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Chapter 81 - Bitter Like Life
Chapter 81 - Bitter Like Life
Once finished eating, the pups' eyes started closing against their will. Nate paid the bill when he noticed the second yawn in a row, and he ordered takeaway coffee for the journey. He needed to stay awake, and, as much as he wanted to talk with Lara, he didn't want her to stay awake all night after they arrived. For her, he ordered bubble tea.
Seeing her broad smile, he felt happy.
«Thank you,» she said, wrapping her fingers around the hot beverage. «It's so good after eating all those fries...»
«Yes,» Nate chuckled. «That's what I thought. But I need to stay awake, so coffee for me.»
«How do you drink it? Sweet or bitter?»
«The coffee?»
«Yes,» Lara said.
His lips curled up in front of her curiosity. It was so nice to be scrutinised by her eyes, to be asked questions about his preferences.
«If I need to be awake, I drink it bitter. But when I'm relaxing I add a little sugar.»
«Oh, is that so? How odd.»
«I know, right? But it's different... Somehow, it doesn't wake me up if it's sweet.»
«So... Is this one sweet or bitter?»
Nate chuckled, lightly not to alert the pups. He started the engine and drove on the road.
«I need to stay up and vigil,» he explained. «It's as bitter as life.»
«Oh, well, this tea is super sweet, in case you need to wash your mouth from the coffee later...»
«You don't like it?»
«I do!»
He almost refused her offer, not to drink her precious tea. But then, two thoughts hit him.
First, she offered him food. It would have been impolite to refuse. And it wasn't something a wolf did with ease, especially when their mate was the one offering. She could offer plain poison, and he would most likely drink it.
Second, the tea had to be drunk with the straw. The bubbles on the bottom would stay there forever in the other case. It meant his lips would land where Lara's were.
It would be an indirect kiss.
He chuckled, surprised by his own childish thoughts. Was an indirect kiss even something worth dwelling over?
Yet, he would settle for it until he got permission to kiss Lara for real.
«Wonderful,» he said before she could misunderstand his expression.
«I'd offer you a sip of my coffee as well, but I prefer if you relaxed, completely! You should sleep tonight and not turn in bed restless.»
«Oh, that's right,» she replied. «It's a vacation.»
She closed her eyes and sank in the seat, sighing loudly.
«It's been so long since the last time.»
«From before their birth?» Nate inquired.
«Oh, long before that. During college, I used to do some summer jobs to pay for my own expenses.»
«You paid your expenses during college as well?»
«Oh, no. My father paid. My parents had... Ah, well, they still have a small company. Nothing as big as Ly Corp... Just a familiar business. But they could afford everything they wished: a good house, education for their children, nice clothes for a couple of social events they would attend... That kind of life.»
«It must have been tough to renounce everything all of a sudden.»
«At first, it was. I literally had everything I needed. Food and clothes, and a roof! All things I took for granted. Only after losing everything I have understood how much they meant.»
«And your family? Do you miss them?»
«Oh, no. Not at all. They are not my family anymore. I have my kids, and I don't need anyone else.»
«I see... But I'm still available to be part of that family. Even if you don't need me.»
Nate peeked at the expression from the corner of his eye. He was still focused on driving, so he couldn't turn and stare at her for too long.
But the image of her worried face made him sigh inside. She was looking for a way to explain, not to make him misunderstand. She didn't want to draw a line with her words: just to forget her parents for good.
«I didn't mean it like this,» she said, in fact. «I'm just talking about the past five years and my parents. They threw me out of home and never asked about me. They do have my phone number, I haven't changed it since back then, but no one has called me. No friends or family even asked me if I needed anything. They didn't offer me any comfort. I can't consider them as my people anymore, right? It would be too much.»
«What after the kids were born? Did you move before or after?»
«I lived in a different quarter in Sheton. I abandoned college and found a job in a motel. I was a room waitress. When the stomach became too visible, I was fired and survived with the few coins I managed to earn till then. And the money my father gave me for the abortion, of course.»
«Did he say anything when you didn't get your abortion?»
«He didn't even ask anything, Nate. He doesn't know, most probably.»
«But you took the money and left...»
«The offer wasn't to come back alone. I didn't have that option... My father just wanted to help me a little. He said that a single girl with a kid would have a difficult life. He wanted me to continue but completely alone. In his mind, it was better than with my baby.»
«Would you have changed your mind if you could go back home?»
«I don't know,» Lara sighed. «It was so long ago. But now I'm happy I didn't have any choice.»
She turned back and glanced at the sleeping twins, tied in their seats and their heads hanging on their chests.
«I am glad as well,» Nate said.
He could see the pups from the rear mirror. At least his daughter. But his son was snoring so he wouldn't have forgotten Jaden.
«Not that I would have judged you if you made another choice. But I'm happy to have the kids.» They were a link among them. A link no one could cut.
It was worth having another few, just to be sure Lara had no reason whatsoever to leave him.