LAUREN'S POV
His words hung in the air for a moment, sinking into my chest like cold water.
“Three days? Is that supposed to be some kind of joke?” I asked, my voice trembling slightly despite my best effort to keep it calm. “How do you think that would work? I’m her mother — I’m supposed to spend more time with her. We share a closer bond, Ethan.”
“And that’s exactly why I’m going to take four days,” he shot back, his voice sharp and cold. “I want to bond with Elena. I know I haven’t been showing up for her these past few weeks, but I wanna make up for that. And besides,” he paused, and even though I couldn’t see his face, I could practically hear the smirk forming on his lips, “I’ll also be doing her a favor. Soon enough, she’ll be begging to never come visit you in that rabbit hole
