A Divorce He Regrets

Chapter 36



Chapter 36:

I held her gaze, her determination matching mine.

“Are you going to take your time, or actually do something about this?” she snapped, sounding disgusted, and her expression showed it.

I clenched my jaw, swallowing the urge to snap back. “I told you—I’m handling it.” She scoffed, folding her arms across her chest. “Some father you are.”

Her words cut deeper than I expected, and I felt a pang of guilt that I had buried long ago. What was she getting at? I had been doing everything I could to protect Liam—to give him the life he deserved. I’d searched for her for years, thinking that was what Liam needed most. But a small, nagging part of me wondered if she was right. Had I been so wrapped up in finding her, that I had missed signs right in front of me?

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded, but she just shook her head, looking away. My frustration grew, and I could feel the anger bubbling up again. Liam was my son. He was my priority. I should have noticed something was wrong. But instead, I got consumed by my hatred for her, by the idea that she had moved on so quickly after the supposed divorce. I wanted so badly to believe she was at fault, to hold onto that anger because it was easier than facing the truth—that maybe, just maybe, I had failed him too.

I shook my head, pushing those thoughts away. I wasn’t here to psychoanalyze myself. I was here to fix things, and that was all that mattered. And now that Liam no longer needed a bone marrow transplant, our arrangement—our twisted, transactional custody agreement—was no longer necessary.

I took a deep breath, meeting her gaze with a hardened look. “Since there won’t be any need for surgery, our deal is off.”

Her eyes widened, the shock evident as she processed what I’d said. For a split second, I almost smiled. Seeing her caught off guard was rare, and I hated how satisfying it felt. But the feeling was fleeting, and I forced myself to stand, ready to leave.

Raina struggled to get up, her movements unsteady. I almost reached out to steady her, instinct kicking in before I remembered why I was here. She practically stumbled toward me, and without thinking, I caught her, our faces inches apart. Her gaze dropped to my lips, just for a heartbeat, before she seemed to snap back to reality.

“You can’t do that,” she said, her voice barely more than a whisper, yet laced with a resolve I recognized all too well.

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I pulled back, reminding myself of the boundaries that were now etched between us. “I can, and will.”

The deal had been straightforward. She would donate her marrow, and we would share custody. Without the transplant, there was no deal. She couldn’t argue her way around it, not this time.noveldrama

Her expression changed, her eyes narrowing as she processed my words. And then, her lips curled into a smirk that caught me off guard. “Fine,” she said, her voice dripping with defiance. “Then the Vince project is off as well.”

I froze, the shock hitting me like a punch to the gut. “The project is already underway,” I managed, trying to keep the panic out of my voice.

She tilted her head, her smile growing colder. “If you can screw me over, Alexander, then I can too. I’m not the same doormat you used to walk all over.” I could feel my grip on the situation slipping, but I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of seeing me rattled. I forced myself to leave, anger boiling beneath my skin as I stormed out of the room. She’d always been a challenge, but I hadn’t expected her to fight back with such ferocity. The thought was as infuriating as it was… intriguing.

I needed to get away, to clear my head. When I arrived home, I found Vanessa and Eliza deep in conversation, their voices hushed. It was odd—they were never ones to care about keeping their voices down. The house was usually filled with their laughter and gossip, a constant reminder of the life I’d tried to build to replace the one I’d lost.

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