บททั้งหมดของ One Night Stand With My Hubby's Cousin: บทที่ 161 - บทที่ 170

Evelyn's POVLemon, meanwhile, had absolutely no idea that the first evening after her adoption had turned the apartment into a slow-burning emotional disaster zone.As far as she was concerned, there was only one issue worth caring about:Food.Which was why, before the dangerously fragile silence between Julian and me could deepen any further, Lemon suddenly lifted one paw and smacked her food bowl.Clink.The sound rang sharply through the apartment.It carried the exact energy of an overworked manager reminding two distracted employees to return to their responsibilities immediately.I reacted almost violently fast.Turning around so quickly I nearly knocked into the counter, I shoved Julian backward with one hand against his chest.“She’s hungry.”Behind me, Julian let out a low laugh.“She really saved you there.”“Shut up.”I heard him finally swallow the medication behind me along with a sip of water while I escaped toward Lemon at record speed.My ears still felt hot.I grabb

Evelyn's POVThe words came from somewhere genuine.Because despite everything, despite the confusion he caused in me constantly, I truly believed Julian would love someone extraordinarily well someday.I smiled a little after that, though something inside the smile hurt quietly around the edges.“You’re going to have your own happiness eventually, Julian.”My voice softened further.“The real kind.”I looked at him steadily while saying it.“The kind that’s clean and uncomplicated and fully yours.”Then, before I could stop myself:“I hope you end up with the girl you really love.”The sentence tightened painfully somewhere beneath my ribs the moment it left my mouth.Because I knew exactly what I was offering him.A blessing.Not a place beside me.I forced myself to continue anyway.“So I’ll help you.”I tried to smile again.“Consider it repayment for how selfish I was in the beginning.”The room went quiet once more.Julian still hadn’t moved.He only looked at me.And the silenc

Julian's POV“What’s wrong?” I asked.Evelyn looked up from her phone immediately, still visibly caught off guard.“The documentary schedule got moved up,” she said. “We leave the day after tomorrow.”A tiny spark of excitement had already appeared in her voice.“For Yellowstone.”“How long?”I made the question sound casual.Interested at most.Certainly not like the answer had suddenly become capable of ruining my entire week.Evelyn was already scanning through the rest of the email while answering.“Two weeks,” she said. Then she smiled slightly to herself. “Maybe longer.”And there it was.That expression. Bright and excited.Fully alive in a way that made it painfully obvious how much she cared about this project.Which also meant:In forty-eight hours, I would probably spend at least half a month without seeing her.“Vernon’s going too?”I forced the question out lightly enough that it almost passed as ordinary curiosity.Evelyn blinked and looked up again.“You know Vernon?”O

Julian's POV“Your mother abandoned us,” I told Lemon gravely while rubbing one of her ears. “She has a brand new forest now. New birds. Probably new men too. She’s completely forgotten about us.”Lemon responded by yawning directly in my face.Traitor.I was just preparing to continue emotionally projecting onto a dog when my phone suddenly lit up.Evelyn.I sat upright almost instantly.Her first message in nearly a full day.And it contained only one sentence:How’s Lemon doing?I stared at the words for two seconds.Good.Very good.At the very least, she still remembered Lemon existed.Then I made an important strategic decision.Text messages were dangerous because they allowed people to disappear too easily. Conversations became short. Delayed. Forgettable.Video calls, however, had tactical value.So instead of replying, I immediately hit the call button.The screen rang several times before finally connecting.The image shook briefly.At first I only saw pale evening sky and

Evelyn's POVAfter the video call ended, I stood in the middle of the living room staring at the dark screen for far longer than any psychologically stable person probably should have.The apartment had gone quiet again, the kind of quiet that only became noticeable after hearing someone’s voice you missed too much. I could still picture Evelyn perfectly from seconds ago—the windblown hair, the flushed nose from the cold, the excitement in her eyes whenever she talked about Yellowstone—and annoyingly, none of those images seemed interested in leaving my head anytime soon.Eventually, Lemon grew tired of watching me emotionally decompose in silence.She walked over, nudged my leg once with her nose, then looked up at me with an expression that somehow communicated profound disappointment despite her species.The message felt very clear:Either continue drowning in useless feelings or start doing something strategically productive.Naturally, I chose the second option.Because longing b