I Chose Me Over My Marriage novel Chapter 59

On the sofa.

Eleanor was sitting there, and at the sound of the commotion, she immediately stood up.

The moment she laid eyes on Lyra, a hurricane of complex emotions swirled in her gaze.

Over the past few years, Lyra had secretly come to check on her and Harrison.

But she had always kept her distance, ensuring she was never spotted.

This was the first time they were coming face-to-face in years.

So many words were logjammed in her throat, rendering her completely speechless.

Lyra stood absolutely frozen to the spot.

Sensing her anxiety, Miles stepped closer and gently encouraged her, "Let's go."

With his presence beside her, Lyra felt an overwhelming sense of security.

She took purposeful strides toward Eleanor, stopping right in front of her before softly murmuring.

"Mom."

That single word had been entirely too long in the making.

Eleanor parted her lips. Like Lyra, she had a million things to say but no idea where to start.

It was then she noticed how deathly pale Lyra's face was, completely devoid of color, like a sheet of paper.

She couldn't help but recall what Miles had told her earlier, and her heart clenched painfully in her chest.

Her maternal instincts immediately steamrolled over everything else.

She pulled Lyra into a crushing embrace, whispering soothingly, "Lyra, it's so good to have you home."

A thousand words distilled into that one simple sentence.

The tears Lyra had been holding back finally broke free, and she hugged Eleanor back with all her might.

Eleanor kept piling food onto Lyra's plate, chattering away the whole time. "How did you lose so much weight? You still had a bit of softness in your cheeks a few days ago."

Lyra froze and looked at Eleanor, asking tentatively, "Mom, did you come see me a few days ago?"

Why didn't she know about this?

Miles chimed in smoothly, "Mom has been keeping an eye on you all these years. She just stayed out of sight so you wouldn't notice."

"Not just her," Harrison added. "You two have been secretly checking up on each other every few months, both playing hide-and-seek."

Having her secret suddenly exposed made Lyra feel a bit bashful.

Eleanor, however, let out a dissatisfied huff. "You think I didn't know how many contracts you secretly funneled to the Sterlings? Using middle-men so your name wouldn't be on it. And after all that, you ended up raising an ungrateful snake."

Lyra frowned and looked at Harrison. "Dad, is what Mom saying true?"

Harrison was about to deny it when Eleanor continued.

"He'd sneak around making calls in the middle of the night, thinking I had no clue. I just couldn't be bothered to call him out. Those contracts were practically zero-profit for us. You think Maxwell didn't realize that? He just doesn't know how good he had it."