Chapter Thirteen: Under The Same Roof
903 Words
By the time they left the restaurant, the sun had already disappeared beneath the horizon.
Instead of rushing home, Mia insisted they spend the rest of the evening together.
“No one is going back yet,” she declared. “We’re going shopping.”
A helpless smile crossed Isla’s face.
“Mia…”
“We’ve already had lunch.”
“And now we’re shopping.”
“What’s next?”
Mia flashed her signature grin.
“Therapy.”
“…Retail therapy.”
Liam chuckled.
“I should’ve seen that coming.”
For the next few hours, the three of them wandered through the city’s busiest shopping district.
Mia dragged Isla into nearly every boutique she could find.
“This dress.”
“No.”
“This one.”
“No.”
“Fine… then buy the handbag.”
“Mia…”
“I already have enough bags.”
“There is no such thing as ‘enough bags.’”
Liam quietly followed behind them, carrying more and more shopping bags until both of his hands were full.
He looked down at the growing pile and sighed dramatically.
“I’ve officially been promoted…”
“…from General Manager…”
“…to professional shopping bag carrier.”
Both women burst into laughter.
“There!” Mia pointed at him triumphantly.
“See?”
“I made Mr. Serious laugh.”
The sound of their laughter echoed through the street.
People passing by couldn’t help but smile at the cheerful trio.
For the first time in weeks…
Isla forgot what heartbreak felt like.
She wasn’t Damien Cross’s wife.
She wasn’t the woman everyone pitied.
She was simply…
Isla.
Free.
Happy.
Alive.
⸻
It was nearly eight o’clock when their car finally pulled into the driveway of the Cross Mansion.
The grand entrance glowed beneath the warm lights.
The front door opened.
Isla stepped inside first.
Mia followed close behind.
A few steps later, Liam entered carrying what felt like half the shopping mall in both hands.
The laughter on Isla’s face slowly disappeared.
There…
Sitting comfortably in the living room…
Were Damien and Eva.
The atmosphere instantly grew colder.
Eva glanced toward the entrance before her eyes narrowed slightly.
Damien slowly lifted his gaze.
His expression remained unreadable.
But his eyes lingered on Isla for a moment longer than usual.
Then…
They shifted to Liam.
More specifically…
To the mountain of shopping bags in Liam’s hands.
His jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
Mia noticed.
Of course she did.
A small smirk played on her lips.
She deliberately ignored both Damien and Eva as if they didn’t exist.
Instead, she turned toward Isla.
“The guest room is ready, right?”
Isla nodded.
“It is.”
“But… you can stay in my room if you want.”
Mia smiled warmly.
“I appreciate it.”
“But I’ll take the guest room.”
“I snore.”
Liam laughed.
“You absolutely do.”
“I do not.”
“You scared us during the college trip.”
“That was one time.”
“It was three nights.”
Even Isla couldn’t hide her smile.
Damien silently watched the three of them.
They moved around each other with effortless familiarity.
Like they had always belonged together.
Watching them, a strange heaviness settled in Damien’s chest.
Mia turned toward Liam.
“Liam.”
He looked up.
“Take Isla’s bags to her room.”
“And leave mine in the guest room.”
“After that…”
“Go freshen up.”
“We’re having dinner together.”
She pointed a finger at him.
“And don’t even think about making excuses.”
Liam smiled helplessly.
“Yes, ma’am.”
He disappeared upstairs with the bags.
Without sparing Damien or Eva another glance…
Isla quietly followed him.
Within seconds…
The living room became silent again.
The silence irritated Eva.
She folded her arms.
“Did they seriously just ignore us?”
Mia stopped halfway up the staircase.
Without turning around, she answered calmly,
“I don’t remember seeing anyone worth greeting.”
Without another word, she continued upstairs.
Eva’s face flushed with anger.
“Damien!”
“Did you hear what she just said?”
Damien remained silent.
His eyes never left the staircase where Isla had disappeared.
Eva stepped closer.
“Babe…”
“She’s staying here?”
Finally, Damien looked at her.
His expression was colder than before.
“Yes.”
Eva frowned.
“Can’t you throw her out?”
“This is your house.”
Damien let out a slow breath.
“No.”
“It’s my house…”
He paused.
“…but it’s Isla’s home.”
“And as long as Isla wants Mia here…”
“I have no reason to ask her to leave.”
Eva couldn’t hide her disappointment.
“But—”
“I said no.”
His voice was quiet.
Firm.
Final.
Eva bit her lip and fell silent.
Damien leaned back against the sofa, his gaze drifting toward the staircase once again.
Mia Anderson.
He knew exactly the kind of woman she was.
Fearless.
Stubborn.
Protective.
And dangerously loyal to Isla.
Her arrival hadn’t just complicated things.
It had changed the balance inside the mansion.
For the first time in years…
Damien Cross realized something unsettling.
Keeping Eva under this roof had started a war.
And Mia Anderson…
Never walked into a battle she intended to lose.
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