Chapter 57
“How long have you been working for Thalassa Thompson?
Millie froze, her heart pounding in her chest. This was the last thing she had expected Kris to ask her. She was so dumbstruck that she couldn’t speak for a full minute.
Kris leaned back in his swivel chair, forming a steeple with his hands. “You might not be talkative, Millicent, but I know you’re not this quiet. I expect you to say something.
His expression was neither cold nor warm. It was just cool, making Millie feel even more nervous because she couldn’t guess what was going through his head.
“Tha… Thalassa Thompson? Who…” she stammered.
Kris’s eyes darkened. “I hope you’re not going to deny it, Millicent. My mother and I talked in your presence about going to the charity function. My family didn’t tell anyone else, but Thalassa came to that function knowing we were going to be there. The only person who could’ve told her is you, so I want the truth. How long have you known her?”
Seeing how sure Kris looked, Millie realized she couldn’t lie her way out of this. Dragging in a deep breath to calm herself, she responded, “I met her three years ago.”
Kris’s expression sank a little. Though he had strong suspicions, he had also hoped he was wrong.
“How did you meet her?” he asked calmly.
“It was a few days after your divorce. I met her when she came to live with the Mathewses. I was a temporary housekeeper at the time,” Millie answered.
Kris’s eyes darkened further. “You mean when she came to live with Zeke Mathews?”
Millie frowned slightly. “No, she didn’t come to live with just Zeke.” She bit her lip. “Sir, things didn’t happen the way you think they did.”
Kris scoffed. “You don’t have to make excuses, Millicent. I already know the truth. Thalassa and that man were lovers even before our divorce, and she went to live with him because he offered her money and protection.
Millie’s eyes widened. “What? No! That’s not how things happened at all!”
Kris flashed a cold smile. “Oh yeah? Then how did things happen?”
Millie swallowed. “Thalassa came to live in the house because of Zeke’s grandmother.‘
She sighed, then continued speaking. “It’s a long story, but basically, Zeke’s grandmother had early signs of dementia. She got lost one day and was nearly kidnapped by a man, but Thalassa saved her. After that, she wouldn’t stop asking about Thalassa, so Zeke went to look for her and begged her to come and spend some time with his grandmother. Thalassa agreed because she wanted to help the old woman, and also because she was living in a motel at the time.”
A wry smile curved Kris’s lips, not believing her. “So why did she go to New York with him? What’s your‘ explanation‘? And what about all the wealth she has now? Can you ‘explain‘ that too?”
“Yes, I can explain it,” Millie said uncertainly, becoming more nervous due to his tone, which had turned colder. “ After Thalassa had spent about a month with his grandmother, Zeke and the doctors realized that her condition had improved significantly. But then it was time for them to return to New York.”
She shifted on her feet. “The doctors feared that his grandmother’s condition would deteriorate again without Thalassa. That was why Zeke asked Thalassa to go with them to New York as his grandmother’s nanny. He offered
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Chapter 67
to pay her several million dollars. Thalassa initially refused but even when she accepted, she didn’t want to take the money. Zeke still went ahead and transferred it to her bank account for a couple of months. Yes, Thalassa used that money to start her business, but she’s the only one responsible for how successful it has become. Look, I know all this sounds complicated, but it’s true.”
After she was done speaking, she waited several seconds with bated breath until Kris finally spoke again.
“Let’s say I believe everything you just said. That still doesn’t explain how Thalassa and that man became lovers.”
“That’s exactly what I’ve been trying to explain to you, sir. There has never been anything between Thalassa and Zeke, and there still isn’t.”
Kris’s eyes blazed with anger as he shot to his feet, his gaze threatening. “You’re lying, Millicent. And do you know how I know you’re lying?”
He let out a bitter chuckle. “Because Thalassa herself admitted the truth to me. She told me she and Zeke Mathews were lovers even before our divorce and that the baby she lost belonged to him.”
Millie’s eyes widened with shock, and she was unable to speak for several seconds.
“What? You have nothing else to say now?” Kris taunted.
Millie slowly began shaking her head. She remembered exactly how things happened, and she also knew the current situation. There was no way she could be wrong.
Her head shaking became more vigorous now as she spoke. “Thalassa and Zeke never knew each other before your divorce. Zeke had never even been to New York before, so how could they have been lovers? I don’t know why she lied to you, but there’s nothing between them.”
Kris felt his chest tightening, his head reeling from every bit of information he was being given that contradicted everything he believed.
“You can go now,
Millicent.”
“Sir…” Millie stepped forward nervously. Kris hadn’t talked about the fact that she’d been betraying him all this time, but she knew it would come up again. “I’m sorry I hid from you that I knew Thalassa, and-‘
“We’ll talk about this later, but I want to be left alone now, Kris gruffly said as he searched around his table for his phone.
As soon as Millie left the office, he picked up his phone and dialed the number of his private investigator, Smoke. “Mr. Miller, I’m so glad to hear from you again. What do you need me to look-” Smoke began speaking, but Kris- cut him off, his voice stern.
“Didn’t you tell me that my ex–wife became Zeke Mathews s lover shortly after our divorce?”
The PI was taken aback by Kris’s cold tone and took a few seconds to respond. “Yes. I assumed that was the case.”
Kris was furious. “Assumed?”
“Well, she began living with him after your divorce and even moved to New York with him. It made sense to assume that they were together.”
“So you found no evidence whatsoever that actually proved they were lovers?” Kris demanded
The PI hesitated. “No, Mr. Miller. But-‘
“You’re a fucking idiot!” Kris hissed and immediately hung up the phone.
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Chapter 57
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Remembering all the hurtful things he had said to Thalassa after thinking she cheated with Zeke Mathews, Kris shoved his fingers into his hair, feeling uncertain for the first time.
Had he really been wrong all this time?
He needed to know because the possibility was driving him crazy. He had to see Thalassa.
Chaplet od
