His was baffled froze, hurt flickering across his features. “What’s wrong, baby? Are you hurt somewhere? Dizzy? Hard to breathe?”
I stared at him intensely. My voice cold and steady as I asked, “Where’s my wedding gown?”
A flicker of guilt flashed in his eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared.
“Look, baby,” he began, his tone soft, almost pleading, “an accident happened at the studio. Unfortunately, your gown got damaged. That’s why I kept you waiting so long, I was trying sorting it out.”
He reached for my hand, his voice laced with coaxing sweetness. “But don’t worry, I’ll just call the designer to make you a new one. Better than before. It’ll perfectly fits you. Just focus on getting better for now, alright?”
I wanted to tell him not to bother. After all, I had no intention of ever wearing that dress. But before I could speak, Phoebe barged into the room with a stack of papers in her hands. She stopped short when she saw me awake, a hint of annoyance flashing in her eyes before she plastered on a sweet smile.
“I'm glad to see you're awake, Miss Copeland,” she said to me, all fake sweetness, before turning to Lex. “Mr. Blackburn, I have some documents here that require your signature.”
Lex's face instantly darkened. “Phoebe, I assume you are aware that Tara will soon be my wife? If you do, then I want you to start addressing her by the right call from now on!” His voice grew sharper as he continued, “And why are you bringing all these documents here? Business should be handled at the office. You can't just waltz in and out of my private mansion like it's a theme park. Tara needs her rest. I don’t want to see you disturbing her again—understood?”
Phoebe’s eyes welled up, her voice quivering with contrived innocence. “I understand, Mr. Blackburn. I’ll wait for you outside.”
Watching the two of them was almost comical. The pretense of formality between them was laughable, given how intimately entangled their lives already were.
Phoebe fled the room, her steps deliberately hesitant, as if she needed to ensure Lex noticed her distress. True to form, his gaze followed her retreating figure, concern flickering in his eyes before he caught himself and turned back to me.
“Baby,” he murmured, brushing a strand of hair from my face, “I’ll go handle this quickly and be right back, okay? Stay here and rest.”