Chapter 283 Trapped in Darkness
Meanwhile, Orion had turned into a broken record.
Every single day, it was the same question: “Mom, when am I getting a baby sister?”
Nancy stared into those big, innocent eyes and had absolutely no clue how to handle this.
“Orion, sweetie, didn’t you have Little League practice to worry about? Maybe we should sign you up for summer soccer camp too.”
The kid’s face went from hopeful to horrified in about two seconds flat. “Mom, no! Coach Martinez already makes us run like a million laps!”
But he wasn’t giving up that easily. As he headed toward his room, he threw her those devastating puppy dog eyes.
“Mom, I’ve been really, really good lately. I even ate all my vegetables at dinner. Can you tell Dad to maybe not be so… Alpha-y all the time?”
Nancy’s heart turned to complete mush. She shot Yardley a look.”Yardley. He’s just a little kid who wants a sibling. Half the kids in his class probably have baby brothers or sisters.”
Honestly, this was classic only-child syndrome. All of Orion’s friends had siblings, and he was feeling left out during playdates and birthday parties.
Yardley gave his son a look that could freeze hell over. The message was crystal clear: Nice try, kid, but Mommy can’t save you from everything.
Orion got the hint and bolted upstairs like his pants were on fire.
Once they heard his bedroom door slam shut, Yardley crossed his arms. “That little con artist knows exactly what he’s doing. He’s got you wrapped around his finger, and he’s barely tall enough to reach the cookie jar. Don’t let him guilt trip you.”
Nancy said nothing.
“Trust me, even if you put your foot down, he’ll still worship the ground you walk on.”
Nancy’s cheeks suddenly felt warm as Orion’s question echoed in her head. When am I getting a baby sister?
“Right. I’m going to… brush my teeth.”
Yardley’s eyes glinted with something that looked almost predatory, and the corner of his mouth twitched upward.
Patience, he told himself. His mate just needed a little more time to come around. No point in pushing too hard too fast.
These days, Nancy had turned going to bed early into her new hobby.
She’d slip under the covers and turn off the lights before Yardley even finished watching the evening news.
When he finally came to bed, she’d pretend to be fast asleep. Even though her heart was beating so loud she was sure he could hear it.
She really didn’t want him bringing up the baby topic again.
Right now, she felt something for Yardley. Little butterflies sometimes. A spark here and there. But not nearly enough to think about having his child.
They’d only shared that one amazing kiss. Nothing else had happened between them since then.
Nancy figured if she stayed on her side of the bed and kept pretending to sleep, she’d avoid any late night talks about growing their family.
Thankfully, Yardley seemed to have incredible self control.
He never pushed or tried anything. It made this whole situation much easier to handle.
Nancy wasn’t sure if he was being respectful or if he just wasn’t that interested in her physically.
Either way, she felt relieved. She needed time to figure out her feelings without any pressure.
—
Orion started school at eight every morning. His school was very close to Nancy’s company, so she’d personally drop him off before heading to work.
The family driver used to handle it, and sometimes Yardley would take him when his schedule allowed. But Nancy wanted to make up for all that lost time with her son, so she’d claimed carpool duty as her own.
Orion was over the moon about it.
And the little guy made sure to tell anyone who’d listen that this was his real mom, not a nanny or babysitter.
Now all the kids at school knew she was Orion’s mom.
“Alright, buddy, off you go.”
“Bye, Mom! You don’t need to pick me up today. Louis will get me after school. Have a good day at work!”
Nancy’s heart melted watching her son try to take care of her.
How did she get so lucky to have such a sweet little boy?
“Sounds good, sweetheart. Mommy’s heading to work now.”
Nancy watched until Orion disappeared through the school’s front doors. Then she got back in her car and drove downtown.
A white sedan pulled out from a nearby parking spot and followed her.
Nancy parked in the corporate garage.
Because of her new morning routine, Nancy always arrived at the office way ahead of everyone else.
Business hours officially started at nine thirty, but she usually got there a full hour early. Most of the downtown office workers didn’t roll in until nine thirty or later.
So Nancy missed the whole elevator rush hour nightmare. Silver lining.
Her company occupied three floors of the high-rise. She pressed the button for the twenty-sixth floor.
Nancy pulled out her phone by habit. She’d had Mrs. Garsia add her to the class parent WhatsApp group.
Every morning during silent reading time, the teacher would snap random photos of the kids actually sitting still and focused.
She loved seeing her contact name changed to “Orion’s Mom” in the chat. Opening the group, she found that Mrs. Garsia had just posted pictures from that morning’s reading circle.
She’d barely opened the first photo when the elevator lights suddenly cut out with a sharp snap. The slowly rising elevator lurched to a stop with a grinding metallic shriek!