The Billionaire’s Secret Quartet (Thalassa and Elowen)

Just moments after she had stepped inside, Thalassa found herself hurrying out again, her eyes fixed on the ground in a vain attempt to hide the tears that threatened to spill. With a voice she forced to be calm, she said, "No, it's fine, I'll just catch a cab back."

Brushing past the bodyguard, she quickened her pace towards the sidewalk.

Back at Royal Estates, Lysander had gestured for Rosalind to head upstairs alone. He stood by the door, his gaze lingering on the cobblestone path illuminated by street lamps, his handsome face taut with tension, his eyes as deep and stormy as the ocean.

Thalassa finally stopped at the base of the hill, collapsing onto an old bench, its paint faded by the sun to a dull red. The dam holding back her emotions finally broke, and tears fell in heavy drops, darkening the wood with their wetness.

It was as if the pain soaked into the very depths of her heart, growing heavier with each moment of accumulation.

Once, escaping Lysander's orbit, breaking free from his presence, was all she ever dreamed of.

dream only to witness him

a deep niche in her heart? The thought of forgetting him seemed impossible

Only then did she

walk from Royal Estates to the base of the hill took an hour, but in her haste and distress, Thalassa

the physical ache that mirrored the one

do this to

marry Rosalind. Whatever they did was their right, and

next day, Thalassa was still in bed when her phone's insistent ringing woke

news today?" Hertha's voice was a mixture of shock and

Thalassa mumbled, "What

knew you hadn't seen it!" Hertha exclaimed. "It's about you and the Whitman family. You need to check your phone now.