Semua Bab WHERE LIGHT MEETS DARK: Bab 121 - Bab 126

The sunlight seeped in slowly through the linen curtains—warm, golden, and languid. It bathed everything in warm, forgiving hues. Lily woke up for the first time in a long time without the weight of nightmares. No jolts. No screams muffled in her throat. Just breath. Steady. Real.She could sense the rising and falling of Vandaulf's chest even before she opened her eyes. He slept—his arm draped protectively over her waist, their legs entwined like vines. His face, too often tense with unsaid words, was relaxed now. Almost boyish in sleep.She remained motionless. Not yet.She noticed instead the lines of his jaw, the small scar alongside his right temple, the hardness and obstinacy of his mouth easing a little here in the quiet. There was something intimate about watching someone this vulnerable. No war. No heritage. Only skin and breathing and the man who had chosen her when he did not have to.Her fingers roamed upward, brushing a wayward strand of hair from his forehead.He moved,

The Carlston sunroom was now officially the headquarters of unsolicited matchmaking, unsolicited grandchild planning, and unsolicited life advice, all doled out to Lily and Vandaulf, who had had the tragic error of sitting down.Helena was sitting atop her flower throne, wafting herself cool with a dramatic use of a napkin. Brenna sat cross-legged on the couch with a clipboard she somehow produced out of thin air, pen clutched in her hand and glasses pushed to the end of her nose as if about to file a court complaint.Lily raised an eyebrow suspiciously at the clipboard. "What. is that?"Brenna clicked her pen. "A schedule.""A schedule for what?" Vandaulf blanched."For conceiving."Vandaulf gagged on his tea. "I—I beg your pardon?!"Helena grinned. "It's dubbed 'Operation: Grandchild.' Brenna and I have been brainstorming it since before you two exchanged vows.""We had a whiteboard," Brenna boasted.Lily's jaw dropped. "There's a whiteboard?""In my sewing room," replied Helena. "B

The First Trimester CheckupRain pattered listlessly on the windows of the Carlston Architectural Firm as Vandaulf sat at his polished mahogany desk, shirt sleeves raised, tie open, blueprints strewn over the table like a defiant symphony of stress.He was in deep conversation with his design staff when his phone buzzed twice.Lily : Appointment for baby today at 3:00 PM, mister! Don't you forget! Or me and Barkley will stage a rebellion.Lily : Oh, and. I believe I need french fries afterward.Vandaulf blinked, then grunted, slapping a palm to his forehead."Cancel the afternoon briefing," he grumbled to his assistant, Jonah, who was already mouthing You're late across the room."Should I reschedule the investor call?" Jonah asked, already reaching for the iPad.“Reschedule, apologize profusely, and tell them it’s for my wife and unborn raspberry.”Jonah paused. “That’s. oddly adorable.”Vandaulf was already halfway out the door. “Tell Lily I’m on my way. And get fries.”Meanwhile: A