CHAPTER 40: 40-WE DID NOT SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER

Iris:

"Good morning." I walked out of my room and saw my little ones just waking up in their beds.

They were still so little, they didn’t even realize what they had done last night.

But part of me was grateful to them for exposing my mother to Kash.

By the end of the day, they were the reason the truth came out.

I was emotional last night and spent most of it crying.

The memories of how hard my pregnancy had been still hurt.

Then I thought about my mother. It felt strange, because I was a mother myself now, and I could never hurt my children.

I couldn’t even imagine choosing between them.

So how was it so easy for her to choose my brother over me?

After I freshened up, I put on a blue dress with a short blue sweater.

Then I helped my kids get ready and joined me in the living room.

That was where they liked to have breakfast, since they enjoyed watching cartoons while eating.

I knew it wasn’t the best habit, but anything was better than having them run all over the place.

"Okay, kids, listen. About what you did last night—" I began, but their laughter instantly cut me off.

They were just too adorable.

Colin looked so cute covering his little mouth with both hands, while Amy hid her face behind hers.

"Mommy was in such a tiny dress, and she was in a small room with Daddy," Amy blurted out, pointing at me before whispering something to Scarlett beside her.

Scarlett looked startled by the sudden mention of that topic.

"Amy, that’s not very nice. You’re not supposed to tell Mommy’s secrets to others," I said, trying to play it off but also to tell her that it was inappropriate.

"No, but it’s true! You know, Daddy was so worried. He almost came in just shorts and a little shirt to take care of Mommy," she continued, making me roll my eyes and shake my head.

I turned to explain to Scarlett that it wasn’t what happened, because I knew she would run straight to my mother and tell her everything, and then she’d start plotting again.

But when I turned toward Scarlett, I saw someone else standing behind her.

The woman’s eyes were wide with surprise, wider than Scarlett’s.

My gaze locked with hers, and she quickly forced a smile onto her lips.

"Hello, kids," Lara greeted. Her warrior stood beside her, holding gifts.

"Why is she here?" Amy grumbled, pouting and folding her arms across her chest.

I stood up at once, ready to confront her. I had specifically told Kash not to bring her near my kids,

they weren’t ready to meet her.

"Iris, how are you?" she asked. The smile on her face looked so forced that I could already tell she wanted to claw mine off.

"I’m fine. Why? What happened to me?" I asked, confused.

"No, your kid was just saying that Kash came to take care of you. Was he in your room?" she asked, and I started laughing so loudly that her jaw visibly clenched.

I did it on purpose to get a reaction out of her. And it seemed like I did.

"Why don’t you go ask him?" I hissed, watching her blink rapidly. "And while you’re at it, tell him you pushed me into the water yesterday."

The moment I said it, I knew she wouldn’t deny it, and the look on her face confirmed it.

She pointed a finger at herself, as if to ask if I was talking about her, then shook her head.

"Wow. So this is how you’re paying me back? By lying about me and trying to make him hate me?" she muttered, pretending to be shocked.

But honestly, I was the only one who wasn’t surprised.

"Lara, I’m not coming between you and your Kash, you hear me? Because I’m not like you. When someone leaves me, I don’t go running back, begging them to take me again. Not like you."

The moment I said that, reminding her how she had crawled back after the breakup and even after his marriage, I watched the color drain from her face.

"Well, it doesn’t seem like you’ve moved on either," she sneered, clenching her fist.

"Anyway, I’ll come here with my beloved fiancé," she added, voice hinting at arrogance.

She looked genuinely bothered, the way she sighed and met my gaze made that clear.

Then she glanced over my shoulder at my children and straightened her posture.

"As for the kids, sooner or later they’ll call me ’mommy,’ and then you won’t be able to do anything," she taunted.

After she finished speaking and turned away, she suddenly seemed to remember something.

When she faced me again, the muscle in her jaw tightened.

"Who knows, maybe your kids will start liking me more, like your husband did," she mocked.

She finished, and I held my tongue, every muscle tight.

If my kids hadn’t been there, I would have smacked her without thinking, no matter how Kash might react or punish me.

As soon as she left, I went back to my kids and sat down, taking deep, steady breaths.

"Mommy, every time she comes around, you look really worried," Colin said softly as he got off the couch and walked over to hug me.

"But don’t worry, Mommy. We’re with you, and we’ll make sure Daddy kicks her out of his life," he added, tightening his arms around me.

The moment Colin said that, I pulled away and cupped his face in my hands.

"No, I don’t want that," I told him firmly, not wanting them to get involved.

"It doesn’t matter if you want it, Mommy. We’ll make sure you and Daddy end up together," Amy said suddenly, shocking me even more.

I hadn’t realized my kids were planning this.

Then my mother walked out of her room, smiling widely.

"Clever kids, aren’t they?" she remarked.

As soon as she said that, I realized there was someone else teaching them these things, and that someone was my mother.