The silence hung heavy in the air that night.

Lucinda groggily sat up to the annoying beep of her alarm clock, fumbled for her phone to shut it off, and flopped back onto the bed, hoping for a few more precious moments of sleep.

But barely a minute had passed before she was sitting up again, this time fully awake.

Stefan, her husband, was nowhere to be seen.

Usually, it was he who killed the alarm, letting her sleep in those few extra minutes.

The sky outside was a dreary gray; it looked like rain was on its way.

"Stefan's always up with the birds," Lucinda grumbled. But she didn't fall back into the arms of slumber. Instead, she slid out of bed, her feet hitting the cold floor.

Her clothes for the day were already laid out by her meticulous husband, even down to the simple bracelet he'd chosen for her to wear. Since she was now just another face in the corporate crowd, her daily jewelry was limited to a single, unassuming piece. Truth be told, Lucinda would rather go without, but Stefan disapproved of her bare wrists. To keep a low profile, she had even removed her wedding ring, much to his chagrin. If she didn't wear at least the bracelet he gifted her, he'd be as long-faced as a horse.

Dressed and freshened up, Lucinda stepped out of the room.

As she made her way downstairs, she could hear the muffled voices of Stefan and Liam, speaking in hushed tones, probably not to wake anyone upstairs.

She caught snippets of Liam's distressed voice: "Stefan, I don't know what to do anymore. Tiffany's lost so much weight. Most expectant mothers gain pounds, but she's shedding them like crazy."

"The doc says morning sickness is normal, but seeing her throw up like that breaks my heart. I wish I could take her place."

she won't eat at all, and she's just getting

replied, "Liam, what do you expect me to do? The doctor said it's normal. It'll

come to you when we're stuck, but this is one thing even you

of turning to Stefan for help in times of crisis, but this was one area where Stefan was at

chef around. What if we borrow him

come with an ulterior

"We've got a top-tier chef in the family, you know. Go ask Eric. Every chef we've hired has been trained by

family gatherings-probably doesn't want to be nagged about

Downstairs, Lucinda emerged.

brothers ceased their conversation at the sound of her

to

like lovebirds. He was about to

sleep in?" Stefan asked with a warm smile, reaching out to assist Lucinda down the last

went off, so I

bad for not turning it off for you

of affection, seemingly alone in their

greeted his

her attention on Liam. "Is Tiffany still

she eats. She'd rather starve or just

up if she

would even vomit first thing in

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