Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem novel Chapter 604

Both of their eyes were rimmed red, a clear sign that tears had been shed not too long ago.

Seeing him, Elijah's face lit up, "Daddy!"

Tarquin felt a lump form in his throat, almost breaking down into tears. Without Elysia, he might never have heard Elijah call him 'Daddy' again. Calming his heart, Tarquin quickly walked over to Elijah, his brows furrowed as he gently caressed Elijah's cheek, his myriad thoughts condensing into a few words, "I'm just glad you woke up."

He paused, guilt written all over his face, "I'm sorry, buddy. It's all my fault. I should've been there to protect you from the bad guys."

Shaking his head, Elijah replied, "Mom already explained it to me. The poison was rare, even Uncle Benjamin couldn’t detect it, let alone you, Daddy. You did nothing wrong."

Tarquin glanced at Elysia, touched by her support. Just then, Elysia's phone rang, "Talk amongst yourselves, I need to take this call." She gently patted Elijah's cheek and stepped out.

With Elysia gone, Elijah didn't start with the attacker's subject but instead said, "Mom has been defending you ever since I woke up. She says it's not your fault I got poisoned, and she keeps saying how much you love me, and that you're a great dad... She's really worried I'd blame you. Daddy, Mom is truly wonderful."

He knew his mom always wanted to take him away, but even in this situation, instead of speaking ill of his dad, she defended him, proving she was a kind person. Not one to tarnish someone else’s name for her own sake. His mom was genuinely a good person, and he was both proud and grateful. And it made him even more hopeful for his dad to be with his mom! He worried his dad might miss his chance with her!

Understanding his son's thoughts, Tarquin, who would usually brush off such topics, earnestly said, "You're right, she is wonderful, and I really like her."

Elijah, excited, asked, "Daddy, do you like Mom because of me?"

Lowell sounded frustrated, "Don't get me started. The house has already been sold. I tried contacting the new owner, but no matter how much I offer, he just won’t sell! Given that the house was the site of a suicide, it's considered unlucky, and you'd think people would be deterred by that, but even when I offered five times the asking price, he refused!"

Tarquin frowned, "Who's the new owner? What does he do?"

"Keith, apparently he's a preschool teacher."

"Keith?"