Chapter 249
Chapter 249
:
༧
84
55 vouchers
Alex stared at her, his chest tight, his throat almost closing up, then he lifted a hand and pointed at the seat in front of him.
“Please sit.”
Mia didn’t argue. She didn’t complain. She just pulled the chair out and lowered herself.
It was clear….painfully clear….that she was avoiding his eyes.
“What will you like to drink, eat—”
“I don’t want anything from you.”
The words were sharp, cold and firm.
Alex froze, staring at her across the table. So this is it…
The hostility he had felt from her voice on the phone wasn’t going to be just over the phone. It was here, sitting between them, standing like a wall that separated them even though the table was so small.
But he didn’t push back. He didn’t argue with her like he would with anyone else who dared talk to him that way. He simply turned, signaled for the waiter, and ordered a drink for them both.
Silence settles between them.
He is pretending to be calm, pretending to be the Alex Blackwell who handles billion–dollar deals and ruthless men with ease, but his heart… his heart was a wild mess. It thudded so loud it felt like the whole restaurant could hear it. His head was no better, it was throwing a million thoughts at him at once.
Alex has been in worse situations. He has faced powerful enemies, men who wanted to rip him apart.
There were moments where his composure was all that stood between him and destruction. And right now, he clung to that same composure like it was the only shield he had left.
He rested his hand on the table, his gaze refusing to leave her, even though she kept her eyes down.
She was beautiful. God, she had always been beautiful. But now… now she is even more beautiful. Her features had matured, sharpened. She was ethereal.
And Alex remembers. He remembers how insane she had driven him. How crazy he had been about her. When she left, he had nearly lost his mind.
Willowcrest had been his world, and she had been the one to turn it all upside down. He had thought he was unshakable, untouchable, until Mia.
And even now, sitting in front of her after so many years, she was undoing him all over again.
“How have you been?” Alex asked softly, the words almost strange on his tongue.
11:02 Fri, Sep 19
Chapter 249
84
E55 vouchers
Mia finally looked at him. Those eyes, those damn eyes that haunted him in every quiet moment of his life, locked onto his.
“Look,” she said, her voice firm, her tone carrying that wall between them. “I’m not here to play catch with
Alex Blackwell. I’m here for Aiden. So I suggest whatever you want to know should be about him, not
up
you, me.”
Alex blinked, taken aback even though he should have expected it. He looked at her, and the intensity of her gaze was almost unbearable. For a moment, he felt like she could see right through him, down to the part of him that still ached for her. Then, just as quickly, she looked away.
He wanted to reach across the table. To touch her. To take her hand, to remind her that once upon a time, he had been hers and she had been his.
God, how was it possible that after all these years, one woman still had this kind of hold on him? Still made him feel like he was drowning and breathing at the same time?
But he forced himself to look away too. She was right. They were here for his son. Their son. And it was clear she hated him, or at least wanted to. It was best, he told himself, to respect the boundary she was setting between them, even if it hurt like hell.
The waiter arrived with their drinks, placing them down gently before leaving them in silence again. Alex wrapped his fingers around his glass but didn’t lift it. His eyes were still on Mia.
“How old is he?” he asked quietly.
“He’ll be four next month,” Mia answered without hesitation.
Four. His son was going to be four. The number made his chest tighten again, made his stomach turn with guilt and loss. He nodded slowly, holding back the wave that threatened to crush him.
“Does he-” Alex paused, struggling for the words, his eyes glued to her face. She finally looked at him again, and the question tumbled out. “Does he know about me?”
Mia’s eyes lingered on his for a moment, then fell to her hands. She fiddled with her fingers, her voice softer this time, almost embarrassed.
“I told him you were away helping people. That’s why you were never around.”
Alex swallowed hard. His heart sank. Guilt tore through him. He wasn’t there. He had missed it all. The first words. The first steps. The laughs. The tears. He hadn’t known, but God, he wished he had tried harder.
But still, he nodded. At least she hadn’t told Aiden he was dead.
“Thank you for keeping a wonderful image of me for him,” Alex said, his voice rough.
“I did it for him,” Mia snapped back, her tone sharp again.
Alex didn’t argue. He simply nodded, his chest still heavy, but grateful anyway.
“Tell me about him. Please.”
11:02 Fri, Sep 19
Chapter 249
:
84
55 vouchers
Her eyes lifted, and for the first time since they sat down, her gaze softened. Their eyes locked, and then it happened–the smile. That smile. The same one that had once finished him completely. The same smile that had kept him up nights, wishing he could see it again.
“You’ve already seen him,” she said gently, a smile tugging at her lips. “He took everything from you.”
And then she started talking. Really talking. Her voice grew lighter, her words softer. She described Aiden’s likes and dislikes, his little habits, the things he did that made her laugh, the things that drove her crazy.
And as she spoke, Alex felt his heart swell. Because she wasn’t just describing a little boy–she was describing him. The similarities were uncanny. Every little detail sounded like a piece of Alex reflected in his son.
The pride inside him grew so big it nearly crushed him. His chest was so full he could barely breathe. He wanted to cry, but instead, he chuckled, though it came out shaky, as if he were trying to hide the truth.
“He likes mint ice cream,” Alex said softly.
Mia chuckled too, rolling her eyes. “Just like you. It’s so annoying.”
“He’s my son after all,” Alex replied, the pride in his voice impossible to hide. His head felt like it would explode with it. My son. His son.
“You did an amazing job raising him, Mia.”
Her smile faded. Slowly. Her eyes met his again.
“Thank you,” she said finally, her voice low. Then, just as suddenly, she pushed her chair back and stood up.
Alex looked up at her, disappointment spreading through him before he could stop it. His heart sank again, but before he could say anything, her words stopped him cold.
“Do you want to meet him now?”
He froze, staring at her. Then a smile broke across his face without him even realizing it.
“Like right now?”
“Yes. Except uh–maybe you’re busy,” Mia said, turning to leave.
Alex shot to his feet before she could take another step.
“Busy who? I don’t know her, I never met her.”
A chuckle slips past Mia’s lip but she quickly clears her throat obviously to hide it.
“I’ll like to meet him”
