Chapter 166 Chapter 166

Chapter 166 Chapter 166
The entryway felt larger than she remembered. Mia stood just inside the front doors with the insulated bag in one hand and her suitcase handle in the other, the boot solid on the polished floor. The house was quiet in the way it only ever was when most of the staff had been told to keep distance. Victoria closed the door behind them and set her tablet down on the console table.
“He’s upstairs,” she said. “in the master bedroom. He’s been resting on and off since this morning. I’ll have your bag taken up. The soup…”
“I’ll take it.”
Victoria studied her for a second, then nodded. “I’ll be in the office if you need anything. Give him space to come all the way up. He’s clearer, but he’s not at full capacity yet.”

Mia adjusted her grip on the bag and started toward the stairs. The climb was slower than usual. She took them one at a time, letting the boot find each step before shifting her weight. By the time she reached the top her leg was complaining in a deep, steady throb, but she didn’t stop.
The door to the master bedroom was half open. She paused outside it, suddenly aware of her own breathing, of the days of distance, of the last image she had of him on a video call eyes open, mouth closed, too far under to speak. Then she pushed the door the rest of the way and stepped inside.
Kai was sitting up in the bed, back against the headboard, a glass of water on the nightstand. He looked pale in the face than she remembered, the kind of drawn look that came from too much forced sleep and not enough real rest. His hair was messy. He was wearing a plain dark T-shirt and sweatpants. When he turned his head and saw her, something in his expression shifted surprise first, then a quieter, deeper relief.
“You’re here,” he said. His voice was rough, still carrying the leftover weight of the medication.
Mia stayed near the door for a second longer than she needed to. “I’m here.”
He looked at the boot, then at the bag in her hand, then back at her face. “Your leg.”
“Broken, temporary boot. It’ll heal.” She moved closer, set the insulated bag on the dresser, and stopped at the side of the bed.
“How do you feel?”
“Like someone filled my head with wet concrete and it’s only halfway dried out.” He exhaled. “Better than yesterday. Better than the day before but still not right.”

Mia nodded. The anxiety that had built in the car was still present, but it had somewhere to go now that she was looking at him. She pulled the container of soup from the bag and held it up slightly.
“My mom made this. Fresh this morning. She didn’t know it was for you. I didn’t tell her.”
Kai’s mouth moved into something that wasn’t quite a smile. “You brought me soup.”
“I brought soup. You happen to be the person who’s been under for days and probably hasn’t eaten anything proper.” She set it on the nightstand beside the water.
“It’s still warm.”
He looked at the container, then at her.
“Come here.”
“Kai…”
“Mia come here.”

She hesitated, then sat carefully on the edge of the bed, angling the boot so it wouldn’t catch on the frame. The moment she was close enough he reached out and took her hand, his fingers closing around hers with more strength than his voice suggested.
“I tried to stay awake for the calls,” he said. “After the first day I couldn’t. Everything kept pulling me under. I heard Victoria saying your name but I couldn’t get the words out.”
“I know, I saw you on the video. You looked at the phone and didn’t say anything.”
“I wanted to.” His thumb moved once across her knuckles. “You were stuck in a storm with a broken leg and I was here, useless. That part’s been sitting with me.”
Mia shook her head. “You didn’t choose what she gave you.”
“No but I took it. I was tired and wound up and she showed up talking about helping me rest. I didn’t ask enough questions.” His jaw tightened. “That won’t happen again.”

She studied his face, the tiredness still sitting under his eyes, the way he was holding her hand like it was the only solid thing in the room. The anxiety that had followed her through the gates began to loosen.
“I was worried,” she said. “The whole time even when Victoria said you were stable. Even when she showed me you on the camera. I kept thinking about you alone in this room while I couldn’t get here.”
“You’re here now.”
“I am.”

He tugged gently on her hand until she shifted closer. His other hand came up to the side of her neck, warm and steady, and he rested his forehead against hers for a moment. Neither of them spoke, the house stayed quiet around them. The soup sat on the nightstand, still giving off a faint, familiar warmth. When he pulled back just enough to look at her, his eyes were clearer than they had been at the start of the conversation.
“Stay,” he said. “Not just in the house. In here for a while.”
Mia glanced at the boot, then at the space beside him on the bed. “Your doctor would probably have opinions about that.”
“My doctor isn’t here, you are.” He shifted to make room, still holding her hand. “I’ve spent enough time in this bed alone. I’m done with that part.”

She carefully swung the boot up onto the mattress and settled against the pillows beside him, close enough that their shoulders touched. Kai kept her hand in his. For a few minutes they simply sat there, the afternoon light moving slowly across the floor, the leftover weight of the last several days settling into something quieter between them. Eventually he nodded toward the container on the nightstand.
“Are you going to make me eat that while you watch?”
“Yes.”
“Controlling.”
“You spent days not fully waking up. I’m allowed to be controlling about soup.”

The almost-smile returned, stronger this time. He let go of her hand long enough to open the container. The smell of her mother’s kitchen filled the small space between them. He took a spoonful, then another, and didn’t complain. Mia watched him eat and felt the last of the car-ride nerves drain out of her shoulders. The mansion was still the same mansion she had left and she knew the schedule and pressure would begin again