua Bab The Unwanted Wife and Her Secret Twins: Bab 361 - Bab 370

Mia's POVThe weight of disappointment settled in my chest."A feeling," I sighed."I understand your skepticism..""Sophie," I said carefully, "I appreciate everything you've done. Really. But Kyle is dying.""The universe has a peculiar sense of timing," Sophie interrupted. "Do you know when I first heard about you?"I shook my head."Eighteen months ago, when Kyle approached me about using my resources to investigate the networks threatening your family. He showed me photographs—you, the children, your little apartment, that ridiculous dog with his tongue always hanging out." Her smile was soft, remembering. "But what struck me wasn't the pictures themselves. It was the way Kyle's hands trembled when he held them."She removed her glasses, folding them. "This is a man who has faced down corporate raiders, hostile takeovers, death threats from business rivals. I have personally watched him negotiate billion-dollar deals without so much as a raised pulse. But photographs of his famil

Mia "This is the best food I've ever eaten," Alexander announced through a mouthful of French toast that left his cheeks sticky with syrup."Better than Mama's pancakes?" Ethan asked with the diplomatic concern of someone who didn't want to accidentally insult family cooking.Alexander considered this question with the seriousness it deserved. "Different good," he decided finally. "Mama's pancakes are home good. These are fancy good."Sophie laughed, the sound like silver wind chimes. "That's a very sophisticated distinction, mon petit. You understand that different occasions call for different kinds of perfection."Meanwhile, Scarlett had somehow convinced the restaurant to accommodate Gas, who lay beside our table with the dignified composure of a dog who belonged in five-star establishments. The waitstaff treated him like an honored guest, providing a crystal bowl of water and even offering him a small portion of plain grilled chicken, which he accepted with gracious politeness."

Kyle's POVThe medication pulled me under like warm, thick water and impossible to fight. In that deep drowning, time folded in on itself like origami made of memory, each crease revealing another moment I'd thought I'd forgotten.I was seventeen again, standing in the doorway of Mia's high school art classroom, watching her work on a canvas that seemed to glow under the afternoon light streaming through tall windows. Her hair caught the sun in threads of copper and gold, and she held her brush with the kind of reverence other people reserved for prayer.I'm just passing by.I'd stepped closer, drawn by the quiet confidence in her. She carried her own atmosphere, serene and untouchable.The canvas showed a landscape that shouldn't have existed—trees that grew upward and downward simultaneously, their roots and branches intertwining in impossible geometries. A river flowed through the center, reflecting a sky that held both moon and sun, stars scattered like seeds across twilight blue.

Mia's POVKyle's words settled into the spaces between my ribs, each syllable finding a home in places I'd tried so hard to empty and lock away.I cried while smiling, the tears warm against my cheeks, tasting of salt and something that might have been relief. "I forgive you, Kyle."The words came from somewhere deeper, from the place where seventeen-year-old Mia still lived, the girl who had loved him with the devastating completeness that only comes once in a lifetime. "You know how much I once liked you," I said, the word 'liked' so inadequate it almost made me laugh. Like was what you felt for chocolate ice cream or sunny afternoons. "I never envied Taylor," I continued, my voice growing stronger as the truth flowed out of me like water from a broken dam. "But you know, I only ever envied her for being your girlfriend."Kyle's looked at me. His eyes meeting mine with an intensity that made the hospital room disappear around us. For a moment, we were seventeen again, and I was wa

Mia "Thank you for fixing my drone," Alexander said, his voice muffled against Kyle's hospital gown. "You're the best fixer in the whole world.""You're very welcome," Kyle replied. "But you did most of the work yourself. You identified the problem, you read the manual, you asked good questions. I just had slightly steadier hands."Alexander pulled back to look at Kyle's face. "Will you teach me how to fix other things? Like when my Legos break, or when my toy cars stop rolling straight?"Kyle's eyes found mine over Alexander's head. "I'd like that very much" .Before I could respond, Ethan stepped closer to the bed, his attention focused on something that had caught his eye. His small hand reached out to touch Kyle's fingers where they rested on the hospital blanket."You do that thing too," Ethan said quietly, his voice carrying the wonder of someone who had just discovered they weren't alone in the world."What thing?" Kyle asked, following Ethan's gaze."When you concentrate on s