His Last Cup of Warm Milk Came With Divorce Papers Chapter 04

His Last Cup of Warm Milk Came With Divorce Papers Chapter 04

When I woke up the next morning, the other side of the bed was empty.

I let out a breath of relief.

Then I jolted back at a face suddenly inches from mine.

“Mommy, you are awake.”

Leo stood beside the bed in his preschool uniform, looking like a tiny little gentleman.

Even though I had kept my distance all these years, he still seemed to adore me.

[Here we go. The daily ritual. Leo keeps reaching for a mother who never reaches back.]

[He is such a good kid. She never acknowledges him, and yet he keeps coming back.]

[Ugh, my heart. What did this child ever do wrong?]

“Good morning, Mommy. Can I kiss you before I go to school?”

I was still groggy.

“What?”

“Joey kisses his mom every morning. I want that too.”

I tensed.

We barely talked.

We barely interacted.

I had a deep resistance to intimacy.

Biting my lip, I glanced past him and saw Sebastian standing in the doorway.

The image of my brutal death flashed through my mind.

When I did not answer, Leo’s head drooped, his little mouth turning down.

But he bounced back fast.

“It’s okay, Mommy. I don’t really…”

“How… how do I do it?”

I stammered, cutting him off.

Leo’s eyes lit up like twin stars.

“Mommy, you mean it?”

He tugged at my hand, beaming.

I nodded stiffly, still awkward.

[Whoa. The ice queen is suddenly thawing?]

[Sebastian’s face is priceless. I bet he wants a kiss too.]

[Of course he does. He wants his wife’s kiss just as badly.]

I did not have time to check Sebastian’s reaction.

The little one was already leaning in.

Mwah.

I froze.

It felt foreign and uncomfortable.

But I did not push him away.

Leo wrapped his arms around my neck and nuzzled close.

“Mommy, am I dreaming?”

[Damn. I am actually tearing up.]

[That little nuzzle hit me right in the chest.]

[Sebastian is basically a three-year-old trapped in a grown man’s body. He wants a kiss too.]

[Liliana, just look at him. He is practically a lovesick statue.]

I looked up, and our eyes met.

Sebastian said nothing.

He only watched me with a narrowed gaze I could not read.

I quickly looked away, pretending nothing had happened.

Leo let go and bounced toward the door.

“Daddy! I got to kiss Mommy again!”

Sebastian hummed in reply and ruffled his hair.

“I will take you to school.”

Leo hitched his backpack higher and turned back with a pitiful face.

“I wish Mommy could walk me.”

“Be good. Mommy needs rest. Don’t bother her.”

“Daddy, why don’t you go kiss Mommy?”

My heart lurched into my throat.

Sebastian lowered his gaze.

“You will be late. Say bye to Mommy.”

“Ugh, fine. I will wake up earlier tomorrow so I can kiss her longer.”

Leo’s little face scrunched up, then he waved at me.

“Bye, Mommy! I am off to school. I will be super good, I promise.”

The floating comments buzzed.

[Weird. She wanted out so badly. Why is she suddenly being nice to the kid?]

[But… maybe that is a good thing?]

[The teacher gave the kids a self-care assignment yesterday. They had to practice washing their hair with a parent supervising. That is why Leo went to her last night.]

[Just thinking about him pouting because he could not tell the class he finished it breaks my heart.]

[Liliana, if you are going to be kind, can you at least stand by the bathroom door for him?]