But whenever it thundered, Tessa would bury herself in Grace’s arms without hesitation. She would cry out, “Mom, I’m scared!” Grace had no choice but to pull her thoughts away. “There, there, Mom’s right here. What are you afraid of?” Grace held Tessa tightly, soothing her again and again with a gentle voice. Only when she heard Tessa’s long, steady breathing did Grace finally exhale. It was getting late, and her eyelids were growing heavy. Within moments, she dozed off against the pillow.
But after she fell asleep, Tessa slowly opened her eyes. In the darkness, she wasn’t even a little sleepy. Thunder rolled outside, but there wasn’t a trace of fear in her gaze. Looking at Grace’s sleeping face, all she felt was deep amusement. They had lived together for so many years—she had been pretending the entire time, yet Grace had never noticed a thing. The thought made her want to laugh. She had been faking her fear of thunder since she was a child. It all started when she noticed Aurora was truly afraid of thunderstorms. Every time it thundered, her legs would tremble uncontrollably. That was when Tessa decided to fake the same fear. Only then would Grace stay close to her. Only then would she not have to worry about Aurora stealing her mother’s affection. Grace was just one person. The daughter who could keep her mother by her side was the real winner. It was with this tactic that she had earned so much of Grace’s attention during storms.
Rainy nights, loud thunder, huddled in the same bed, was the perfect way to build intimacy. So, for years, Tessa had used that to her advantage and won an abundance of Grace’s favor. It also made their relationship even more intimate. “Aurora, don’t worry, I’ll take everything that belongs to you, and I'll hold on to what’s mine tightly, never letting you have the slightest chance to take it.”
The reason Tessa came to sleep with Grace tonight was because she could tell Grace was going to check on Aurora later. She wasn’t stupid—Grace’s intentions were clear enough to read. She was the type to speak sharply but have a soft heart. Right now, when their relationship was at its most strained, she couldn’t allow them to reconcile.
Chapter 727
Once a night passed, everything changed. No matter how much explanation came after, it wouldn’t matter anymore. Sure enough, when she arrived, Grace had been about to head out. At that thought, Tessa sneered silently. Tonight, she had seen it clearly. Grace didn’t hate Aurora as much as she made it seem. In the end, she was still Aurora’s biological mother—how could there be true hatred? If they were going to reconcile, it was only a matter of time. But as long as their relationship could fracture just a bit more was good news for Tessa. Thinking of that, she smiled and nestled into Grace’s arms and fell asleep. Tomorrow, she really did need to get up for class. As for Aurora, watching her younger self curled up in sleep, her heart ached without end.