Clara left the room silently, without any further words or protesting attitude. She had been both defeated and threatened. And she knew this time that the tables had turned and they were not in her favour. She simply took a long look at Dylan who kept his eyes fixed on her as well. When she was done, she left the room. "Dylan, what was all that?" Joyce asked immediately the door slid shut. She walked to Dylan and looked him in the eye. Dylan exhaled. "All what?" he asked. He suddenly looked a bit tired and slowly walked back to the chair, sinking into it. "All that about Derek being malnourished and passing out in school. All that!" Joyce pressed. "What about it? You didn't hear her deny it, did you? Or you think I made it up?" he asked right back. Chelsea believed him when he said it. She could hear the pain in his voice as he confronted Clara about it. The pain wasn't one of anger towards Clara. Rather it was anger that his son had to go through that despite the status of his fa
Chelsea was still for some seconds after hearing those words from him. She didn't expect it. Not in a couple of days, not in a couple of weeks, not even in a couple of months. It was just so sudden and unbelievable that she froze for some seconds. It was expected of her to freeze after all. Dylan had portrayed a very hard and defensive attitude all the while they were together. It was never easy for her to understand him. His automatic switch of demeanor, his never ending mood swings and his seemingly split personalities made it impossible for her to know who he really was. He had shown her different sides of his person. He had shown her love, he had shown her resentment. He had shown her care and he had also shown her unconcern. He had shown her several opposite and conflicting shades of emotions and she had come to accept it as his way of life. She had known he had feelings for her. But he never acknowledged them or even spoke about them. Whenever they got near the topic, he switc
Joyce's eyes immediately gave way to tears. All the pent up emotions deep inside her poured out intensely in a flood of tears. She immediately fell to her knees beside the bed and took hold of Derek's hand. She gently squeezed it in hers and looked Derek in the eye. "Grandma, why are you crying? Why is dad here? Where am I?" the little boy asked question after question as his eyes darted around the entire area around him. Dylan gently walked towards him. He didn't give way to tears or break down. That wasn't to be expected of him anyway. He simply walked to the bedside and gently caressed Derek's hair. His eyes were full of affection. That was one thing he couldn't mask. "What do you remember, Derek?" he gently asked. It felt awkward though that the first words he said to his son in a long time were a question targeted at his memory. He was definitely going to win that Worst Father of the Year award. "Uhm..." Derek tried to recall his last moments of consciousness. Then his eyes sh
Dylan was surprised at his son's sudden declaration of his taking a liking to Chelsea. And this was just their first meeting. Chelsea's words must have charmed the young man and instilled a measure of approval in him. And Derek wasn't someone who easily liked someone else. He had seen firsthand how Derek had rejected the company of many of his friends and even most of the staff members of his company. Back when they were together, he had taken Derek to Cross Enterprises for a tour of the company and Derek literally rejected the gestures of almost all the staff members in the company. He didn't let any of them touch or carry him. He had to be stuck attending to him all through the tour of the company. It was only when his former secretary, an elderly woman offered to carry him did he oblige. Why Derek chose to let that woman, of all the other staff members, carry him still remains a mystery to Dylan. Now he was expressing that he had taken a liking to Chelsea and so fast? It wasn'
The awaited facility from New York finally arrived at the hospital. Derek was discharged and the medical bills were forwarded to Dylan's official personal mail. They exited exited hospital building and walked towards the parking lot. They all stopped between the two vehicles. Dylan shared them to the two vehicles. "Chelsea will come with me and Hugo. Ma, you'll take Derek with you in the SUV. There should be just about enough space for him to lie down there. We'll settle some things at a meeting and join you all at the mansion later" he assigned them and walked to the driver who would be delivering the facility to the mansion. "You'll be following the SUV to the estate. No prying gazes in the estate or unwarranted detours along the way. For your own safety. Just deliver the facility and exit the estate, all the while following the instructions given you by the security personnel. Understood?" he concluded. "Yes, Sir. Understood" the driver replied affirmatively. "Alright" Dyl
Hill parked the Urus in the parking space of the Cross Estate and stepped down to open the door for Joyce and Derek. He assisted Joyce in gently carrying Derek inside. As they walked in, the guards and maids around bowed as Hill passed them with Derek in his arms. "Welcome back, Master Derek" they murmured. Those who were there when he left still recognised him and accorded him the due respect of a young master. Those who didn't know him simply followed suit in what their colleagues did even though they didn't know the person they were greeting. "Welcome back, Ma" they also greeted Joyce who simply smiled back at them as she followed Hill towards Derek's room. She was so excited about Derek being under the same roof as her that she paid no attention to the details of the house in her absence. She didn't even bother to supervise or crosscheck the work done by the helpers. To her, getting Derek settled into his room in his father's mansion was paramount. As she followed behind Hill,
Chelsea opened her eyes and looked around the whiteness the filled the luxurious hotel room. She felt Dylan's arm firmly fixed around her and turned to him. He was already awake and his eyes were already fixed on her. She smiled and kissed him lightly on his lips. "How long have you been awake?" she asked him. He smiled. "An hour or two" he replied. She chuckled. "And you've been staring at me all the while? Am I really that pleasing to look at?" she asked, smirking as she expected his reply. He chuckled. "Dare I say, you're the most pleasing thing to my eyes. Even when you're not naked" he replied. She laughed lightly. "I don't know if I'm to blush for that" she turned away. "You don't need to. You're already blushing" he informed her. Damn! She thought. Why did she always have to get so red when he complimented her? And she could also feel that tingling sensation down there. She cursed her arousal. She really had to work on her arouses around him. If it wasn't his eyes, it
Dylan finally released her from his grip and kissed her forehead. She smiled and looked up at him. "Let's go see Derek already. We've spent too much time here" she said. He smiled. "It's really adorable the way you're concerned about him. Now I'm feeling much less of a father for having to be reminded about my son" he chuckled. She laughed lightly. "You really don't have to feel that way" she replied. "Alright" he said in accordance and then he got up. She sat up on the bed and grabbed a pillow, clinging it as she watched Dylan stand in front of her. "But he should be okay though. Ma asked me to give two of them some time before I came home. She said she wanted to share a few moments with Derek. That's why I even decided that we make the detour to this place earlier" he informed her. "Oh. I'm glad we made the detour though" Chelsea replied. He smirked. "Why wouldn't you be glad? You're always glad at any opportunity to be alone with me" he retorted. "What?!" she shot. "You're