His Knees, His Pleas, But Our Son's in Peace

Chapter 39

Before I could lose myself completely in my thoughts, a soft laugh interrupted me. I turned to see Tina standing in the doorway, a teasing grin on her face, holding two mugs of coffee. "You look like you've been hit by a train," she said, walking over to sit at the edge of the bed. "Rough night?"

I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "You have no idea..."

Tina chuckled, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Oh, I think I do. You were so... relaxed when you got home last night. It was like you didn't have a care in

the world."

I peeked through my fingers, feeling my face flush even more. "Relaxed? I was drunk, Tina. And now I have to deal with the aftermath."

"Aftermath?" Tina raised an eyebrow, handing me a cup of coffee. "Or maybe you finally let yourself unwind for once? Look, whatever happened, you'll figure it out. No use stressing about it now."

I sighed, sipping the coffee and letting her words sink in. But how could I face Carlos? What if he regretted everything? What if this ruined the dynamic we had? Tina's casual reassurances did little to quell the anxiety rising inside me.

"I just... I don't know how I'm going to handle seeing him," I muttered, more to myself than to Tina.

"Well, you don't have much of a choice, do you?" she said, standing up. "You'll see him soon enough. Now, get dressed-you've got work to do."

With another groan, I forced myself to get ready. No matter how much I dreaded seeing Carlos, I couldn't hide from it. I had to face him-and whatever came next.

11:51

Chapter 39

the night over and over again, each memory making me more nervous. By the time I pulled into the parking lot, my stomach was in knots. How was I supposed to act normal after

as calm and collected as ever, his usual air of confidence surrounding him. But then, I noticed the faint marks on his neck-kiss marks-barely

My stomach dropped.

entrance as if nothing had happened, completely unfazed. I felt

anger. He didn't seem affected at all, while I was falling

always did. There was no hesitation, no awkwardness-just a simple, professional nod. As if last night hadn't changed anything between

nod back, my heart racing, my thoughts spinning out of control.

leaving me standing there, my emotions in turmoil. I wanted to confront him, to ask him if last night meant anything, but I couldn't. The fear of his indifference kept

Work was a welcome distraction at first, and I threw myself into it, trying to ignore the lingering thoughts about Carlos.

coworkers, who were discussing some of the children we had been working with. Their conversation caught my attention and gave me the

one of the nurses, sighed heavily. "Not well. Her immune system is barely functioning, and every infection hits her harder than the last. Her parents are at

one of our

working, and it was clear that

leukemia who had been in and out of the clinic

hanging in there," Lily said, but her tone

lot of weight, and his energy is so low. His mom never leaves his side, but