Chapter 86

Tears sprang to Camille's eyes, her mind going momentarily blank. She quickly composed herself. "Thank you." Her voice trembled slightly as she asked, "What are the—"

Damien stubbed out his cigarette before she could finish. His fingers brushed away a stray tear tracing her cheekbone. "Get some rest."

Camille stood frozen, watching his retreating form. The unexpected gesture left her momentarily disoriented. When she finally collected herself, uncertainty gripped her.

His instruction to rest early—did that imply she should stay overnight?

Technically, they were still married despite living separately. One night under the same roof shouldn't matter.

But the master bedroom? Absolutely not.

Taking a steadying breath, she gathered her things—a change of clothes, toiletries—and headed for Chloe's room instead.

Morning came early. Camille awoke before seven.

Chloe stirred soon after, wrapping small arms around her neck. "Mommy, will you take me to school today?"

"Of course," Camille agreed.

They descended for breakfast after freshening up.

Damien entered the dining room mid-meal, taking his seat across from them.

"Morning, Daddy!" Chloe chirped.

"Morning." Damien's gaze flickered to Camille before dropping to his plate. Silence settled over the table.

Camille mirrored his quiet. His agreement to help changed nothing between them. The chasm remained as wide as ever.

After dropping Chloe at school, Camille headed straight to work.

The tech expo had sparked numerous ideas between her and Gabriel. The Vertex Dynamics partnership had consumed their time until now.

Finally free to develop their concepts, they dove into planning sessions. The workload piled up rapidly.

Camille planned to order takeout and work late. At six, her phone buzzed—Damien's name flashing on screen while she was knee-deep in blueprints.

She excused herself from the conference room. "Hello?"

"Grandmother's here." Damien's voice was clipped. "Come home."

The line went dead before she could respond.

Returning to the meeting, she briefed Gabriel. "Family emergency. Email me the meeting notes—I'll review everything tonight."

Gabriel waved her off. "Go. We've got this."

Thirty minutes later, Camille pulled into the estate driveway. Damien's car already occupied its usual spot.

Inside, she found him on the living room sofa with Helena and Chloe. He noted her arrival without comment.

Helena rose with a warm smile. "Camille, darling! You're just in time for dinner."

Damien took the seat beside Camille without prompting this time.

Helena piled food onto Camille's plate, tutting. "You're skin and bones! Don't they feed you at that office?"