Shattered Illusions: Love, Lies, and Redemption

Lizetta nestled against his chest, feeling the steady and strong beat of his heart, her body rigid.

He could sense her silent resistance. A shadow of melancholy crossed his eyes as he leaned down to kiss her slightly damp hair, asking softly, "What did you dream about?"

Lizetta didn't want to share, deflecting instead, "When did you get back? Did you sort everything out?"

The grip Remington had around Lizetta's waist tightened slightly, his gaze turning darker. Her frightened expression and reaction in her sleep were both heart-wrenching and familiar to him. As a child, she often had nightmares.

Wakened by him, she'd snuggle into his embrace and without waiting for him to ask, she'd start chattering nonstop.

She used to say talking about nightmares made her less afraid, piling up little bits of wisdom that were just excuses to linger in his arms a bit longer.

But now, her reactions were the complete opposite. She was drifting further away from him.

the outcomes of his inquiries with her, "You won't have to deal with Edith again. As for

felt a stir of emotion at his

thing, but she hadn't expected Remington to go as far as to have

Mrs. Dashiell. Accustomed to luxury and pride, being monitored by bodyguards day and night would be as suffocating and humiliating as prison for Hanna. Lizetta truly hadn't anticipated Remington would take such a step. A tingling

doing all this for his own flesh and blood. It was

that he mentioned Edith and Hanna but not a

"What about Evelina?"

carrying Quentin's posthumous child, and Quentin was Stella's brother. He could be strict with Hanna but was he still

breath slightly, her hand moving under her shirt to rest

was safe this time, but what about

West family lineage in her womb, believing Remington wouldn't