Chapter 144
Chapter 144
DEREK
+25 BONUS
Cassandra had been floating around the estate like a tragic Heroine in a stage play–barefoot, silent, draped in gauzy robes like she’d wandered out of some gothic poem. She made a show of being too weak to eat, too dazed to sleep, too devastated to speak in full sentences.
More than once, I found her reclining dramatically across the chaise in the sunroom, a forgotten teacup beside her, eyes misty and distant, like she was waiting for someone to ask what sorrow weighed her down.
No one did.
At least, not after the first few days,
But she wasn’t doing it for them–she was doing it for me.
Every sigh was just loud enough for me to hear. Every flinch every half–glance as I passed in the hallway, was calculated. She wasn’t grieving. She was waiting for me to fall back into orbit. To feel guilt. To feel protective. To feel something.
And damn it, maybe I did.
Even if the pregnancy had been sudden–unexpected–and even if something about it didn’t sit right with me, I hadn’t wanted this.
Not the loss. Not the silence that followed. Not the way I kept waking up and wondering if this was the version of Cassandra I was going to have to live with forever–fragile, clinging, waiting for someone to put her back together,
But I knew she was hurting.
And even if things between us had grown twisted and fragile, I couldn’t just leave her like that.
So I planned a hot balloon ride. Quietly. No staff, no pack, no public appearances. Just something soft. Something that would remind her the world still had beautiful things in it.
When I picked her up, she was dressed in cream and gold, the same colors as the early morning sky. Her eyes were rimmed with kohl, too heavy for this time of day, and her smile turned brittle when she saw me.
“You’re being mysterious,” she said as she stepped into the car. “Are we going somewhere?”
“You’ll see,” I said, keeping my hands steady on the wheel,
Halfway through the drive, she turned her head toward the window and spoke.
“I had another appointment yesterday,” she said softly. “The OB confirmed…. everything. But she also said I’ll still be able to have children. When the time’s right.”
I glanced at her. She was watching me out of the corner of her eye, waiting for a reaction.
I nodded once. “That’s good.”
She gave a faint laugh, breathy and too light. “That’s all you have to say?”
“What do you want me to say, Cassandra?” I asked, my voice lower than I meant it to be. “That I’m ready to try again? That we pretend none of this happened?”
She didn’t answer. She didn’t need to.
Chapter 144
+25 BONUS
When we arrived at the launch site, the balloon was already being prepped. Yellow and white silk rippled against the wind, rising slowly into the shape of something weightless and wild.
“The field stretched wide in every direction, hills rolling away from us like ripples on a calm lake. The crew greeted
us, adjusted straps, ran through safety checks.
Cassandra’s eyes widened as she realized what we were dolg
“A hot air balloon,” she breathed. “You remembered.”
I saw something flicker in her gaze–surprise, joy. “I didn’t think you were listening when I told you I’d always wanted to go on one.”
“I was listening,” I said.
She reached for my hand and I let her take it.
The lift–off was smooth, the ground drifting away as we rose into open air. The sky was soft and pink at the edges, morning sun spilling across the land like honey.
The world got smaller beneath us–houses like matchboxes, trees like sprigs of parsley. Cassandra laughed as the wind caught her hair.
“It’s beautiful,” she said, gripping the edge of the basket. I feel like I can breathe again.”
She pointed out landmarks she recognized, took a few photos on her phone, and even leaned her head against my shoulder for a bit. We sipped cider from the thermos I brought and watched a flock of birds wheel below us in a sharp, dancing arc
Chapter 145
+25 BONUS
Chapter 145
