52–The Video Of Us Kissing Is Going Viral
Madeline:
Throughout the car ride, I was anxious to check on my kids, but in the back of my mind, I couldn’t stop worrying about the rumors that would spread now. The thought alone made me uneasy.
When we finally arrived, the sight of a large group of warriors standing outside the suite eased my nerves. At least my kids were safe–for now.
I hurried inside, and the first thing I saw was Baxter. He had been pacing from one end of the living room to the other, looking tense.
Calling him anxious would be an understatement. He seemed like he was about to lose his mind. The moment he noticed me, he froze.
His eyes were full of questions. I figured he had seen the livestream or the clips circulating online. I knew how the internet worked.
Once something goes live, it spreads everywhere, and that was what I feared the most.
I brushed past him and rushed to see my kids. As soon as I entered the room, a smile spread across my face.
There they were, my children playing with Legos.
“Mommy, look what I built,” Gina said, sitting on her bed and looking perfectly fine.
I noticed plates of food nearby. It seemed Baxter had taken good care of them. I sat beside Gina and pulled her into a hug.
A quiet sniffle escaped me, though I tried to hide it. I had been so sick with worry that the moment I held her, I teared up.
“Mommy, what’s wrong?” she asked. I broke the hug, cupped her face in my hands, and kissed her forehead.
“Mommy, that’s not fair! Why did you go straight to her?” Elara complained from her bed, pouting with her arms crossed.
I laughed and stretched my arm toward her, wiggling my fingers to invite her over for a hug. She came running, and then Bodhi joined in, shyly climbing onto my lap while Elara and Gina sat in front of me.
“How are you two feeling now?” I asked, glancing at Elara since she seemed a little jealous.
“Mommy, we’re fine! We were playing with Uncle Baxter. He’s really nice. He fed us, told us stories about monsters–everything!” Gina said happily.
Even Elara nodded in agreement, but Bodhi stayed silent, which worried me.
“You didn’t have fun with Uncle Baxter?” I asked, gently nudging Bodhi in my lap.
“I did, but… he’s a weird uncle,” he muttered, pouting.
“What do you mean by weird? Did he say something to you?” I asked, tilting my head toward him.
“Mommy, he suddenly got upset,” Bodhi explained softly. “He told us to play and then went out. I peeked through the door and saw him grunting and, you know… hitting his palm.”
I understood what Bodhi meant. He must have seen the live broadcast. Still, it didn’t make sense. Why would he be
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52–The Video Of Us Kissing is Going Viral
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so upset?
It wasn’t like I was dating him or that anything had ever happened between us. If the mate bond was the only reason for his reaction, then it could always be fixed.
“That’s how adult life works, baby,” I told Bodhi gently. “Sometimes we get sad for no reason or just want to be alone because we have worries. That doesn’t mean we’re weird.”
I wanted him to understand that judging Baxter for how he reacted sometimes wasn’t fair, especially since I knew him better than anyone.
Or maybe I used to. He might have changed. But I remembered how seriously he used to take things, and I knew why.
Now, I had to face him. The strange silence outside told me something was wrong.
“Okay, you guys play. I’ll come back, alright?” I patted Bodhi’s shoulder, lifting him off my lap and settling him on his bed with his Legos.
I walked out of the room, and right at the entrance of the living room, I saw the reason for the awkward silence.
Baxter and Graham were locked in a tense stare, their body language giving off a dark energy.
“What was that?” Baxter finally demanded, turning to Graham.
Graham took a deep breath and placed his hands on his hips.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was expecting you to congratulate us for saving the children,” he retorted.
I couldn’t understand why Graham was pretending not to know what Baxter meant. Even I knew exactly what had made him angry.
“You do realize there’s a clip circulating that looks very questionable,” Baxter told Graham, making it clear why he was so upset.
At that moment, I realized I had been right, there were clips spreading around.
“So what? She wasn’t feeling well. I took her to the cabin, and then I got sick, and she took care of me. That’s it,” Graham explained lightly, skipping over a few details.
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