Alaric's fingers gently caressed Hertha's jawline, his voice magnetic and alluring.
Curious little heads peeked out from Hertha's embrace as the two children gazed up at Alaric with wide, inquisitive eyes.
Before Hertha could respond to Alaric's question, his gaze met the soft, enchanting eyes of the little girl. They were striking, with corners that curved up invitingly, just like his own.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtHow had he never considered that this could be his own daughter? And the little boy, upon closer inspection, shared his features too, though his eyes mirrored Hertha's exactly. The innocence in the children's eyes melted Alaric's heart in a way he couldn't explain.
Startled by Alaric's words, Hertha turned her head away, shaking off his hand, and retorted, "Why are you so full of yourself, always thinking everything's about you? The 'heartthrob' I mentioned isn't you!" As she attempted to flee, Alaric swiftly moved to block her path.
Towering like a wall, he stopped Hertha in her tracks. He stepped forward, reaching out to take the children from her arms.
Hertha's alarm bells went off, her eyes widening in defiance, "Alaric, stop right there! Don't cany closer!" Alaric halted, his gaze filled with confusion and scrutiny as he looked at her.
Caught in Alaric's piercing gaze, Hertha's heartbeat quickened, guilt making her avoid his eyes, "If you don't believe me, I'll just call the kids' father over to confront you. See if he has the seyes." "Your eyes darting around... you're thinking about which of your friends has similar eyes, who could cand play act for you, aren't you?" Alaric's calm demeanor saw@ight through her lie.
Hertha still tried to bluff, "Nonsense, why would I stage such a thing?" "Why not? Didn't you and Spencer pretend to be a couple right in front ofbefore? To deceive me, you two even acted quite the loving pair. All this while, I was wondering why you and Spencer would put on such a show for me. It turns out it was to hide the fact that you had my children!" Alaric now understood all of Hertha's previous actions.
It wasn't to drive him away, but to keep her secret hidden! At Alaric's revelation, the two little ones looked curiously at Hertha.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
Julian's big, round eyes widened in earnest confusion, "Mommy, aren Helena and really this mean man's E kids?" "Yeah, Mommy, did you and him make us?" Helena added, nodding along with her brother's question.
Despite being just over two years old, the kids had picked up on the concept of parents fromcartoons they knew that babies cfrom a mommy and a daddy together, not just a mommy alone. Hertha froze, already overwhelmed by handling Alaric, and now Julian and Helena started asking questions too.
Feeling the weight of three pairs of eyes scrutinizing her, her blood ran cold with anxiety.
Hugging the children close, she stared resolutely at Alaric, "Don'tm flatter yourself too much. I had no intention of hiding anything from you!" X