Chapter 202 I Can Kiss You at Will
Cassidy's words kept haunting Arabella. As soon as they got home, Alexander headed for the kitchen as usual, but she snapped out of her daze and beat him to it. "Let me cook tonight."
When they'd first moved in together, they'd agreed to alternate cooking duties. Somehow along the way, Alexander had taken over all the cooking and dishes. She'd already started having feelings for him by then and hadn't objected—if she was honest, she kind of liked having him cook for her.
But now that they were planning to split up. letting him keep cooking for her felt wrong.
Alexander blocked her from the kitchen with a solid excuse. "I'm the reason you're pregnant. Taking care of you is the least I can do. Besides, cooking fumes aren't good for you. You should stay away from them."
Arabella had just used that exact argument on Faye yesterday. Hearing it thrown back at her left her with no comeback. She backed down sheepishly.
If they were a normal couple—hell, even just friends—she could accept special treatment during pregnancy without guilt. But he wasn't normal. He was born into wealth and privilege. For her sake, he'd spent the past six months living in a tiny apartment and cooking every single day. It was too much.
Worried she'd overthink things, Alexander suggested, "Why don't you help Becky with her homework? End of semester's coming up. She's under a lot of pressure with finals."
Arabella looked surprised. "Isn't she only in first grade?"
First graders weren't even supposed to have homework or exams, right? When Becky had first started school, Arabella had worried about her keeping up and enrolled her in tutoring. All her homework came from there.
Now that Becky had caught up, Arabella had already told the tutoring center last week she wouldn't renew for next year. She'd grown up without much academic pressure, happy and carefree, and wanted the same for Becky. If the girl could get into college and live a simple, content life, that would be enough.
Hearing Alexander's comment now, something felt off.
"I asked her about it," Alexander said as he washed vegetables. "She wants to become strong. She wants to earn her place in the world through her own efforts. In other words, she's choosing a more ambitious path."
"Last month I hired a professional educational consultant to map out a plan for her. Besides regular schoolwork, she's learning horseback riding and fencing. Her French and German are coming along nicely. She wants to try figure skating next. I'm hoping we can pick one or two things she's really passionate about for long-term development, maybe even go professional."
He looked up at Arabella. "You know how it is—excelling in niche sports can really make you stand out."
Arabella's mouth fell open.
Because Alexander was so smart and good with languages, he'd always been the one helping Becky with homework. She'd assumed he just checked over her work. She had no idea he'd been doing all this...
Something clicked. "So those weekends when Moris takes her out to play, that's also—"
Before they'd revealed Alexander's identity, he'd sent Becky to a "friend's place" every weekend to study. She'd thought it was normal tutoring. After learning who he really was, she'd found out his assistant had been taking Becky out to "play."
That "playing" wasn't exactly normal either, was it?
Alexander nodded. "She's been learning horseback riding and fencing. Her skill level is already quite impressive."
Arabella didn't know what to say.
She was just an ordinary person who'd had an ordinary childhood. It had never occurred to her that "playing" could be so... extraordinary.
This was her adopted daughter, yet without her even knowing, the girl had learned so much. Arabella suddenly felt completely inadequate as a parent.
She also felt conflicted. "Becky's only ten. Can she really tell what she likes and doesn't like? She's already so mature for her age, so responsible. What if she's just afraid of disappointing us and forcing herself to do all this? Wouldn't that hurt her more?"
Alexander chuckled softly. "Don't worry, I've talked to her about it. She's been very clear about what she wants. She's adapting really well so far."
Arabella fell completely silent.
While Alexander cooked, she hesitated before knocking on Becky's door. The little girl bounced over to open it, looking surprised. "Ms. Bourbon! Are you helping me with my homework today?"
Arabella smiled. "What, you'd rather have Mr. FitzRoy?"
"Not exactly," Becky scratched her head, looking embarrassed. "I just thought you might not understand it."
That lit a competitive fire in Arabella. Sure, she wasn't as brilliant as Alexander, but she'd graduated from Majestic City University—did Becky have any idea how hard that was to get into? She'd been in the top three of her high school class for years!
"It's first grade curriculum. What wouldn't I understand?" Arabella said indignantly. "Where's your homework? Show me."
Becky pointed at her backpack, sounding bored. "Homework's easy. I finished ages ago. This is the oil painting I just did—what do you think of the color composition?"
Arabella stared at the canvas, speechless. Even with her limited artistic knowledge, she could tell it was actually pretty good.
But color composition? The most she could do was tell if it looked nice or not.
After mentally kicking herself, she nodded seriously. "Not bad."
Then she made an excuse and fled.
That kind of homework? Alexander could handle it himself. She'd only been out of the loop for a bit and these two had somehow jumped straight to career planning. Terrifying.
---
After dinner, Arabella watched Alexander clear the table, wanting to say something but holding back.
Today was Friday. He'd mentioned taking her to meet his parents this weekend, but he hadn't brought it up again the past few days.
So... were they still going or not?
She'd planned to use this trip as a turning point—come back and immediately file for divorce. But now that he'd gone silent, she felt anxious.
She wanted to ask but worried he'd think she was eager to get rid of him. Arabella hugged a throw pillow, conflicted.
When Alexander came back from washing dishes, he looked surprised to see her still sitting there. "Why haven't you packed yet?"
Girls liked looking pretty, didn't they? Wouldn't she need to pack several nice outfits and shoes?
He was secretly hoping she'd enjoy herself there and want to stay a few extra days.
Arabella blinked. "The visa came through?"
Alexander nodded. "All set."
Arabella stood up slowly. "I'll go pack then."
Alexander followed her, watching as she bustled around the bedroom. His mouth curved into an involuntary smile. After a pause, he suddenly walked over and took the clothes from her hands. "Go sit down. I'll do this."
Arabella looked confused. "I can pack my own stuff."
Alexander pointed at the corner of the closet. "Every time you grab clothes and turn around, your stomach brushes past this corner. I'm worried you'll hurt yourself."
Arabella didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "It's fine. I'm just brushing against it, not actually hitting it. And I'm not stupid—you think I'd walk right into it?"
Alexander firmly pushed her to sit on the bed. "What if you slip? What if you lose your balance?"
He wasn't willing to bet on even a one-in-ten-thousand chance.
Arabella was at a loss. She'd never known pregnancy render someone completely invalid.
Unable to argue with him, she directed him while he packed—clothes, shoes, skincare products. Everything was loaded quickly.
Alexander turned around. "Which underwear are you bringing?"
Arabella turned her head away from his gaze. "...I can get those myself."
Alexander laughed softly. "What are you embarrassed about?" He walked over and looked down at her. "Sure, we're getting divorced, but we've lived together almost a year. We're practically an old married couple. You've got my babies in your belly and you're still treating me like a stranger?"
Arabella thought—she was treating herself like the stranger here.
And yeah, they'd lived together almost a year and she was pregnant, but they'd only... done it that one time. By accident. They'd been living like roommates this whole time, hadn't they?
She tilted her head slightly, her large eyes filled with frustration, looking almost petulant. The sight made Alexander's lower abdomen tighten.
His gaze traveled involuntarily from her neck downward. She wore a pale pink loungewear set with the top two buttons loose. Smooth, soft skin disappeared beneath the fabric, and that proud curve...
"I want to kiss you." Alexander's voice came out suddenly.
Arabella stared at him, thinking she'd misheard.
The next second, he cupped her face and kissed her gently.
It took Arabella a moment to register what was happening. She pushed at him—hello, they were getting divorced! Once was one thing, but what was with all this repeated kissing?
She'd always thought Alexander was steady and controlled. But when she pushed once and he didn't budge, then pushed harder, he caught both her wrists and pinned them behind her back, completely eliminating any possibility of refusal.
After the long kiss finally ended, Alexander held her close. His embrace was tight enough that she could easily feel his arousal. Panic flooded through her. "Don't—"
Alexander held her tightly for a while longer before releasing her. He touched his forehead to hers, then took a deep breath and walked calmly to the closet. "Which underwear? I'll pack them for you."
Arabella's face burned scarlet. She couldn't even muster the courage to look at him. "I'll pack them myself."
"Arabella." Alexander's voice came out hoarse, like he was restraining something. "Stop dragging this out. I don't know what I might do to you if we keep staying in this room together. So I think we should finish this quickly."
Arabella thought—then just leave the room! Why do you have to pack my underwear?
But when she looked up and saw the predatory look in Alexander's eyes, she chickened out. She quickly pointed out a few items. When Alexander picked them up by the straps, she couldn't even watch.
After the luggage was finally packed, Alexander left the room. Moments later, she heard the shower running.
Alexander stayed in the bathroom for over an hour. At one point Becky waited outside, complaining, "Is Mr. FitzRoy sick or something? Why's he taking so long? I need to shower and get to bed."
Arabella had to soothe her. "Sweetie, just go to sleep. You can skip your shower tonight."
Becky sighed like a little adult. "Guess I have no choice."
By the time Alexander emerged, Arabella was already in bed. She peeked at his silhouette as he walked from the door around to the other side of the bed, pulled back the covers, and slid those long legs under the blanket.
She gathered her courage. "You... you can't keep doing this."
Alexander looked up. "Hmm? Doing what?"
Arabella clutched the blanket. "You can't just... just kiss me whenever you want."
Amusement flickered in Alexander's eyes. He played along. "Why not? My mouth is attached to my face. I can kiss whoever I want."
Arabella couldn't believe such shameless words were coming from his mouth. Her face flushed completely. "But we're getting divorced, remember? What's with you constantly kissing me?"
Alexander looked innocent. "You're the one who wants a divorce, not me. Why should the same rules apply to me? Just don't kiss me and we're fine."
Arabella got caught up in his logic, gripping the blanket and rendered speechless. He was so shameless. She couldn't out-argue him.
Alexander concluded, "So the bottom line is—as long as we're not divorced yet, I can kiss you whenever I want. But you can't kiss me."
Arabella huffed and lay down, turning her back to him.
He used to be such a gentleman. When did he turn into such a rogue?
Alexander gazed at her back, unable to suppress his smile. Like a mischievous kid, he leaned over and planted a kiss on her cheek. Before Arabella could explode, he quickly retreated. "Just saying good night."
Then he turned off the light and lay perfectly still.
Arabella had no way to deal with him. She could only sigh silently.
---
The next morning, Moris came early to pick them up. Alexander and Arabella were heading to Europe for two days, so Becky would stay with Moris. All three got in the car.
Moris dropped Alexander and Arabella at the airport first. Arabella gave Becky a few reminders before getting out. Moris waved to Alexander before driving off off with Becky.
Arabella followed Alexander into the terminal.
For a weekend morning, the airport was surprisingly packed. Alexander kept his arm around Arabella's waist, protecting her as they navigated through the crowd. When Arabella started to object, he reasoned with her. "There are so many people. What if someone bumps into you? Just bear with it. For the babies."
Arabella had no comeback for that.
They got through check-in quickly. While waiting in the VIP lounge, Arabella spotted Rachel again.
The same man from before was with her, being extremely attentive, fussing over her constantly.
Rachel also saw Arabella and seemed about to say something. But when she looked up and met Alexander's cold gaze, she opened her mouth to speak but then, swallowed her words.