The downpour didn’t look like it would stop anytime soon. Looking over at the man on the couch,
Anastasia offered, “I’ll get you an umbrella right away.”
However, Elliot eyed her in mild amusement as he said matter-of-fačtly, “I’m staying here for the night.”
Stunned, she blinked at him for a moment and asked, “Why?”
“Because Jared needs me.” As if to make a point, Elliot stroked Jared’s head with his large palm like he
was some kind of guardian deity, and the little one looked up at him with an imploring expression and
begged, “Mr. Presgrave, Mommy and I are terrified of lightning and thunder, so can you please stay
with us and keep us safe for the night?”
Anastasia immediately interjected, “Absolutely not, Jared. I’m more than capable of keeping you safe
during the storm.”
“But you’re terrified of thunder too, Mommy!” Jared argued, mercilessly calling her bluff.
“I am not. I’m just—” She was about to make her case when the universe, determined to prove her
wrong, called upon yet another bout of lightning that slithered past the sky and tore through the night.
As always, this was followed by another violent clap of thunder.
She shuddered, flinching as she clasped her hands to her ears quickly.
She waited out the thunder and looked at Elliot, and she did not miss the amusement glittering in his
eyes. Flushing, she mumbled through gritted teeth, “Bottom line is that you can’t stay here. It isn’t the
most convenient for any of us.”
“I’ll go as soon as the thunder stops,” he insisted.
At the sight of how tightly Jared was clinging onto Elliot, Anastasia nodded and said in resignation,
“Fine, then. You can’t go back to your car anyway, what with the storm outside.”
She then left him in the living room with Jared and headed back into her bedroom. When she saw the
undergarment that he had retrieved earlier, she was seized with the urge to kick herself. Of all the
things to drop from the pile of laundry, it just had to be underwear!
The thunder was relentless, and the storm outside the window raged on. There was even a weather
alert that urged everyone to stay safe because it was likely that the thunderstorm would go on for the
rest of the night.
Anastasia thought grimly, Surely I can’t let the man stay here for the whole night? If everyone finds out
that we spent the night together at my place, the rumor mill will have a field day churning out gossip!
More importantly, she wasn’t exactly staying at the most accommodating of abodes. With the
apartment’s limited space, she didn’t have an extra room to put Elliot in, and the only beds here were
hers and Jared’s.
As it got later and the thunder finally waned in its ferocity, Jared was dragged into the bathroom by his
mother so that he could wash up for bed. A while later, Anastasia emerged from the room with a better
part of her clothes splattered by bathwater. . Having settled Jared in the living room, she decided to hop
into the bath herself.
Just then, Anastasia’s phone beeped with a new message. Jared immediately grabbed her phone and
keyed in the pin before reading the text. “It’s a message from Mr. Nigel!” he declared in pleasant
surprise.
Elliot narrowed his eyes as he bent to read Nigel’s message, which was clearly penned out of concern
as it read, ‘Anastasia, are you and Jared alright? Do you need me to go over and keep you guys
company?’
Jared had no idea how to reply to a text, so he set the phone down and busied himself with his Legos
once more. Elliot reached for the pink phone, and with his long fingers clutching the device, he typed
out the reply, ‘No need!
However, that did not deter Nigel from his enthusiastic efforts. ‘You know I’m just worried about you and
Jared, Anastasia. I’ll come over right now, how about that?’
‘No, you can’t. It isn’t suitable for you to drop by right now, came Elliot’s reply as his gaze darkened.
‘Why won’t it be suitable? I stayed over at your place plenty of times while we were abroad,
remember?’
Elliot’s face was as stormy as the sky outside as he thought, Which base did they get to? Have they hit
a home run?
Before he could reply, yet another text came from Nigel. ‘Anastasia, all you need to do is say yes and
I’d be more than happy to take care of you and Jared for life. I’d stand guard over the both of you, and
my embrace will be the safest harbor for you
both
Seeing his cousin’s heartfelt confession made Elliot want to die inside. He cringed and tossed the
phone to the empty space next to him on the couch, refusing to read any more.
He rose and appraised the apartment with mild interest. When he came to Jared’s bedroom, he
perused the photographs on the table, one of which was a picture of Anastasia and Nigel. Jared was
propped up on Nigel’s shoulders, and anyone who didn’t know any better would think it was a family
photo.
Elliot’s gaze darkened. Just then, Jared shuffled tiredly into the room, rubbing his eyes as he muttered,
“I want to go to bed, Mr. Presgrave.”
“Come here.” Elliot crouched down and scooped Jared into his arms. As though he was being pulled
into a motherly embrace, Jared let out a small yawn and fell asleep while Elliot cradled him.
Anastasia had washed her hair and blow-dried it before she emerged from the bathroom, only to see
her son sound asleep while resting on Elliot’s shoulder.
She froze, for she had truly put Elliot through too much trouble this evening. He had become an
impromptu babysitter in the span of a few hours.
Upon noticing her approaching figure, Elliot put a finger to his lips, making a shushing motion to warn
Anastasia not to make a sound or she would wake the sleeping child. She knew what he was saying
and pointed at Jared’s room before whispering, “Here, I’ll carry him over to his bed.”
Elliot followed Anastasia into the room while cradling the little boy, whereupon she plucked Jared
carefully out of his arms. The sudden close proximity between them allowed Elliot to take a whiff of her
pleasant fresh-out-of-the-shower scent, and he couldn’t help stiffening like an electric current had just
gone through him.
A sudden primal urge seized him as he registered her natural and deadly charisma, and he felt his
heart skip a beat.
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