Page 95 of A Lie so Dangerous and Fragile

Tristan leaned down, so Kayden could rub it on my face.

“I’m off with my perfect sperm.” He winked at me and walked away with the twins while I cleaned my face with my sleeve.

I could feel myself smiling, and I couldn’t stop it.

I called one of the maids to help me clean up the bathroom. It took a few minutes before it was spick and span. I picked out the twins’ clothes and Pull-Ups and laid them on the bed as I waited for Tristan to return with them.

I was sorting out some of my clothes when Tristan entered the room, carrying the twins like he was lifting kettlebells. The twins were giggling, enjoying the way he held them in the wrapped towels that showed their small heads. My heartbeat returned to its normal pace after he placed them on the bed without the towels slipping through his fingers.

“I have a conference meeting in fifteen minutes. I have to get ready,” he told me.

“Okay. I’ll keep the twins away, or you can just lock the door to your room.”

“I will be at the gazebo, and I don’t mind the company,” he said, looking down at the twins with an endearing smile.

“Be nice to Mommy, okay?” he warned, and they nodded. He leaned down and kissed them on the cheek and then blew raspberries on their stomachs, which made them giggle uncontrollably. “I will see you, troublemakers, later.” He walked out of the room while I stared at the taut muscle of his butt in those running shorts and those long, toned legs that flexed at his movement.

I turned to the kids, who were wriggling in the towels wrapped around them.

“You little gangsters.” I tickled them.

I dressed them up and left them to play with their iPads while I went through some schoolwork. Gigi, Kayla’s little dog, came to snuggle beside me on the bed. At some point, Kayden pulled Kayla’s hair. She burst into tears and wanted to retaliate by hitting his head with her iPad, but I was quick to intervene.

“Jeez, I can’t even look away for a minute without you two doing something crazy,” I mumbled as I picked up Kayla and tried to comfort her as her crying got intense.

I looked down at Kayden, and he was staring at us, his lips wobbling, and soon, he was crying too. He crawled to my legs and opened his arms, asking me to carry him too.

“Oh God,” I sighed. I managed to pick him up and held both of them in my arms.

“It’s okay. We can stop crying now,” I said, rocking them in my arms and kissing each of them on the head.

It took a few minutes before they calmed down, now staring at each other with wet cheeks and puffy eyes.

“Kayden, say sorry to your sister for pulling her hair,” I said.

“Sowie, Kaywa,” he mumbled.

“Now, give your sister a kiss,” I urged.

He leaned closer and kissed Kayla on the cheek.

“Perfect. No fighting, okay?” I said and put them down. I groaned at the soreness gripping my arms. “Are we good now?”

They returned to their iPads, ignoring me, the peacemaker. I shook my head and picked up my laptop to finish the last page of my paper. Wanda walked in later with some snacks for the twins. I asked her to keep an eye on them while I took a quick shower. She left when I came out of the bathroom. I slipped on flared-leg pants and a cutout cropped top. I did my hair and put on mild makeup. Ciara had invited me to lunch at our favorite restaurant. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d focused on my looks or even bothered looking presentable.

I stayed with the kids for a while till I succeeded in putting them to sleep in their cribs. I grabbed my bag, where I’d folded my work uniform and tucked it inside. I left the room to look for Tristan to check if he was done with his meeting, so I could tell him what time to wake up the twins for lunch. I got a text from Ciara, telling me she’d be an hour late. I walked down the neat gravel path leading to the gazebo. I saw Tristan leaning back on the luxurious round sofa that had pillows at every corner. A large wooden table was in the middle with a few of Tristan’s belongings resting on it. The soft drapes around the gazebo moved to the small wave of a warm breeze. It looked like it was going to rain today.

He looked away from his laptop to me as he noticed me coming. He looked like he didn’t recognize me at first, and then, like I’d imagined it, his eyes grew wide and ran down the length of my body. His jaw dipped slightly, and he sat up, not taking his eyes off me.

“Hey, are you done with the meeting?” I asked in a soft voice.

“Yes,” he said, adjusting on the seat and moving the pillow beside him away.

“I believe by next month, the company should be—”

Tristan slapped the laptop shut as someone spoke.

“I can leave if you’re still …”

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