The CEO's Hidden Love: Midnight Temptations and Deep Desires novel Chapter 1382

Returning to Bay Residence that evening, while Everett was tucking the kids in, Dorothy was lost in her own world, an ocean of thoughts keeping her silent and distant.

By the time Everett, fresh from a shower and with his hair still damp, returned to their bedroom, Abigail and Langston had long been in dreamland, yet Dorothy seemed miles away.

"What's on your mind?" Everett asked, drying his hair as he approached her. It took Dorothy a moment to snap back to reality.

"The kids are asleep?"

"Out like lights," he replied, sitting beside her and gently running his hand over her back. "Is it that guy bothering you again?"

At first, Dorothy nodded, then shook her head. "Not entirely. It's just... Bella's life seems so tragic, falling for such a scoundrel. It's like she’s thrown her life away." She caught Everett’s arm, "I’m just so lucky to have you."

Seeing Maxton now, Dorothy couldn't help but feel a twinge of... something. He had his days of glory, yet now he was a shadow of his former self. Though he arguably deserved it, it still stirred something in her. A life derailed by poor choices.

"She's lucky too, to have such a devoted daughter," Everett said softly.

Dorothy had faced her own trials, working tirelessly to support her mother during her younger years. "I sometimes wish I was never born, that she didn’t have such a 'devoted daughter.' Maybe then, her life would’ve been completely different."

Her mother had been beautiful in her youth, and Dorothy had inherited much of that beauty.

"And what about me?" Everett held her hand tighter. "Would I just end up alone?"

"If I never existed, you would’ve found someone better—"

"That’s impossible," he cut her off. "There’s no one better than you."

Dorothy sighed, "I mean, if I wasn't around."

"Then, I'd be alone."