Chapter 149: Telling The Truth

Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Telling The Truth

Derrick’s hands moved steadily, pulling the thin fabric over her hips and adjusting the smooth silk pants over her legs.

As he straightened up, his arms remained loosely draped around her waist, keeping her flush against his chest.

"Beth," Derrick spoke smoothly, his black fixing on hers with a calm, deliberate weight.

"I might be wrong... but I felt like Aunt Ruth was looking at me today."

"Not like an aunt looking at her daughter’s man, but... the way a woman looks at someone she finds attractive."

Beth froze instantly.

Her breath caught in her throat, her hands remaining glued to his broad shoulders as the room fell completely silent.

She bit her lower lip hard, her gaze darting to the side as a complex storm of emotions flashed through her eyes.

"I... I felt the same thing," Beth whispered softly, her voice barely a breath against his skin.

Derrick’s eyebrows raised slightly in genuine surprise.

With his sharp perception and heightened senses, he had only picked up on it through the minute shifts in Ruth’s heart rate, her shallow breathing, and the sudden prickle of heat in her gaze after she accidentally kissed him on the lips.

He hadn’t expected Beth to notice it at all.

Seeing the subtle shock register on his usually unshakeable face, Beth couldn’t help but let out a soft snort, a small, breathless giggle breaking through her lingering embarrassment.

"Why are you so shocked?" Beth asked, shaking her head as a faint, teasing smirk touched her lips. "She’s my mother, Derrick. And I’m a woman too, so I have a pretty good intuition about these things."

She rested her chin against his chest, her fingers lightly tracing the seam of his collar as her expression turned thoughtful.

"I saw the look on her face while we were having lunch," Beth continued softly, her voice dropping as the realization fully sank in. "I might not have thought much about it before, but now that you pointed it out... I finally did. She really was looking at you like that."

’Mom... eyeing Derrick?’ Beth thought frantically, a strange, intoxicating mix of possessiveness and wicked thrill fluttering deep in her chest.

She looked up into his black eyes, her own eyes sparkling under the soft light of the workshop.

"So..." Beth murmured, her voice laced with a quiet, dangerous curiosity, "now that you know... what are you planning to do, Derrick?"

Derrick remained quiet for a brief moment, gazing down at Beth’s expectant face.

Honestly, he didn’t have an answer. He had asked himself the very same question the moment he stepped out of Ruth’s room, but no clear path had presented itself.

"What am I planning to do?" Derrick murmured, his voice low as a faint, contemplative smile touched his lips. "To be honest, I was going to ask you the same thing. What do you think I should do, Beth?"

Beth looked into his intense gaze, her heart beating a little faster at how open and straightforward he was being with her.

She gently shook her head, a soft, fond look softening her features.

"It’s your life and your choices, Derrick," Beth said softly, her fingers resting flat against his chest over his beating heart. "I can’t make those kinds of decisions for you. Whatever happens between you two... that’s something you have to figure out yourself."

She paused, leaning up slightly on her tiptoes to press a gentle, lingering kiss against the corner of his jaw.

"But I’m really happy you were honest with me about it," Beth whispered against his skin, her voice thick with genuine warmth. "Most men would have kept something like this to themselves or tried to play both sides in the dark. The fact that you brought it straight to me means everything."

Derrick pulled her a little closer by her waist, enjoying the soft warmth of her body pressed against his. "And you’re really fine with all of this?"

"I don’t know yet," Beth admitted, biting her lip as a faint blush returned to her cheeks. "It’s... strange. It’s overwhelming. But I know my mother. She’s been lonely for so long, and I’ve seen how much brighter she looks whenever you’re around."

She pulled back just enough to look him directly in the eyes, a firm, determined gleam shining in her gaze.

"I’m will talk to her," Beth declared smoothly, her voice carrying a rare, solid confidence. "I want to hear it straight from her mouth before anything else happens."

’If Mom really feels that way about Derrick...’ Beth thought, a sharp, intoxicating thrill running right down her spine, ’I need to know how far she’s willing to go.’

Derrick’s expression suddenly shifted, his eyes widening slightly as if he had just remembered something, "Ah—wait!"

Derrick muttered, his hands moving to his side.

With a faint flick of his wrist, a soft, ethereal blue glow illuminated the dim workshop.

A small, crystal potion bottle materialized directly out of his spatial storage space, shimmering with a faint, iridescent aura as he held it out on his palm.

Beth blinked, staring at the strange vial floating in front of her, entirely thrown off by the sudden change in topic. "What is this?"

"I was digging through some obscure arcane texts and market logs in the city a while back,"

Derrick explained, his voice turning serious as he handed the glowing bottle to her.

"I found a rare, lost formula. I spent the last few nights brewing it, and I’m certain it can cure the chronic illness your mother has been suffering from."

Well, he bought it from the system but he could not just tell her about it.

Beth froze completely.

The crystal bottle felt cool against her trembling fingertips, but the words echoed like thunder inside her head.

Her mother’s fatal illness...

The heavy burden that had hung over her shoulders for years, slowly draining the life out of both mother and daughter.

It was something Beth had feared would eventually take her away.

"A... a cure?" Beth whispered, her voice cracking as a heavy wave of emotion crashed over her.