Chapter 10
Thea had ended the video call at 6:00 pm. She wanted Terrence to know that while he and Alyssa were lost 1.1 passion, she had taken her own life in despair. Her final words were meant to haunt him with regret forever.
The attendant nodded, took her phone, and handed her new identification documents along with a boarding pass.
“Ms. Aurora, we’ll make sure all surveillance footage of your route is erased. Have a safe flight, and may the rest of your days be peaceful.”
Aurora was the name she had chosen for her new life, a symbol of leaving the past behind and stepping into a future as unburdened as the dawn. From that day on, her journey would begin anew.
At Alyssa’s place, she pleaded relentlessly until Terrence finally relented.
He grabbed her wrist, his voice dropping low. “Can’t even keep yourself in check when you’re pregnant?”
Alyssa leaned into him, her tone sugary and playful. “I just didn’t want you to suffer, holding back your desire.”
Terrence chuckled and pinched her cheek. “Sounds like someone’s jealous to me.”
With a huff, Alyssa jerked her face away, her voice laced with bittemess. “You’re leaving me and our child tomorrow to marry another woman, and you expect me not to be jealous?”
Terrence’s face hardened.
He released her and looked down at her sulking form on the bed, his voice edged with warning. “Alyssa, I’ll indulge you as much as you want, as long as you keep our relationship away from Thea. But if you cross the line and let our affairs come to her attention…”
Alyssa’s expression wavered. She hadn’t expected Terrence to caution her so harshly, even while she was pregnant.
Still, the only reason she had managed to stay by his side this long was her ability to read the room and know when to back down.
Putting on a wounded look, she forced out a few tears and slipped her arms around his neck, her voice thick with sorrow. “Terrence, I get it. I’m not trying to take Ms. Lundy’s spot as your wife. I only teased you under the desk because I knew she couldn’t hear us.”
Terrence could tell Alyssa was unhappy, but he figured he ought to let it slide, given her pregnancy. He wasn’t about to make a big deal out of it.
With a sigh, he drew her into his arms. “Come on. Don’t be upset. After the honeymoon, I’ll take a whole week off just for you, alright? Don’t worry. Getting married doesn’t mean I’ll forget about you or the baby.”
Soothed by his words, Alyssa smiled again. She looped her arms around his shoulders, her breath warm against his skin.
“Then, you’d better make sure I feel every second of it,” she whispered.
Terrence’s gaze darkened with desire as he rolled over, pinning her beneath him. The room was filled with unmistakable sounds of passion for the rest of the night.
Early the next morning, Terrence was already up and dressed. As he styled his hair in the mirror, Alyssa watched him with thinly veiled resentment before sliding her arms around his sculpted waist.
Seizing the moment of his inattention, she pressed a lipstick stain onto his collar. Mistaking her gesture for mere reluctance to part, Terrence turned and brushed a kiss against the top of her head.
“Take it easy these next few days. I’ll come by soon to see you and the baby,” he said.
He crouched to stroke her still–flat stomach, his gaze tender. “Be good for your mom, little one. Stay cozy in there. I won’t be away for long.”
On the way to the wedding venue, Terrence checked his phone. He’d expected to find text reminders from Thea about arriving on time for the ceremony. Yet, his phone showed no new messages in their chat history.
There were no texts at all in recent days. That single video call from yesterday stood as their only contact in three days. An inexplicable unease tightened in his chest
Then, he remembered the surprise Thea had mentioned during their call, and the tension eased. She was probably overwhelmed with final wedding arrangements and whatever plans she was preparing.
She had always been reasonable. She wouldn’t hold it against him that work demands had occupied his time.
With every passing mile toward the venue, Terrence’s heartbeat quickened. He’d waited years for this moment, and now it was nearly here.
