Chapter 982:

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Seeing how completely she had lost herself in her own fantasy, I no longer felt even a trace of sympathy for her. Since she refused to back down, then she could keep living in that illusion.

By evening, Ethan finally returned home, later than usual.

I guessed he had spent the extra time dealing with Melisa and making sure everything connected to our plan was in place.

His loyalty was never something I questioned. No matter how late he came home, he always made time to tuck the children into bed himself. He was doing his best to make up for all the time he’d lost with them.

Sure enough, after Ethan removed his suit jacket and hung it by the door, his first question was, “Are the kids asleep?”

I pointed toward their bedroom with an amused shake of my head. “They refused to sleep until you came back. I tried everything, but neither of them would budge. Silas insisted you had to tell a bedtime story, while Ruby said she wouldn’t close her eyes until you gave her a goodnight kiss.”

𝘘uаl𝗶𝘁𝗒 𝘵𝗿𝘢𝘯𝘴𝗅𝗮𝘁𝗂oոѕ оո 𝗴a𝗹𝗻оv𝘦𝗹𝗌.𝖼o𝗆

A soft smile touched his face. “Then I’ll go put them to bed first. I’ll come back afterward.”

I instinctively waved him off. “Don’t worry about me. You should get some rest after such a long day.”

He lowered his gaze to me, one eyebrow lifting. “Are you trying to send me away?”

“I’m not…” I looked aside. “I just thought you might be exhausted.”

“Go shower and wait for me.” A faint smile tugged at his lips as he leaned down and pressed a brief kiss to my lips. Then he straightened and headed toward the children’s room.

I remained where I was for a moment, touching my lips where his had brushed them. Heat crept into my cheeks.

This man really had become more affectionate lately.

When I emerged from the bathroom, the steam had left my skin warm and my cheeks flushed.

I towel-dried my damp hair as I made my way toward the bedroom.

The moment I looked up, I found Ethan watching me.

He was reclining against the headboard, his gaze slowly traveling from my face downward, a restrained heat burning in his eyes.

Lianne’s POV:

I immediately tightened the towel around myself and shot Ethan a wary look. “What are you staring at?”

“My mate,” he replied without the slightest hint of embarrassment, a faint smile tugging at his lips. “Am I not allowed to look?”

I quickly corrected him, “I’m only your girlfriend for now. We haven’t restored our bond yet, so don’t call me that.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow, completely unfazed. “Everything will be settled tomorrow.”

My eyes lit up at that. I immediately seized the opportunity to ask, “Then can we restore the mate bond tomorrow?”

Ethan went quiet.

The silence made my heart sink a little. I lowered the towel and looked at him. “You don’t want to bond with me?”

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