Chapter 242
Chapter 242
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Mia had thought about this moment more times than she could count. Thousands of times.
Late nights when she was nursing Aiden and exhaustion pulled her down. Quiet mornings when she watched her son’s little chest rise and fall as he slept.
Random hours when memories she had buried came clawing their way back to the surface. She had pictured this moment in her head in every possible way.
At some point, after giving birth, she would sometimes stand in front of the mirror and rehearse. What would she do if she saw him again? What would she say? Would she scream? Would she cry? Would she stand tall and pretend he meant nothing?
She had practiced it over and over, like if she got it right in the mirror, she’d be ready if life ever threw him back into her world.
But life wasn’t a mirror.
She gave up those little daydreams a long time ago. Still, even after all these years, the thoughts never really left. They’d sneak up on her when she least expected it.
And now here she is.
Standing in front of Alexander Blackwell.
The man she had loved like a fool. The man she had given up her pride for, again and again. The man who had been her first love, her only love, and the man she had sworn she hated, the man she had taught herself to detest with everything inside of her.
He was right there.
In the flesh.
If Alexander Blackwell had always been hot, then Alexander Blackwell now was fire. Time had only sharpened him. No one man had any right to look like that, and yet here he stood, tall, unshaken, devastating in the way only he could be.
Mia felt her soul leave her body. She felt hollow, empty, while her heart betrayed her by beating faster and harder than it ever had before.
Her chest felt like it might burst open. Her body seemed to forget how to function, how to move, how to talk.
She just stared at him.
The moment their eyes met, the world tilted. It felt like the heavens and earth cracked open and poured out all their shared memories, the ones she had fought so hard to bury.
The laughter. The whispers. The kisses that had stolen her breath. The nights she had given him all of herself. The heartbreak, the laughter, the tears, the smiles….
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Chapter 242
For a second, Mia forgot who she was, she forgot why she was here. She forgot everything except him.
“Mia,” Lily’s voice broke through her haze, pulling her back to earth.
She blinked, shutting her eyes tight for a moment. She begged her brain to work
Begs her body to listen to her brain, to remember why she was standing here in the first place.
When she opened her eyes again, her gaze went straight to Lily. Then down to her son.
Aiden.
He was sleeping peacefully. Mia’s chest loosened a little at the sight. She released a shaky breath she hadn’t even realized she had been holding.
Don’t scream. Don’t cry. She begged herself. Don’t break here, not in front of them.
“I’m sorry, Mia,” Lily whispered, her eyes wet.
Mia stared at her sister, saying nothing.
Then, slowly, she walked over and gently lifted Aiden from Lily’s arms. He stirred a little, his little hand automatically finding her neck, his small body melting into hers as she steadied him.
She held him tightly, protectively, kissing his head as if grounding herself in the only thing that mattered.
Her son. Her whole world.
And then her hand shot out.
The sound of her palm striking Lily’s cheek cracked across the room.
Lily stumbled, her hand flying up to cover her face, tears welling in her eyes instantly.
Mia’s rage only burned hotter. She slapped her again, this time on the other cheek. And then again. And again.
“Mia!” Ethan rushed forward, grabbing her arm, pulling her back before she could hit her again.
Aiden woke up with a start, blinking, his little eyes darting around in confusion. “Mama?” he whispered sleepily.
Her anger cracked at the sound of his voice. She pulled him closer, hugging him tight. “It’s okay, baby. Go back to sleep,” she whispered into his hair, her voice soft, trembling.
Aiden hummed softly, already drifting back off, his head pressing against her neck again.
Mia looked back up at Lily, her vision blurred with tears. Her chest heaved as her voice came out in a broken whisper. “You had the audacity to do this to me.”
Her throat burned. Her entire body shook. She wanted to scream, but the sound came out cracked and raw,
મ
11:55 Tue, Sep 16
Chapter 242
her pain barely held together.
:
She turned, hugging her son tighter, her only thought to leave. To get out of this room. To take her boy far, far away from these people.
“Mia.”
Her name in his voice
She froze.
His voice
320
Alex’s voice rolled through the room, deep and uncertain, like he was tasting her name just to see if it was real or if he was hallucinating.
Her heart stopped.
She didn’t turn back. She couldn’t. Her feet moved instead, carrying her toward the door, desperate to leave.
But then he spoke again.
“Why did you hide him from me?” Alex asked, his voice heavier this time.
Mia squeezed her eyes shut. The one question. The one question she had prayed she would never have to
answer.
Her feet stopped. Slowly, finally, she turned to face him.
Her voice was low but steady. “I had to do what I had to do to keep my son safe.”
Alex’s face tightened, his eyes burning into hers. “How is keeping my son away from me keeping him safe?”
Mia ignored the longing clawing at her chest, ignored the way her heart still beat too fast for him, ignored the years of love that still lingered somewhere inside her no matter how much she hated herself for it.
“You’re a Blackwell,” she said coldly. “You destroy everything you touch. My son was safer with me than with you.”
Alex’s jaw clenched, his anger flaring. “What kind of bullshit are you talking about?”
“Mia,” Esther’s soft voice broke in, almost pleading. “What did Charles do to you?”
Mia let out a bitter laugh. Sarcastic, raw, broken.
She looked at Esther, her lips trembling, her tears threatening to spill. “Oh, you want to know, Esther Blackwell? You want to know what your dear husband did?”
Her voice rose, every word trembling with fury and pain. “He barged into our house in the middle of the night with his men. Guns pointed at our heads while we were dragged into a van like animals. He locked us in a warehouse. Threatened us to leave and never come back. Then he bundled us like nothing and threw us
11:55 Tue, Sep 16
Chapter 242
onto a cargo ship, to drop us off on whatever land they wanted.”
The room froze.
Esther gasped, her hand flying to her mouth, horror written all over her face.
Jullian’s eyes widened, shock breaking through his usual smirk.
And Alex–Alex just stared at her. Blank. Like he had been struck.
Mia let the silence hang heavy for a moment, her son clinging to her neck.
She didn’t wait for their questions. She didn’t wait for their response or their apologies. She turned and walked out immediately.
AD
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