Who's Crying Now, Ex-Husband?

Chapter 422

No matter how much Mila resisted, in the end, she was still dragged into warming up and listening to the safety briefing before their dive.

She paid close attention, too.

There was no room for refusal. Diving wasn't just some casual fun-it demanded caution and respect.

Lysander, experienced as ever, noticed her anxious expression and leaned in with a reassuring whisper, "Don't worry. The spot we're going to isn't deep at all. Even

if you've never dived before, you'll be fine—I'll look after you."

-It's precisely because you're here that I can't relax!

"Coach, is it really not deep?" Mila asked, unable to hide her concern.

Their instructor, a burly, cheerful man with a booming laugh, grinned at her. "Trust me, the deepest point is only about thirty feet, but most of the time you'll be just twelve or fifteen feet down. The scenery down there is incredible-lots of couples come to experience it. Don't let your nerves make you miss out."

"We're not a couple. We barely know each other. I was dragged here," Mila protested.

Lysander smiled and added, "She's right. We're not a couple. We're married." "Divorced!" Mila shot back.

The coach just laughed, apparently convinced they were bickering spouses, and left it at that.

With her questions answered and reassured that professionals would be keeping watch from above, Mila finally relaxed. Once they were suited up in their wetsuits and gear, Lysander took her hand and led her toward the ocean.

The waves lapped eagerly at her feet.

She hesitated, just for a heartbeat-then the man at her side gently pulled her beneath the surface, into the sunlit shallows.

Her eyes widened instantly.

Awe. Pure, wordless awe.

What was she seeing?

floor. Beneath them, not far from shore,

waterproof headset:

kind of sunken Pompeii. This is Baiae, the most famous underwater archaeological park near Naples, submerged long ago by volcanic activity and earthquakes. In its prime, it was a retreat

stared in amazement, Lysander gently steered her closer to the ruins. The instructor's voice

many statues and

And she did.

statues worn smooth by centuries, strands of seaweed drifting from shoulders and arms. The outlines were clear, the details almost eerily

like stumbling into Atlantis-majestic,

darting fish and circling statues. They moved effortlessly, as

overwhelming. Unlike anything she'd

long, lingering while, they surfaced and swam back toward the shore. Mila was still lost in wonder, barely noticing Lysander

another embrace. He had, at last,

water, they kissed-while

Past and present, intertwined.

eternal, witnessed and

***

was uncharacteristically quiet on the way to

aboard, the vessel set a

Destination: Rome.

were headed. She spent the entire afternoon on deck, basking in the golden sun, tablet in hand as she searched for the history of the

too magnificent not

ask me, you

the cabin, Lysander set a glass of fresh lemonade beside her and

didn't look at

unsettled. She had a hunch why, and wanted nothing more than to keep her distance from Lysander-preferably without exchanging another word. She knew all too well that if Lysander really set his mind to it, he could charm the heart out of almost