Lahat ng Kabanata ng When She Turns Her Back: Kabanata 171 - Kabanata 180

In that moment, Talia couldn't help but recall all the times she'd taken care of Yvonne alone. Children would catch fevers easily. Unable to reach Christian, she had carried Yvonne to the hospital by herself.She had made that trip to the hospital countless times. There had been rainy days like this, too, when she'd even gotten completely soaked.Back then, how she'd longed for Christian to stand beside her and say, "Don't worry. I'm here."But he was always too busy, and she could never reach him. So gradually, she learned to handle these things on her own.But just now, in that instant, Christian had taken the umbrella that she had tucked under her neck. He said he'd hold it.Something she'd hoped for countless times was finally happening, yet all she felt was a hollow ache. If he'd been like this earlier, she wouldn't have given up so easily.Walking into the rain, Christian kept tilting the umbrella toward Talia's side. But he wasn't being kind to her. He was being kind to Yv

That night at the Stewart residence, after Talia brought Maeve home, the latter rushed to the kitchen to reheat the pancake she'd made that morning.She carried it out and hovered nearby, watching Talia take her first bite.The flavor wasn't actually that good, but Talia still finished it. She kept praising Maeve, saying that she'd done well, while gently pointing out what could be improved. Maeve nodded eagerly, already planning improvements.After they finished dinner, they sat and chatted for a while. When Talia went upstairs to wash up, she picked up her phone and discovered more than ten missed calls, all from Christian.Before she could process this, Christian's call came through again. Her instinct told her that he must have something urgent, so she answered the phone without hesitation.As soon as she picked up, Christian's voice came through, dark and agitated. "Talia, what are you doing? Why aren't you answering my calls?"Christian's barrage of questions set her on edg

When Talia returned to the hospital with the soup, Yvonne was scrolling through videos on Emma's phone. Whatever she was watching made her smile.Emma saw Talia walk in and said gently, "Ms. Yvonne, Mrs. Lane is back."Yvonne quickly turned off the screen and sat up in bed. "Mommy."Talia's pajamas were completely soaked through, but she'd been careful to protect the soup container, afraid it might spill or get cold. She handed it to Emma. "Emma, can you feed Yvonne?"Seeing Talia drenched from head to toe, Emma felt a pang of ache in her chest. When she spoke again, her voice came out hoarse. "Mrs. Lane, you should go change your clothes."Talia hummed in acknowledgment without saying anything else.Yvonne noticed her mother's wet clothes. Part of her wanted to ask her if she was okay, but then she remembered what had happened this afternoon at school—Talia hadn't come to pick her up. Thus, she decided against it.There were spare clothes in the car. So, Talia headed back outsi

Running a fever and feeling dizzy, Talia only started to react when Christian reached out to her.But by the time she tried to protect herself, his hand had already slipped under her clothes.So she wasn't just holding onto her shirt. She was clutching his hand as well.She reacted strongly, hugging her body tightly. Christian's hand followed her movement and landed right on a certain curve of hers.His touch was hot, burning against her cold skin.Talia was stunned. When she finally registered what was happening, she tried to pull away, but Christian beat her to speaking. "Talia, do you have no shame?"She tilted her face up to him. Her cheeks were flushed with a soft pink, and her eyes were hazy, like she was still not fully awake.Christian looked down at her, drawn into the depths of those dark eyes. At that moment, many wildly out-of-place images flashed through his mind.They were images of Talia lying beneath him, trying to please him, holding onto his waist, and calling

Talia froze when Yvonne pushed her away, her mind a blur. She was still burning with fever, and her body was weak, so when Yvonne shoved her, she stumbled aside.Yvonne cried out, "Daddy! Daddy…"Christian rushed over, embraced her, and continued to soothe her. "I'm here. You'll be fine, Yvonne."Yvonne clung to his clothes. Tears streamed down her face as she asked through sobs, "Daddy, where's Nancy? I want Nancy!"Christian's heart ached. He pressed his cheek against hers and spoke softly, "I'll take you to see her this weekend, okay?"But Yvonne fussed, "No, I want to go now! Daddy, I want to hear her play the piano for me. I want her to tell me stories. Daddy, I want her to stay with me."Hearing Yvonne's cries broke Christian. He agreed to whatever she asked. "Okay. I'll call her and have her come stay with you, alright?"Yvonne stopped crying immediately. "Okay."Talia sat at the foot of the bed, listening to their conversation. Tears slipped silently down her cheeks. Sh