Chapter 55\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with asking why Mrs. Henderson didn\u2019t have kids if she was barren?\u201d Tristan and Orion burst into laughter while Sarah looked shocked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yes, I\u2019d asked her that. Right to her face. Mom had made sure I apologized for weeks afterward.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d been grounded for days, had my allowance taken away, and had to write fifty pages of apology letters to poor Mrs. Henderson. Mom and Dad had been mortified saying they\u2019d never raised a child who didn\u2019t know how to speak properly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since then, I\u2019d learned that not all questions should be asked out loud, not because we don\u2019t see things, but because we shouldn\u2019t hurt other people\u2019s feelings.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I lunged toward Tristan, and he looked genuinely surprised by my speed. This was the second time I\u2019d surprised both of us today- first with my strength, now with my speed. And it always seemed to happen around him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He caught me before I could tackle him and lifted me up like I weighed nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPut me down right now!\u201d I screamed through my laughter, but it only made him laugh harder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Orion and Sarah sat there watching him torment me, doing nothing but laughing along.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAunt Athena, come down!\u201d Lily screamed. Apparently, she was the only one trying to help me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cUncle T, bring her down right now!\u201d she commanded with all the authority a four\u2013year\u2013old could muster.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead of listening, Tristan bent down and scooped Lily up too, placing her on top of me so he was\u00a0<\/p>\n
carrying both of us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaddy, look!\u201d Lily giggled instead of protesting. \u201cUncle T is really, really strong!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBetrayer,\u201d I muttered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tristan laughed. \u201cDid you just call a four\u2013year\u2013old a betrayer?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised my eyebrow, confused. Had I said that out loud?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Did he just read your mind? I heard Claire\u2019s voice for the first time in days.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Welcome back, bitch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019m serious, Athena. Did Tristan just read your thoughts?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not sure. Maybe I said it out loud. She went quiet again, but the thought stayed with me. It wasn\u2019t possible\u2026 was it?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tristan put Lily down first, then slowly lowered me. In the process, I lost my balance and nearly fell, but his strong arms caught me instantly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I lifted my head and realized our faces were only inches apart. This close, I could see the flecks of gold in his gray\u2013blue eyes, could count his eyelashes if I wanted to. He was even more handsome up close, if that was possible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My eyes drifted down to his lips as his tongue darted out to wet them. I swallowed hard and ended up choking on my own saliva, which sent me into a coughing fit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Only then did he set me fully on my feet, asking if I was okay. I quickly turned my face away so I wouldn\u2019t keep staring at him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shouldn\u2019t be having these thoughts about him. It was wrong on so many levels.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The coughing got worse, and before I knew what was happening, Tristan was beside me with a glass of\u00a0<\/p>\n
water, rubbing my back and making soothing sounds like I was a child.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at him again, then immediately turned away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHmm,\u201d I cleared my throat awkwardly. After drinking the water, I glanced up and caught Sarah staring at\u00a0<\/p>\n
me with knowing eyes, like she could see right through me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she smiled, which made me sigh with relief. For a moment, I\u2019d thought she could read my\u00a0<\/p>\n
inappropriate thoughts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAunt Athena, are you okay?\u201d Lily asked, her little face scrunched up with worry.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, darling. I\u2019m fine,\u201d I said, picking her up and giving her a squeeze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Later, when it was time for Tristan and me to leave, we all gathered outside. The kids were both sleeping \u2013 Liam had been dozing on and off all day, still recovering from his fever, while Lily had finally crashed after\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
running around like a tiny tornado.\u00a0<\/p>\n
11%9\u00a0<\/p>\n
Liam had barely been awake since we\u2019d arrived, only stirring to eat before falling back asleep. Lily was his\u00a0<\/p>\n
NO\u00a0<\/p>\n
complete opposite full of life and energy, reminding me so much of myself at that age. Tristan had been right; she was just like me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A fierce protectiveness rose up in me. I wanted to make sure she never went through what I had, that she\u2019d always feel safe and loved and protected.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Both Orion and Sarah had wanted me to stay the night, but I\u2019d told them I needed to go back with Tristan. Even though they looked disappointed, they understood my reasons and didn\u2019t push.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I promised I\u2019d visit as often as I could, and I meant it. I was done running away. It was time to spend time with my family again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarah and I had clicked immediately, like we\u2019d been friends for years instead of meeting for the first time. Now I understood why Orion had chosen her. They complemented each other perfectly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was the Luna, so of course she had that natural wisdom and leadership quality, but it felt effortless. . Not forced or artificial, just like Orion\u2019s leadership style.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We kissed each other goodbye before I climbed onto the back of Tristan\u2019s motorcycle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We\u2019d been driving for a while, longer than it should have taken to get back to his place, but I didn\u2019t ask where we were going because I trusted him completely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When he finally pulled over and I removed my helmet, I stood there in shock at the sight before me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We were at the cemetery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The same cemetery where our parents were buried. Where I hadn\u2019t been since the day we\u2019d laid them to\u00a0<\/p>\n
rest five years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTristan,\u201d I whispered, my voice barely audible over the evening wind. \u201cWhat are we doing here?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He turned off the engine and removed his own helmet, his expression gentle but serious. \u201cI thought maybe it was time you said goodbye properly. And maybe\u2026 maybe it\u2019s time I introduced you to someone.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart started racing as the pieces clicked into place. Jess. He was taking me to meet Jess.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman he\u2019d loved. The woman he\u2019d lost.\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 55\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman whose grave he\u2019d probably been visiting every night at ten o\u2019clock for days.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wasn\u2019t sure I was ready for this, but as I looked at his face, I realized this wasn\u2019t just about me. This was about him too. About us finally being honest with each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n
About facing the ghosts that had been haunting us both\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 55 Chapter 55\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with asking why Mrs. Henderson didn\u2019t have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26212"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26212\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}