days, Malcolm had shut himself away in there, dealing with the fallout from Casey’s situation. Salvador knew about the situation with Casey, and more than just the <b>surface </b>of It. He was aware she had even been in contact with Lionel.


    Considering their rtionship as inws, Salvador merely reprimanded Malcolm lightly and let it go.


    But for Malcolm, moving past the matter was harder. He might have hidden it from his wife, but many in the household knew. Just because they remained silent didn’t mean they weren’t whispering behind his


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    His authority was slipping away.


    “Dad!” Lionel’s voice broke through from outside the study.


    Malcolm coughed before asking, “What is it?”


    He didn’t want to talk to his son. He didn’t want to talk to anyone. All he wanted was to quietly endure these troubled days.


    “Mom is worried about you and wants to have a word, Lionel replied.


    Lionel had assumed Marjorie didn’t know anything about the situation. He thought she had called him over out of concern for Malcolm.


    Hearing that his wife was here, Malcolm gathered himself. He coughed a few more times and finally stood to open the door. The dim light cast a shadow over his worn features, but he managed a soft smile for Marjorie.


    “I’ve been coughing and didn’t want to pass anything <b>on </b>to you, so I stayed in here.” He took Marjorie’s hand, his tone still tender as it had always been, “Your hands are so cold. Why don’t you wear anotheryer?”


    Marjorie gently withdrew her hand and smiled faintly. “It’s nothing. The room is warm enough.”


    Malcolm’s gaze lingered on the empty space where her hand had been, momentarily stunned. After all these years of marriage, she had never pulled away whenever he held her hand..