Zoe:
I woke up early in the morning, got dressed, and almost imdiately sat in the living room, as if waiting for Amy and Colin to wake up. They did wake up early.
They were such bright kids, and every ti they were present sowhere, they filled the atmosphere with their laughter, intelligence, and cuteness.
"No, we will have breakfast with Mommy," Amy remarked, continuing to shake her head.
This was the fifth ti I had asked them if they wanted to eat breakfast with .
Every ti I asked, they told they would eat with as long as their mother also woke up. That was fine. I could tolerate Iris for them.
We had been playing with blocks ever since we woke up. At the sa ti, my mother had been busy trying different breakfast recipes, all by herself.
Usually, there were chefs and cooks around us preparing dishes, but we both loved the children a little too much.
There was another person who had been blowing up my phone, but I did not have ti for him.
"Aunt Zoe, your phone is ringing. Who is calling you so early in the morning?" Colin asked, resting his elbows on my thighs and bending forward so he could cover part of his face in his hands while staring at with his beautiful big eyes.
Every ti they got this close to , I felt like they were my children.
"It’s your Uncle Markus. He’s my husband," I told Colin, gently running my hand through his hair and giving it a small ruffle.
"Oh yeah, we haven’t seen him," Amy replied, hands on her waist, very sassily, and I laughed. I could look at them for hours and not get bored.
"You can talk to him. It’s okay," Amy added, not even looking at and speaking with her hands like a grandma.
"Okay, ma’am, if you say so," I replied, placing the phone against my ear. "Hello," I answered.
"Where the heck were you? I’ve been calling you since forever," Markus complained.
His tone and style of speaking could not ruin my day because of the two angels in front of .
"I was busy with the children. I left you a text ssage last night. Did you not read it? My brother found his first mate, and my niece and nephews," I explained, gently and lovingly squeezing Amy’s cheek.
"Yeah, Zoe, you sent the hundredth text talking about them," he replied with tiredness in his voice.
Of course, he could not understand the passion I held for these little angels.
"Anyway, what were you calling for?" I asked tiredly.
I could not waste my ti. Their mother would wake up anyti soon, and then she would stop from playing with them.
That was how she did it every ti, and it was all my fault.
I had never had a good relationship with Iris because she was a rogue and practically nobody.
My mother and I had always thought my brother would marry soone high rank, soone rich, soone special who would suit him like Lara, so it was definitely not easy for us to accept Iris.
Iris had co into two of our lives, even if briefly. We agreed for my brother to marry her because we thought she would be able to help him move on from the trauma of his breakup with Lara.
But eventually, we realized it had been the wrong decision. However, now, looking at the two children, it did not seem like such a wrong decision.
"Yeah, so I was asking you. My family has been insisting that I give them so money. They are going through a crisis. Can you please ask your brother to send us so money?" Markus questioned, his tone suddenly turning sweet and miserable.
That was how he was. He always acted as if his family was too important for to question.
They behaved completely differently when Kash was around, but once he was out of sight, they beca bitter toward .
Then they found out I had not conceived yet, and that gave them another reason to dislike .
"Yeah, I’ll speak with Kash once he wakes up," I told Markus.
I lied.
Kash was already awake. He was the one who had let the kids out of the room.
But of course, I did not want to speak with Kash yet. I was busy with the children.
However, while I was still talking with Markus, I saw Kash arrive. He had a tense look on his face.
"I’ll speak with you later, okay. Bye," I told Markus and quickly hung up.
I looked up at Kash as he arrived and gently started picking up the kids’ toys.
"Daddy, are we going sowhere?" Amy asked him.
"Yeah, you’re going to your mother. She’s awake, and you should be with her," he replied.
The way he said it without looking at made start shaking my head.
"She can change and freshen up, and co join us too," I suggested.
Kash looked up at and studied my expression for a while before gently shaking his head.
"Zoe, they have been through a lot. I think it would be better if the kids stay with Iris for a while. She needs to heal too. Every ti the kids are out of her sight, she might relive the trauma of them being taken away from her again," Kash explained in a soft tone, but there was sothing in his words that caught my attention.
"What is that supposed to an? Are they not going to spend ti with ?" I asked Kash, pointing at my chest.
"They’re living in the sa house, and you can spend as much ti with them as possible, but make sure it is in the presence of Iris," Kash confird.
It was clear those were Iris’s words coming from his mouth.
"Is that because I should not be around children?" I asked my brother.
He looked at and gave a sharp look.
"No, don’t make it that way," he replied harshly.
"Co on, kids. Let take you to your mother, okay? And listen, you will not leave the room or your mother’s side until you get her permission. Got it?" he added gently.
I watched Kash carry both his children, speaking to them lovingly. Then he looked at .
"I’m so sorry about this, but you need to understand that, at the end of the day, it is a mother’s right to decide what her children should be doing," Kash explained apologetically before putting the kids down and patting their backs.
I bet he noticed that my lips started to quiver.
"Co on, Zoe, don’t take it to heart. You know Iris has suffered a lot. The kids were taken away from her by force. It’s better if we take her requests into consideration, and she’s not asking for much. Every ti the kids are not around her, she panics. And trust , she didn’t say anything to hurt anyone. She just wants to be around her children," my brother continued.
I could hear him listing one excuse after another, and I tried my best not to cry. The kids were gone.
They had run off to their room, and I quickly looked down, hiding my eyes from my brother.
"Look, we’ll spend ti with them when Iris is around. You will heal. She will heal. It will be a win-win," Kash stated, trying to make feel better.
"Then when they wake up early tomorrow morning, will they just stay in their room waiting for their mother to wake up?" I asked Kash, hopeful that maybe he would say I could take care of them while their mother slept.
"Actually, Iris and I were thinking about putting the kids in school. They haven’t learned anything about werewolves yet, and being around other children will also help them beco social," he replied.
There it was, another excuse to keep the children away from us. The way Kash said it made it seem like he was lying.
"Anyway, don’t take it too hard," Kash remarked.
He stepped closer, crouched down, and gently patted my cheek before walking back into the room, leaving there all alone.
I jumped off the couch and briskly ran into the kitchen, hyperventilating.
"What happened to you? You were so happy monts ago," my mother asked as she noticed the tears in my eyes.
She tried to comfort , handing water, but I kept pushing everything away.
"Let tell you what happened,"
Lara’s arrival was unpredictable. I had completely forgotten that she existed too.
I had been so happy since morning, and now I was left with empty hands.
"What is going on?"
My mother looked at , then turned her gaze to Lara.
Lara seed to have swollen eyes too, as if you cried alone last night.
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