All Chapters of Tastes Like Damn Chocolate : Chapter 101 - Chapter 110

CHAPTER 101Sandy watched Nikolai carry Pascal out of the room, the boy’s small arms looped around his father’s neck. Pascal twisted once to wave at Tiana, his dinosaur tucked under one elbow, before the door clicked shut behind them. The sound felt final, like a period at the end of a sentence no one wanted to finish.The room settled into a fragile quiet. Sandy turned back to the bed, pulled the visitor’s chair closer, and sat. She rested her elbows on her knees and studied Tiana’s face which was pale, and bruised, but no longer dazed. The woman looking back at her was awake, aware, and carrying a quiet kind of exhaustion that had nothing to do with the accident.“You need anything?” Sandy asked gently. “Water? Another pillow? One of those terrible hospital Jell-O cups?”Tiana managed a small, tired smile. “No. I’m okay.”Sandy nodded, but didn’t move. She let the silence stretch for a moment, giving Tiana space to breathe, to decide whether she wanted company or solitude. When Tian

CHAPTER 103Lyn pulled up to the Toriaga estate gates just as the last streaks of daylight bled out of the sky. She walked up to the door and met the same security who had denied her entry in the afternoon.“Lyn Carter. I’m here for Tiana. She texted me to come.”The guard’s voice crackled through the speaker, flat and practiced. “Access denied. Immediate family only until further notice.”Lyn’s fingers tightened on the wheel. “She invited me. Check with her.”“Mr. Toriaga’s instructions are clear.”She exhaled sharply, pulled out her phone, and dialed Tiana’s number. It rang twice before someone answered.“Hello?” A familiar voice, but not Tiana’s.“Sandy?”“Lyn.” Relief threaded through Sandy’s tone. “Hold on.”Sandy appeared a moment later, bundled in a thick coat, waving Lyn through. The guard stepped aside without a word.Sandy met her halfway across the stone pavers.“She’s been asking for you since they settled her,” Sandy said quietly. “Nikolai’s being overprotective. But she

CHAPTER 105 Nikolai stared at Sandy, the accusation hanging between them like smoke from a dying fire. His sister’s words, I suspect Mom killed Dad. And Dr. Smith covered it up, struck him like a physical blow. His face drained of color until he looked almost gray under the soft glow of the bedside lamp. The phone slipped from his fingers and clattered softly against the hardwood floor, screen lighting up with the unfinished call to Dr. Smith. The room was suffocatingly quiet except for the frantic beeps of the monitors, hers slow and sedated. He bent, retrieved the phone, and scrolled through contacts with shaking fingers. He didn’t dial Smith. Instead he called someone else. “Dr. Ramirez,” he said when the call connected, voice hoarse. “It’s Nikolai Toriaga. There’s an emergency. My wife fell, and hit her head. She’s bleeding again. The nurses here have attended to her and she’s currently sedated. I need you here. Now.” He gave the address, hung up, and looked at Sandy. “Ramire

CHAPTER 107 He nodded politely. “Ms. Toriaga. I’m here to check on your sister-in-law.” Sandy didn’t move. She stood between him and the bed, arms folded, chin lifted. Her posture was a wall, unyielding, deliberate, every muscle tensed like a coiled spring. The hospital room felt smaller with Dr. Smith in it. Tiana lay still behind her, sedated and pale, her breathing shallow but even, the fresh sutures on her temple a stark reminder of how fragile everything was. Sandy’s heart pounded, but she kept her face neutral, eyes locked on Smith’s. She had always disliked him especially the way his smiles never reached his eyes, the way he moved through their family’s crises like oil on water, slick and untouchable. “I don’t think that’s necessary,” she said, voice calm but edged with steel. Smith raised an eyebrow, “I’ve been the Toriaga family physician for decades. Your mother called…” “She did?” Sandy said, her tone flat, almost mocking. She didn’t blink. “Nikolai already called Dr.

CHAPTER 109 Smith lowered himself into the seat, setting his medical bag on the floor beside him. He exhaled slowly, choosing his words with care. “I didn’t have access to Tiana,” he said. Eva’s eyebrow lifted a fraction. “Explain.” “The room was guarded. Sandy stood between me and the bed, arms folded, chin up, like a sentinel. She wouldn’t budge. Said the neuro team was handling it, that Dr. Ramirez was already on the case, and they didn’t want to ‘complicate issues.’” Eva’s lips thinned. “And Nikolai?” “He backed her up.” Smith rubbed his jaw. “I told him you’d called, that I was there at your request. He didn’t care. Said he’s her husband and he has the final say. He was firm. Almost cold.” Indy’s fingers tightened around the ring. “So they’re shutting everyone out?” Smith nodded. “Not everyone. Just me. And it felt… deliberate. Sandy was protective, too protective. She watched me like she suspected something. No outright accusation, but the suspicion was there. In her pos