lanie shook her head slowly and managed a small smile as she looked up at him. "Nothing happened," she said softly. "Just... so confusion with Cadence caused by Marianne. Adam... who was that woman?"
Her eyes stayed on him, careful and searching, trying to read what he wasn’t saying. Because there was sothing—she could sense it the mont he looked away, the slight pause in his answer. Adam was hiding sothing from her. She was sure of it.
But not for one second did lanie believe he was cheating on her, no matter what she had just witnessed. The thought never even crossed her mind. She trusted him. Entirely.
And not only because he had pushed the woman away so quickly. In fact, it was the way he had done it that made her even more curious. Under normal circumstances, if so woman had truly been pestering him, Adam wouldn’t have hesitated to throw her out without a second thought. That was how he was.
But this ti had been different. He had pushed the woman away, yes, but not harshly. There had been care in the way he did it, as though he didn’t want to physically hurt her. And that small detail clung to lanie’s thoughts, refusing to leave, even making her forget the reason for her visit here.
It made her wonder about the woman’s identity, but like her, Adam was also stuck on what happened..."This isn’t just so confusion!" Adam’s voice cracked, raw with anger. "That Cadence—he had his hands on you, didn’t he? He choked you?" His fists clenched at his sides, trembling. "Tell you’re okay. Because if he hurt you, I swear, I’ll kill him."
"Adam...calm down." lanie said and then, before she could think the better of it, she hugged him tightly..."Adam... who was that woman."
Adam took in a deep breath and she felt him shudder as he said slowly," That woman... was my biological mother."
lanie froze in his arms, the words sinking in slowly. His mother? For a mont, she just stared at him, searching his face for so sign that this was a joke. It had to be. Adam’s mother was dead. Right?
But Adam didn’t smile.
Instead, he sighed heavily, ran a hand through his hair, and c sat down with a kind of tired finality and pulled her closer until she was standing between his knees, his hands resting loosely on her waist.
"That woman," he said flatly, "abandoned when I was born."
lanie blinked, speechless.
Adam gave a short, humorless laugh. "Funny, isn’t it? All these years, I thought she was dead. My father—he never corrected . I grew up believing my mother had passed away when I was very young. It was easier to think that way, I guess. At least then, there was no choice involved. No rejection."
lanie opened her mouth to speak but found no words.
Adam’s voice stayed even, almost too calm, as though he was talking about soone else’s life. "Imagine my surprise when one day, out of nowhere, she shows up. A mother. The one I never had. Turns out, my parents split because my father didn’t have enough money to keep her happy. She left him. Simple as that." He gave a soft snort. "I don’t know why I expected anything different."
lanie frowned. "So... all this ti—"
"She was alive," Adam cut in smoothly. "Living her perfect little life sowhere else. Got married again. Started a new family. Had other children. And when she was given the chance to take back, all those years ago? " His lips curled faintly, though there was no humor in it. "She refused. Said she had responsibilities. A husband. Kids who actually belonged to her."
lanie’s chest tightened painfully. "Adam..."
"That’s when my grandfather had to contact Lady Collins to take in," Adam continued as though he hadn’t heard her.
He leaned back in the chair, expression unreadable. "So there I was. A child nobody wanted. Raised by people who did their duty but never cared. And now-after all these years- she wants to waltz back into my life like nothing happened."
lanie knelt down in front of him, her hands trembling as she reached for his. "Adam... I’m so sorry."
He looked at her then, eyes dark but strangely calm. "Don’t be," he said simply. "It’s too late for sorry."
He sighed and said," Anyway, I’ve made myself clear to her. So, now are you going to tell about what that Cadence did to you so that I can choke him as well?"
lanie sighed. Now was not the ti to tell Adam about her pregnancy.
"I told you, he just lost his mind for a second. Marianne whispered a few words to him about how I might be too close to Dr Jung... And naturally, he fell of kilter. But don’t worry. Marianne thinks her plan worked and Cadence was jealous because of ."
Adam nodded at that..." I want to get rid of them all as soon as possible. If only strangling people was legal..."
lanie grinned at that and then cupped his face," Adam Collins.. You are not allowed to strangle anyone even if it was lawful. Understood?"
Adam gave a low, resigned laugh and lifted both hands in mock surrender. "Okay, okay. No strangling anyone. I promise."
lanie smiled faintly at his tone, but Adam’s eyes narrowed slightly as he tilted his head, studying her face more closely. "Alright then," he said slowly, "what actually brings you to my office today? Because sothing tells you didn’t co here just to stop from committing murder."
At that, lanie froze. Her hands, still resting lightly on his shoulders, stilled completely. For a mont, she didn’t et his eyes.
Adam noticed instantly. "lon?" he prompted, voice gentler now.
She drew in a slow breath before finally speaking. "I ca... to ask about Marianne," she said carefully. "She went to see lody just now, I was hoping... maybe she said sothing incriminating or we found sothing. Evidence. Anything that could prove Marianne’s hand in all of this."
Adam leaned back in his chair, expression hardening as he exhaled slowly through his nose. "Not yet," he admitted. "She is being careful for now. She’s interacted with lody as if she were lanie and kept reassuring her.. Behaving like a concerner mother only."
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