The Unwanted Wife and Her Secret Twins (Mia and Kyle) novel Chapter 457

Mia

Getting three children ready to go anywhere is always a production, but today it feels especially chaotic, like the universe is conspiring to delay us, to give me more time to reconsider this decision, to back out and send Kyle away and keep my new house separate from this complicated mess of our almost-relationship.

Alexander is upside down on his bed when I open the door, his feet planted against the wall, his face red with the rush of blood, his shirt riding up to expose his pale belly.

"Why are you upside down?" I ask, even though I know better than to expect a reasonable answer.

"Practicing being a bat," he announces, as if this is the most logical thing in the world. His voice sounds congested, thick, all the blood settling in his head making him sound like he's underwater.

"Why do you need to practice being a bat?"

"In case I need to be a bat someday. Ethan says it's good to have diverse skills. I'm diversifying."

I look over at Ethan, who's sitting on his own bed with a book, completely ignoring his brother's acrobatics. "Did you tell him to diversify by pretending to be a bat?"

"I said it's good to learn new things," Ethan says without looking up from his book. "I didn't specify bat impersonation."

"Right side up," I tell Alexander firmly. "Now. We're leaving in fifteen minutes."

"But I'm in the middle of—"

"Alexander. Now."

He flips himself over with more drama than strictly necessary, landing on his mattress with a bounce that makes the bed frame creak. "Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

His whole face scrunches up in theatrical displeasure. "I don't like surprises."

"Since when?"

"Since right now. Since this exact moment. Surprises are—they're suspicious. That's why they sound similar. Surprise. Suspicious. It's like a warning."

"That's not how words work," Ethan says, still not looking up from his book.

"It could be how words work."

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