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Chapter 160
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MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 161
‘After he left, my mother's life went very much downhill.’She lapsed into silence then, because she did not want to tell him how grim it had been. The sheltered housing, the stints in various homeless shelters, the weeks when she’d been taken away from her mother and sent from one foster home to another Some of them had been good, some of them mediocre, and some of them had been very bad. But always, in the end, she’d been brought back to her mother to try again, having promised she’d stay clean, and for a few days, sometimes a few weeks, she had.Life during those periods had been normal, if fragile, and sometimes Lucette would begin to believe it was going to be okay this time. Then she’d come home from school to find her mother strung out, or manically high, the promises all broken, and the whole cycle would start once more.Until Annelise But she really didn’t want to talk about Annelise.‘Lucette ?’ Ariston prompted Ariston softly. "Tell me more. If she couldn’t care for you,
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 162
She bowed her head, the memory and the pain and the guilt rushing through her.It was my fault, Ariston . It was entirely my fault she died.'She’d never said those words aloud—never even admitted her guilt to herself. And saying it now made her feel both empty and unbearably full at the same time. She bowed her head and tried to will back the tears.Oh, Lucette .’ Ariston ’s arms came around her and he pulled her towards him, her cheek against his chest. I’m so, so sorry.’He didn’t speak for a moment, and she simply rested there, listening to the steady thud of his heart, letting the grief subside.It wasn’t your fault, you know. You were twelve. You never should have had to bear that kind of responsibility.’I wasn’t a child. And it was my fault. If I’d gone to the hospital earlier, they could have given her antibiotics. brought her fever down. Maybe she’d have been taken away, but she’d still be alive.’ She spoke flatly, dully, knowing it was the truth and that nothing Ariston co
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 163
In the days after Lucette told him about her childhood, Ariston found himself going over what she’d said and connecting the dots that before had seemed no more than a scattered, random design of inexplicable behaviour.He was starting to understand why Lucette had decided to marry for the sake of their child.After a childhood like hers, he could see how the stability of a family life was something she would want to provide for her child...even if they didn’t love each other.Except that basis was one Ariston realised he could no longer assume. Did he love Lucette ? Could he love her? He certainly admired her resilience, her strength of spirit, and her devotion to their unborn child. He was still deeply attracted to her, God knew. And if he let himself...if he stopped guarding his heart the way he suspected Lucette was guarding hers...Could this businesslike marriage become something more? Did he even want that? Lucette had rejected him once. He understood why now, but it didn’
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 164
"It’s not Christmas yet," Lucette protested, even as she felt a tremulous thrill of excitement.‘It’s after midnight.’ Ariston sat cross-legged on the thick rug in front of the fire and patted the space next to him. We’ll open it together, so we can see at the same time.Lucette said, and a little bit awkwardly, because of her growing bump, sat next to him on the rug.Wordlessly, they opened the envelope, their fingers brushing as they withdrew the single slip of paper and read the single sentence in English the technician had written there.It’s a...boy!‘A boy...’ Lucette repeated, wonderingly.She felt jolted, almost unsettled. She’d been excited to find out the sex of their baby, but now that she knew, it made things more real and less real at the same time.She put both hands on her bump. ‘A son. We’re going to have a son.’ She glanced at Ariston , who looked as gobsmacked as she felt. "Are you happy?"I’m...overjoyed.’ He put one hand over hers, on top of her bump. "What abo
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 165
Afterwards, they lay tangled together on the rug, warm and sated, their breathing only just starting to slow."Thank goodness Maria didn’t come down for a glass of warm milk..." Ariston said.Lucette stiffened. ‘She wouldn't?’"She is known to on occasion. It helps her sleep.’ He kissed the top of her head. But don’t worry. No one came. Except you, that is.’She laughed softly and snuggled up against him. "And you.""Most certainly. And that, I have to say, was a long time to wait.‘There wasn’t...’ She hesitated, not wanting to spoil the mood but needing to know. ‘There wasn’t anyone else? Since...?’"No one," Ariston told her firmly. "No one but you for over two years now, Lucette ."And there was no one but you for me, Ariston . Do you believe me?’‘Yes.’He spoke with such certainty that she relaxed once more into his embrace. Just asking the question had made her tense.They lay there in a comfortable silence, as the sweat cooled on their bodies and the fire cast its shadows,
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 166
Ariston sat on the sofa across from Lucette , barely listening to everyone’s chatter. The stilted conversation he’d had with Antonios out on the steps replayed in his mind.It had been strange and unsettling to see his brother again, standing there in front of their childhood home, remembering the death of both of their parents, a decade of hostility and suspicion between them... Ariston had felt himself tense, his hands balling into instinctive fists. He’d seen from the set of Antonios’s jaw and his narrowed eyes that he felt the same.They could clear the air, they could forgive the past, they could say they were moving on, but the reality was that memories still clung. They still held power. And if he couldn’t move past things with Antonios, how could he with Lucette ?He wanted to tell her he loved her, wanted to trust that what they had was real and lasting. But the memory of her last rejection still had the power to hurt. To make him stay silent. They’d had just over a month t
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 167
The next day, Ariston and Antonios repaired to the office to discuss matters relating to Linard Enterprises, and Lindsay sought out Lucette in the soon-to-be nursery, where she was comparing fabric swatches."Hello," she said, poking her head around the door, and Lucette gave a self-conscious smile before welcoming her in."Sorry, I’m not trying to hide away." She rubbed her lower back while motioning to the swatches. I'm just trying to make a decision about fabric. It can take ages for it to come in once you place an order.’"I wouldn’t know," Lindsay answered with a laugh. But Ariston mentioned you worked in decorating before...?I was a buyer for a department store in Paris. Home furnishings.’ It occurred to her that this must seem like a rather useless job to a brilliant mathematician, but Lindsay appeared genuinely interested.Do you miss it? When Antonios and I lived here, I missed my old life a lot more than I thought I would. My old job...’Lucette was intrigued to think
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 168
At the end of January, Ariston came into the house, where she’d been browsing through a catalogue of baby toys, and asked if she’d come to the office with him.The office? Why?’I need your opinion on something.Surprised and a bit bemused, she walked with him across the estate to the long, low-lying building that overlooked the olive groves."What do you think of these?" he asked, and gestured to a box of olive-based bath supplies.Frowning a little, Lucette examined the items, noting the pleasingly thick glass bottles and the nutty smell of the olives."They feel expensive," she offered. Although they smell a bit more like cooking oil than something you’d want to put in your bath.’He nodded. I was afraid of that. I want to develop a new range of bath products to supply the Adair chain of hotels, but I don’t think these are up to scratch.’Lucette answered with a smile: "A little olive oil goes a long way, I suppose.""I could use your expertise here," Ariston said. If you’re wi
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