Ezra thought for a moment. He would have indeed used Lake’s help through Coco, but then he had to be a man to clean up his own mess.“You already have a lot on your hands too. Just focus on your relationship, and I will take it from here. Thanks a lot for the information.”Ezra hung up and did not dare to call Landon for anything about Michelle, as that might lead to him getting fired.Her safety was more of a concern to him than having her in his arms.Michelle was still at her parents' house, and though this was not how Ezra wanted to meet her parents again after her return, he still had to start from somewhere.He was just glad that his wound was healing well, and he felt not much pain.At Madison’s house, she invited Margo in, recalling that Lake was with Coco. This was his chance to get the woman he always had a crush on, and Margo should not be there as a third wheel.Together, they arrived in front of Madison’s door to see that not only did the girls not just come to deliver th

“Lake asked me to pick up Coco on his behalf,” Ezrah said politely, his expression sad.Michelle was upset, feeling that Lake was using Coco to give Ezrah access to her life.“That is uncouth of him. My opinion of him just dropped from ninety to zero. As a first date, nothing should matter to him more than his woman.”Michelle did not want the same thing to happen to Coco as had happened to her. If Lake truly wanted her, then he would jump every hurdle to pick her up himself and not send Ezrah.“It’s not what you think. There is an emergency, and he couldn’t disappoint her, so I’m only here to pick her up and send her to him.”Ezrah’s voice remained polite and calm, as he hoped that Michelle would believe him. He had his own intentions, but this was impromptu and not what he had planned.Michelle still could not believe him. “You know what, Coco would not see him.”About to turn and leave, Ezrah spoke behind her, knowing how easy it would be for her to convince Coco not to see Lake.“

“Whatever you want to discuss, let’s do it here in the car. I would not go anywhere with you,” Michelle took her stand.Had she known that Ezrah picking up Coco on behalf of Lake was to help with a grand proposal, she would not have followed them and would not have ended up in this mess.All she wanted was to make sure that her best friend was fine, not expecting to end up alone with her ex-husband.Ezrah was saddened that his surprise was ruined, but at least he got to talk to her.Also, he considered his ruined surprise as part of the punishment for the number of times she waited, just for him to not show up.“I will be honest with you, Zora. I want you back. Let’s get married again.”Michelle laughed bitterly. The first time was just like this. “Let’s get married. We can divorce when the news about the scandal dies down.”By then, Michelle was so in love with him that she did not hope for a divorce, which happened eventually.“You are mad, Ezrah. If that is your reason for sending

Ezrah could not miss this chance, speaking hopefully. “I will do anything, just mention it.” Michelle forced a smile, knowing he misunderstood, and began to explain it slowly to him. “Ezrah, Zora died the moment her unborn child died.” Ezrah smiled bitterly, half guessing what she was up to. Yet, he listened intently to her demand. “Our unborn child died untimely. If not for Piper, I would have been a mother. If you can bring my dead child back, then you can have me, Michelle. Until then, unlock this door if you won’t take me home.” Ezrah had thought about that part, but he knew his suggestion would upset her at this moment. No longer wanting to keep her for so long from her home, fire returned to the ignition, and he stepped on the accelerator. Michelle sighed with relief that her trick worked, and he was driving in the direction of her home. She felt that the understanding of how impossible it was for them to get back together finally sank in, but how wrong she was. Ezrah ar

Coco was confused. It was understandable that she had just met Lake, but he seemed strange.“If that’s not what you wanted, then why did you ask me to spend the night?”Lake wasn't surprised by her misunderstanding and quickly explained his request to her.“That’s because I want to get to know you, but let me wear the mask for you.”Coco felt more at ease knowing they wouldn't go all the way, allowing him to wear the eye mask for her.Expecting to be led to the room, she felt light in Lake’s strong arms as he carried her bridal style.This wasn't the first time he had carried her like that, but it felt different because she wasn't afraid like the first time.He gently allowed her legs to touch the floor before removing the eye mask.“It’s dark,” Coco pointed out. Lake smiled and asked her,“True. But first, tell me what you expect to see.”Coco chuckled, staring at him through the darkness as she began to think about her expectations of him at a time like this.“Well, I expect to see