Cross My Tigress Face the Wrath (Stella) novel Chapter 1017

Meanwhile, on Susanna’s side—

Hull finished his phone call and turned to see Susanna sitting at the table, eating quietly. After her bout of cold and fever, most people would have struggled with food, but apparently not her—if anything, her appetite had returned with a vengeance. When she’d been sick, all she wanted was oranges. Now that the fever had broken, she was gleefully popping strawberries and cherries into her mouth, whole and unrestrained.

Hull caught her eye just as she paused to spit a cherry pit neatly into her napkin, her cheeks adorably puffed out from all the fruit. She looked so content, like she’d be easy to please—just give her good food, and she’d thrive.

A faint smile tugged at Hull’s lips. “Are they sweet?”

Susanna nodded, cheeks still full. “Mmm, so sweet.”

She plucked a large strawberry from the basket and held it out to him in offering.

Hull shook his head. “You eat it.”

He was hardly the type to snack on sweet like this, and it showed in the way he said it—gentle but with amused reluctance.

“Come on, just try a bite. It’s really good,” Susanna insisted, eyes turning up to him hopefully.

Hull gave her a teasing look. “That good, huh?”

She nodded with conviction. “Yes! Super sweet.”

Usually, anything described as ‘sweet’ would send Hull in the opposite direction, but there was something about her expectant gaze that made him relent. He leaned in, took her small wrist in his hand, and without breaking eye contact, bit the strawberry right from her fingers—letting his lips brush against her soft fingertips in the process.

The warmth of his mouth lingered at her skin; A shiver raced through Susanna, like a jolt of electricity. She immediately jerked her hand back, her face flushing crimson. Suddenly, she couldn’t meet his eye.

Hull noticed and let out a low chuckle. “What’s wrong?”

Without a word, Susanna thrust a handful of cherries at him. “Here, eat them yourself! Hmph!” You’re such a tease! Bad man! There was no way biting that strawberry had needed to touch her fingers. He’d clearly done it on purpose.

Hull watched her sulk with amusement, then fondly mussed her hair. “I just got news from Blacktower.”

Her mood did a complete about-face. “Did he go? What happened?”

Hull’s smile flickered as he watched her get worked up. “You sound pretty convinced none of the kids are Derek’s.”

“Of course they aren’t!” she declared.

He raised his brows, waiting for her to elaborate.

“Think about it—the twins aren’t, and neither am I! That’s three out of the five kids acknowledged under his name. What does that say?”

Hull caught on. “Infertility?”

“Exactly!” Susanna said, her tone almost triumphant. “He’s infertile!” She was surer than ever now. Then she paused, a slight frown creasing her brow. “What I really didn’t expect, though, is that he’d be so cold-hearted toward Adelle.”

Not that long ago, Derek would’ve rejected any number of children if it meant keeping Adelle. Now, everything had unraveled in an instant.

Hull’s voice held a touch of irony. “All those years he worshiped her… Well, Adelle was the one he put on a pedestal, after all.”