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Posted by ADMINHRADMIN, ? Views, Released on July 14, 2025

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Chapter 37

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APOLLO-

Fcouldn’t respond to her right then. Not with tans in my arms, as she wept. I turned the phone over on the dashboard and shifted my focus entirely to conforting my mate.

My heart raced; I didn’t want to move a muscle with Lana nestled against me.

couldn’t help but run my fingers through her hair, trying to soothe her.

I was used to her pushing me away, but this side of her was unfamiliar and it hit me hard.

had never held a woman like this before. I didn’t know anything about comforting a woman either. The only other person I ever took care of was my mother during her divorce from my father.

But this was different. I had no idea how to hold her gently, or even what to say to make her feel better.

just knew that seeing her like this did not make my plans easier. If I could confirm that I was the reason for this, then, I would hate myself even more for putting her through this.

She snuggies closer into me and it’s only then that I realize she’s fast asleep. I took that moment to look down and get a closer look at her face. Fuck, even asleep like this, she still looked breathtaking.

I slowly move the hair away from her face. I can’t help myself as I lean down and place a soft kiss on her forehead.

1 wish things were different. I wish my life wasn’t already so complicated. Staying away from Lana, acting like I didn’t care, I’ve never had to face anything so challenging in my entire life. She would never know that I would give my life to protect her and see her happy.

However, I knew that she could never be happy with me. I couldn’t give her the life that she deserved and that was why I was trying my hardest to keep away from her.

knew I should move her back to the passenger seat now that she was asleep, but I just didn’t want to. I had always longed to hold Lana this close, but circumstances had held me back. This was an opportunity I couldn’t resist.

My phone vibrated again, a reminder that I really needed to answer my mother’s call. If I didn’t, she would likely show up at my house, and that was the last thing I wanted after what took place yesterday.

I picked up the phone and swiped to answer just as my mother shouted my name.

“Where are you?” she demands. “Your car isn’t in the parking lot! You said you’d make a call and then vanished!”

I couldn’t explain that I had left to look after my step–sister; that would only complicate matters.

“I’m just sorting something out at the office,” I whisper, taking care not to wake Lana, who was still sleeping against me.

There was a long pause before she pressed, “Why are you whispering?”

“I’m in a meeting.” Hie. “I don’t want any of the employees overhearing us.”

My mother was usually good at detecting my lies.

“How could you do this to me, Apollo?” she replies, her voice laced with disappointment. “You embarrassed me in front of Jada. That poor girl was so excited to have dinner with you, and instead, you’re stuck at work.”

1 groaned inwardly, unsure of how to fix this situation.

“I’ll try to wrap things up and still make it back in time for dinner,” I tell her, even though I knew that was unlikely.

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21:25 Mon, 14 Jul

Chapter 37

“Forget it,” she snaps. “It’s clear you don’t want to spend time with your mother for whatever reason. I’ve wasted my entire trip for nothing.”

I hated the thought of hurting her feelings. She had come all this way, and I had barely spent any quality time with her.

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“I promise to make it up to you, Mom,” I say earnestly. “I know you were really looking forward to tonight. Please extend my apologies to Jada. I’ll visit soon to make it up to both of you.”

I wasn’t sure how soon that would be, but I was grasping at anything to make it better, I knew if I let my mother leave town feeling angry, I’d never hear the end of it.

“Are you sure?” she asks. “Or will you break your promise like you did tonight?”

I sighed, my frustration bubbling up. “I’m sure, mom. I will make time to visit.”

She let out a resigned sigh. “Okay,” she conceded. “Since you can’t make it to dinner, I’ll head to the airport right away. There’s no use in waiting. Do you want me to drop anything off at the office before I leave?”

A chill ran down my spine. If she showed up at the office, she would discover that I had been lying about everything.

“No,” I reply quickly.

Fuck.

I had responded too quickly with a “no,” and now I could tell she sensed something was off.

There was a heavy silence on the other end of the call before she finally said, “Alright.”

I could hear the anger in her voice as she ended the call.

My mother was used to me complying with her requests, and this was the first time I had truly gone against her wishes so frequently.

I hoped she wouldn’t try to call back tonight.

Aglanced down at Lana, still peacefully asleep in my arms. I tightened my embrace around her, and she sighed softly against me.

This was a bad situation. Really bad. My heart was beginning to feel things I’d tried to push away for years.

She felt so right in my arms, unlike any other girl I had ever been close to. Only Lana could stir these emotions in me.

I knew I was in deep trouble. I had been avoiding these feelings for so long, but now they were closing in on me. Until now, I had managed to keep my distance from Lana, but with her trying to get closer, I didn’t know how much longer I could keep pretending.