CHAPTER 76: 76-IT IS HARD BEING NICE

Lara:

The way Kash’s mood soured and he walked away, I already suspected I had made a mistake. But what could I do?

I was annoyed too. It was unfair for him to be around his ex while his kids brought up their mother.

I knew they were children, unable to understand boundaries or know when to say what.

But Iris wasn’t. She was an adult. Why didn’t she stop them?

"What makes you think she will stop them anyway?" my wolf asked with a scoff.

"Why would she push her children into embarrassing situations?" I asked her, getting up from my seat to go after him.

"Well, it isn’t embarrassing for the kids. They don’t know embarrassment. In fact, it isn’t embarrassing for their mother either. The only people who will be embarrassed by such questions are you and Kash," she helped me understand what was really happening.

"So you think Iris is the one who taught her kids to ask such ridiculous questions and make us uneasy?" I asked.

She groaned in frustration at Iris.

"Of course. She is using her children to cause a rift between you and Kash, and you are falling for her tricks. Now look, Kash is upset," she said, speaking in utter annoyance as we entered the cabin.

I watched Kash pace anxiously.

He wore a brown puffy jacket over a black shirt and black pants. There was nothing this man could do without looking hot.

"Why did you leave?" I asked, pretending to be clueless.

He stopped pacing and turned to face me, exhaustion and tiredness visible in the way he looked at me.

"Why did you have to say that to the kids?" he questioned, hands covering his face.

His body language was stiff, already showing he was getting riled up thinking about their reaction to my statement.

"Why? Did I say something wrong? Don’t you like me?" I used a genuinely confused tone so it didn’t seem like I had done anything wrong.

"You liked me, so you chose me," I reminded him of exactly what had happened, just in case he had forgotten.

I didn’t have to walk on eggshells around him and his children.

I wanted him to know that early in the relationship, before this very reason came between us.

I wouldn’t let it happen, but I was afraid Kash might fall out of love with me because of his children.

"But they don’t have to know. They are little kids. You’re making them think less of me," he almost raised his voice before his eyes shifted to the window, and he grunted.

He didn’t calm down immediately because he realized he shouldn’t be yelling at me.

He lowered his tone since his kids were outside, and he didn’t want them to hear their father scream at his fiancée.

"Okay, fine. I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I didn’t say it to be malicious. I was just too excited—" I started, then stopped when he stretched his neck.

"I’m sorry," I repeated, this time without any further explanation.

"Be careful around them, Lara," he urged in a low, grumpy tone before storming out of the cabin.

I was left behind with so many thoughts and complaints.

"Lady Clarissa was right. Iris is using her children to take Kash away from us. Look how he’s wrapped around her pinky finger and the thread used for it is the children," my wolf groaned angrily.

This time when I walked out after Kash, I noticed that he had managed to get Amy once again.

Amy was sitting on his lap, whereas Colin seemed a little more reserved.

I sat next to Kash, staring at the fire, but there was a fire burning inside me.

At the same time I was thinking about my game plan. So far, I have not played.

I was just watching it happen. But I guessed I needed to intervene before it became too hard for me to have my Kash back.

I guessed I had been a little too clueless, but now I was realizing my mistake.

My eyes were fixed on Iris. Then they moved to Luca and Colin.

Colin would give his father a sidelong glance every time he accepted a marshmallow or a s’more, or at least communicated with Luca.

Colin seemed like someone who would act mature and defend his mother.

So whenever his mother was hurt, Colin took it very personally, like some kind of protector.

Then there was Amy. She was just a literal child. She wanted both her parents’ attention and probably did not want to get too involved.

That was what I noticed, the way she was sitting on his lap and eating from him.

"How about we try to get close to the children?" my wolf snapped.

I began to tap my finger on my nail, on my tooth, while nodding my head.

"We can do that. At the same time, we will get close enough to Kash to make a mistake happen and get pregnant from him," my wolf continued, and I stared straight into the fire.

"How about I make you one this time? What do you say, Amy?" I asked.

As soon as I said that, I noticed the way Amy looked at me and her smile faded.

My wolf had been right. I needed to communicate with these kids more if I wanted Kash to like me more, or even to think of me as kind and motherly toward his children.

I needed to get close to him and to his kids.

"Come on, let me do it," I said as I grabbed the stick, pretending to roast the marshmallow. Then I dropped it. "Ouch!" As soon as I did, Amy laughed.

It was that kind of laugh you give when an adult is clumsy.

"I am so stupid. I don’t even know how to put this marshmallow on the stick. I wish there was someone who could teach me," I continued, sighing as I watched Amy.

She got off her father’s lap, came over, snatched the stick, and put the marshmallow on it.

Now I knew I had eyes on me.