A Wrong Surrogate for the CEO-Chapter 64: Not mad at you

Lara blinked her eyes open, and she was confused for a while.

She looked around as her brain tried to catch up with where she was. When her eyes finally got used to the brightness of daylight shining into the room, Lara figured out that she was in her bedroom.

Which was weird. Since she clearly remembered falling asleep on the couch while she waited for Curtis.

If she was here, it could only mean one thing. Curtis came home. And he had to be the one who carried her all the way here.

Lara heaved a sigh of disappointment. Judging by the ray of sunshine shining into her room through the drapes, it was already mid morning.

And Curtis would surely have left for work. Which meant that she would not be able to see him and apologise like she wanted to.

Another wave of disappointment slammed into her and she pinched the bridge of her nose with frustration.

She felt terrible, and with each minute that passed, the feeling only intensified.

A part of her considered going down to his own office to see him, but she instantly decided against it.

Lara knew Lazarus would be aware of his boss’s whereabouts, so finding him would not be an issue.

The issue was if Curtis would be willing to give her his attention.

"This is so stressful," she muttered to herself as she stood up. Lara made her way to the restroom to ease herself and freshen up.

Her bath took a long time, and by the time she walked back into her room, she felt considerably better.

Lara walked into her closet to find clothes for the day. She was torn between two dresses when she heard the door to her room open.

A frown furrowed on her brows.

Curtis must have gone to work. Then who could it be?

Her heart started to hammer against her chest as she walked back to the edge of the closet door.

Lara peeped out, and was relieved to see that it was just Curtis.

But the relief was quickly overwhelmed by surprise. Shock.

Because Curtis was setting a mini breakfast table right on her bed.

She must have made some sort of sound because he turned around and saw her.

Curtis smiled at the sight of his pregnant wife.

"Look who’s up," he said gently. There was no edge to his voice, and the smile lingered on his face.

Lara’s jaw dropped open. She gaped, unable to hide her surprise.

Curtis cocked his head to the side as he stared at her.

"I’m pretty sure you are uncomfortable standing there in your towel and staring at me. Get dressed and come over for breakfast," he stated, and at the mention of her state of undress, Lara’s cheeks flushed red.

She quickly walked back into the closet, her heart now hammering violently against her chest.

What the hell was going on? Lara had expected Curtis to be mad at her. Hell, she had expected him to become even more annoying and snappish.

Of all the things she had expected him to do, cooking for her and serving her breakfast in bed was definitely not on the list.

It hadn’t even occurred to her that it could be a possibility.

She got dressed, still dazed from what was going on. A part of her thought that it might be a dream, an hallucination.

But when she walked out of her closet and he was still there, Lara knew that she wasn’t dreaming.

"What is going on, Curtis?" she asked, unable to stifle her need to know.

He raised an eyebrow at her.

"What do you mean by that? I made breakfast for my wife, of course. Now get over here. The food is getting cold," he responded.

Her confusion deepened.

"I...I don’t understand. Why are you being...nice? I thought...you are supposed to be mad at me," she stuttered.

Curtis sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He had expected her to react in this manner.

He took a step towards her and stopped.

"And why will I be mad at you, Lara?" he asked.

She swallowed a lump in her throat before she spoke.

"Because of what happened yesterday. I...I kissed you back. I should not have done that and I am so sorry," she apologised, her voice barely a whisper.

"And why are you sorry, Lara? You have nothing to be sorry for," Curtis responded gently.

Lara shook her head at his words.

"No. No. You don’t understand. Like you said yesterday, it was cruel of me. I should not have kissed you back when I knew how you felt about me. And I promise you that my feelings are not a reflection of who you are. You are a totally lovable person, and any woman would be lucky to be in love with you. I just...my heart is just not going in that direction."

A tense silence stretched between them at her words, and Lara felt as though she was standing on a ticking time bomb as she waited for him to respond.

Curtis, however, was grateful for her sincerity. There was a twinge of pain in his heart, and he knew that it was going to take him a long time before he managed to forget about his feelings for her and move on.

But he wasn’t going to make her uncomfortable by lingering on it. It wasn’t her fault that she was not in love with him.

And she looked so small, so miserable as she stood there waiting for him to speak.

Instead, Curtis raised his arms to the side.

"Come on," he said softly. Lara stared at him for a long moment.

He said nothing, only waited for her. And after several moments of hesitation, Lara walked into his arms.

Curtis folded his body around her, wrapping her into a warm, sincere hug.

"I am not mad at you, darling. You are the mother of my babies, and that is the only connection between us. My feelings are mine, yours belongs to you. You don’t have to fall in love with me, Lara. You don’t have to feel sorry for me. It is totally okay. I am not holding it against you," he whispered.

Lara felt a wave of relief as it slammed into her.

She hugged him back. "Thank you," she whispered as her arms tightened around him.

And they stayed like that for a long time.