Mommy，We Got a Husband

Stellan was totally bored out of her mind staying home today. She thought about hitting up Rowena for a shopping spree, but Rowena was busy with Cormac and Aurora at some school thing, so Stellan was stuck at home all day. With nothing better to do, Stellan decided to get her chef on. She wanted to whip up something fancy for Alaric and the kids.

Meanwhile, Alaric was swamped at work. He knew he might feel like crap after his treatment, so he was trying to get ahead on his workload to make things easier for Stellan.

Silas popped in, "Mr. Knight, I just checked on the jewelry company reopening. They said they'll let us know first thing tomorrow."

"Alright," Alaric muttered, crossing his fingers for some good news.

After wrapping up his work, Alaric headed out to pick up the kids.

"Daddy, are you all better now? Can you pick us up every day?" Elisa asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah, Dad, how's your health?" Caspian chimed in, looking worried.

Alaric smiled, "I'm doing a lot better, but I still need a few more months of treatment. Once that's done, I'll be good as new." "Really? No more meds or treatments?" Caspian asked, hopeful.

"Yep," Alaric nodded.

"Awesome! Once you're all better, we can relax," Harry said, grinning.

Back at the villa, Stellan ran out to greet them, beaming. "You're back! Dinner's ready, just waiting for you guys." "Mommy's in a good mood today," Elisa teased.

"Elisa, don't be silly. When is your mom not in a good mood?" Alaric shot back.

"Right, my bad. Mommy's always in a good mood," Elisa giggled.

Seeing the spread on the table, Alaric's jaw dropped. "You made all this?"

"Yep, got a chef to teach me. Put a lot of effort into it," Stellan said proudly. "Now go wash up and dig in." "Okay!" the kids yelled, racing to wash their hands.

"Didn't go out today?" Alaric asked.

Stellan shook her head. "Rowena was busy, and I didn't feel like going out alone, so I stayed in and practiced cooking." "Must've been tough," Alaric said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. The kids saw and started giggling.

"We're kinda third-wheeling here," Harry joked.

"Cut it out. Your mom worked hard on this meal, so let's eat," Alaric said.

After dinner, the kids headed to the study to do their homework. Stellan turned to Alaric, "Wanna go for a walk?" "Sure," Alaric said, then called to the kids, "Be good while we're out. Mommy and I are going for a walk." "Okay, you guys go ahead. We'll behave," they replied.

Hand in hand, Alaric and Stellan strolled out. A walk in the park after dinner felt just right.

Stellan looked at Alaric and said, "Hey, tomorrow's your treatment day."

"Tomorrow? Already?" Alaric never kept track of his treatment days 'cause Stellan always had his back.

Stellan nodded. "Yep, it's tomorrow."

Alaric frowned. "Tomorrow's also when we find out if the jewelry company can reopen. I was planning to be at the office." "Just push the treatment back a day. No biggie," Stellan suggested.

Alaric nodded, "Alright, let's do it."

Stellan gave him a look. "But we can't make a habit of this. Delaying treatment means delaying recovery. Not cool."

"I get it, it won't happen again," Alaric promised. "Let's drop it. Have you checked out any land for the hospital? Got any favorites?"

Stellan shook her head. "Not really. Honestly, I can't think about building a hospital until you're fully recovered."

Alaric said, "Josep mentioned that after the initial treatment, the rest is a breeze. Plus, it's just over four months. If everything goes smoothly, it'll be done by then. I'll be back at Nexus Innovations, and you can run the hospital. Perfect timing, right?"

Stellan smiled. "You're always so on point with timing."

Alaric grinned, "You know it."

Stellan knew Alaric just wanted to keep her busy so she wouldn't stress. "Alright, I get it. Tomorrow I'll check out the land with Rowena. You handle your stuff at the company, and we'll do the treatment the day after." "Deal," Alaric said, pulling her close. He wished they could stay in this perfect moment forever.

The next morning, Silas called Alaric, "Mr. Knight, good news. The reopening application got approved."

"Awesome." After the call, Alaric excitedly told Stellan, "The reopening application got the green light."

"Really? That's fantastic," Stellan said, though she felt a pang of guilt. "If I hadn't pushed for the jewelry company, none of this mess would've happened."

Alaric shook his head, "If it wasn't this, it would've been something else. Troublemakers always find a way. It's not on you."

"Troublemakers?" Stellan was taken aback. "What do you mean by that?"

Alaric realized he might've said too much. Seeing his hesitation, Stellan pressed, "Spill it. Was what happened at the site not just an accident?"

"Do you really think it was?" Alaric said bluntly, "It happened right after Tommy joined. Too much of a coincidence."

Stellan asked, shocked, "You're still suspicious of Tommy?"

"One coincidence is nothing. Three or four? That's a pattern," Alaric said, "He fooled me once. His act might be even better than Ambrose's. Don't underestimate him."

Stellan felt more confused but still hopeful. "I hope you're wrong. If Tommy's really that deep undercover, I'll have to rethink everything."

Alaric just smiled. Right now, he hadn't expected that what was supposed to be good news about the reopening would turn into another looming crisis.