جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 103

ROSE “Mama, when are we going to cut the cake?” Ana asked, tugging on my arm to have my attention. “Cake?” My father questioned. “It’s Ryan’s birthday. We were here to celebrate it, but instead I got a surprise of my lifetime.” I answered, taking Ryan's hand in mine. “Thank you so much, baby.” “For you, anything.” Ryan replied back, his thumb caressing the back of my hand. “So sweet…” Meghan whispered from across the table, sipping on her water. “Ugh-huh…” Nick cleared his throat, deliberately, to get his wife's attention. “Oh, don't worry, you are even sweeter," She said with a pat on her husband’s shoulder. I laughed, when she added, “You just make sure to rub my feet tonight.” She winked at me and then explained, “During this time it's heaven to have someone rub the tension off your feet. You should definitely try that.” “Don’t give her ideas,” Ryan muttered, but when I turned to him, arching a brow, he added, “You just have to ask for it, lioness.” Nick and my fa

ROSE “She is my mother!” The silence that followed was suffocating. “Your mother…” I whispered. Ryan slumped forward, elbows braced on his thighs, his face buried in his palms. His broad shoulders, always so unbreakable, seemed to collapse inward. But I couldn’t make sense of it. It was still impossible for me to understand why would his mother… “Your mother is trying to kill me,” I said slowly, the words tasting unreal. “She’s trying to kill our babies.” A distressed sound tore from my throat. “She was the one who destroyed my hotel room… who sent those dolls… Oh my God.” He said nothing. And his silence drove me closer to hysteria. “Why?” My voice rose despite myself. “Why would she do something like that? And why haven’t I met her? You never told me anything about her. I thought she was dead—” “I wish she was.” The raw hatred in his voice stole the air from my lungs. “I didn’t tell you anything,” he continued, lifting his head slowly, “because there’s nothin