Chapter 236 Three Words
Chapter 236 Three Words
TESSA
I could tell he was in a bad mood when he first came here, but now, it seemed he had reverted back to being a baby. After I kissed him-and I already slightly regretted it-he became even clingier. He acted shameless, and yet I didn’t have the heart to push him away.
Now, as we sat down for dinner on the bed, I realized just how far he was going to push his luck. His head was against the bed frame, refusing to lift his spoon. When I gave him a questioning look, he didn’t speak. Instead, he simply smiled and opened his mouth expectantly.
“You have got to be kidding me,” I muttered, scooping up a spoonful of stew anyway.
He leaned forward obediently, lips parting, and I felt ridiculous feeding him like he was a toddler. “You could feed yourself, you know,” I said, arching a brow.
His mouth curved around the spoon, and once he swallowed, he gave me a grin. “It doesn’t taste as good as when you feed it to me,” he replied, his voice still hoarse from his fever but dripping with amusement.
I rolled my eyes, trying not to let the warmth rise in my cheeks.
Before I could continue reprimanding him, Ca’s high-pitched giggle broke through the moment. She had her little bear dolls tucked under her arms, her face bright with excitement. “Mister, y with me!”
Rowan’s expression softened immediately. “Of course, Princess Ca,” he said, bowing his head. “Sir Rowan the Brave is at your service.”
Her eyes lit up. “Then you have to save Bear Bear from the dragon!”
He reached for the stuffed bear and gasped dramatically, holding it aloft. “The dragon is fierce! But don’t worry, I’ll protect you both.” He made a silly growling noise that was so uncharacteristic of him I nearly choked on myughter,
I shook my head in disbelief, spoon still in hand as I watched him throw himself into Ca’s pretend game. The way he used different voices for the bears along with the exaggerated
gestures,
I realized something. He was a damn good actor.
I shook my
head again, though a reluctant smile tugged at my lips.
He caught the look and had the audacity to wink at me before diving back into character. Ca
Chapter 236 Three Words
:
40
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squealed, herughter filling the room until even I couldn’t help butugh along with them.
Eventually, I gave up trying to finish my own meal and focused instead on cleaning up, setting the bowls aside and tidying the kitchen. The sound of Ca’s voice blended with Rowan’s deep rumble, and I let it soothe me as I moved about the house. By the time I returned to the bedroom, the house had quieted. I pushed the door open softly, and the sight that greeted me made my heart clench.
Rowan was stretched out on the bed, Ca curled up on his chest. Her small hands clutched the stuffed bear loosely, her mouth parted in sleep. Rowan’s fever-flushed face looked calmer, the lines of exhaustion eased as he stared down at her with a tender gaze.
For all his stubbornness and pride, he looked at her like she was the most precious thing in the world. His hand rested lightly on her back, rising and falling with each of her breaths.
He must have heard me, because his head lifted. His eyes found mine across the dim room, and for a moment, we just stared at each other. His lips curved faintly, and he lifted one hand, patting the narrow space beside him on the bed.
I hesitated, ncing at the tiny space. It was barely enough for him and Ca as it was. If I joined them, it would be cramped and far too close.
“Sleep next to me,” he said.
I cleared my throat. That question was something I didn’t expect, but it appeared he asked it innocently, so I pushed it to the side. I looked away quickly, my lips tightening as I grasped for some excuse. “I’ll sleep on the couch,” I said firmly. “You stay there.”
I was already turning away, ready to retreat into the safety of distance, but then he made a low noise-a quiet, desperate sound that stopped me. Against my better judgment, I turned back.
“Please?” he pleaded, his voice hushed but urgent. “I promise I won’t do anything. I just… I really want Ca to experience something like this.”
The way he said it wasn’t maniptive. Instead, he said it as Rowan, the father of my child, a man longing for something simple, Ca suddenly stirred, her little hands rubbing her eyes. “Mommy?” she whispered groggily.
I rushed closer, smoothing her hair. “Mommy’s here,” I said softly,
Her gaze lingered sleepily. For a moment, she looked like a perfect mirror of him, and I realized something that made my heart falter. For so long, I’d told myself she had merely inherited his eye and hair color. But the longer I looked, the more undeniable that she was his daughter through and through.
Chapter 236 Three Words
:
40
+10 Free Coins
I sighed heavily. My body moved before my mind could argue with it. I lowered myself onto the bed, sitting stiffly at first.
Ca smiled in sleepy relief, nuzzled deeper into Rowan’s chest, and then promptly fell asleep again, her breathing evening out.
I gave Rowan a sharp look. “You better not try anything funny,” I warned.
“I won’t,” he said simply.
Carefully, I shifted until I was lying down beside Ca. My body felt stiff as a board, locked up in awkward tension. I didn’t know what to make of the situation especially when every nerve was screaming at me to keep my guard up.
The silence between us was punctuated only by Ca’s tiny breaths. I almost thought maybe Rowan had fallen asleep again, but then his voice broke through the silence.
“I’m sorry.”
My eyes stayed fixed on the ceiling. “You already said that,” I muttered. He truly had. Over and over again.
However, he wasn’t finished. His next words came out softer. “I love you.”
My breath hitched violently, my whole body going still. Reluctantly, I turned my head toward him. His face was half-hidden in shadow, but I saw the unmistakable glisten in his eyes, the tremor in his jaw, holding back the rest of what he wanted to say.
“I realized it when you were gone,” he murmured. “And I hoped I didn’t. I wished I realized it when you were still in my arms. But it was just like that.”
I stared at him, words frozen in my throat.
“You don’t have to say anything,” he continued quickly. “Letting me show it to you is enough. You don’t have to reciprocate it, too. It is my discretion to love you, even if you cannot forgive me-validly-for what I had done.”
My mind screamed with all the reasons I shouldn’t let his words sink in, all the scars he had left me with. And yet my heart betrayed me, trembling at the sincerity in his voice, the vulnerability he rarely allowed anyone to see.
He closed his eyes then. “Sleep, Tessa,” he whispered.
But I couldn’t breathe, let alone sleep. How could I possibly close my eyes after he said those words?