hapter 153
ELENA
+25 BONUS
I hadn’t expected it to hit me like that.
Watching Derek teach Aiden to ride his bike… I don’t know t gutted me in a way I wasn’t prepared for. Not because it hurt, but because it was right. The way Alden beamed up at him.
The way Derek knelt beside him, patient and calm, catching him every time he fell. The way they both lit up when Aiden finally took off on his own, his legs pedaling wild and proud.
It wasn’t just about the bike.
It was about this–this moment that should’ve always belonged to a boy and his father.
And I’d kept it from them
Not out of cruelty, but out of fear. Fear that Derek would hurt him, disappoint him, abandon him. Fear that he’d do to Aiden what he did to me.
But now?
Now I wasn’t sure anymore.
I watched them from the window, unseen, heart lodged somewhere between my ribs and my throat. Derek’s hand lifted to wave, and I stepped away instinctively. I didn’t want him to see me watching. I didn’t want him to see the crack forming in the wall I’d worked so hard to build
I wasn’t ready to admit what I felt
Aiden’s laughter echoed up the stone walkway as they came back inside. His cheeks were flushed, his eyes bright,
smear of dirt on one knee and no care in the world.
“Mom!” he yelled as he barreled toward me. “Did you see me? Did you? Dad taught me how to ride my new bike! Come see!”
He grabbed my hand and tugged with enough force to nearly yank me off balance. Derek trailed in behind him, smiling at us both with quiet bemusement.
I let Aiden lead me outside again, past the veranda and into the open yard where his bike lay on its side like it had been dropped in a hurry. He kicked it upright, threw a leg over the frame, and took off like a comet, weaving around the garden path.
“Watch me turn!” he called out. “I’m gonna go so fast!”
I clapped, trying to blink back the sting in my eyes. “Helmet!” I shouted. “You promised.”
Aiden groaned dramatically, dragging it out like it was so unfair, but he doubled back and sooned it off the grass with a grin.
As he pedaled off again–faster, more confident now–I turned to Derek.
“You did well teaching him,” I said.
He smiled faintly. “He’s a fast learner.”
I hesitated, watching Aiden make a wobbly loop around the garden path, “I tried to do everything on my own,” I
Chapter 153
said quietly. “And I don’t regret that. I did what I had to do
I know you did,” Derek said, his voice low, careful.
+25 BONUS
“Logan and Mason were amazing. They helped so much. They were there for the scrapes and the stories and the nightmares. They showed up. They cared.”
He nodded, not interrupting
“But…” I exhaled, arms folding loosely across my chest. “s clear now that he needs something else. Something I can’t give him. Not the same way.”
Derek’s brow furrowed, but not out of confusion. He understood. I could feel it.
“He needs a dad,” I said. “Not just male figures. Not just good examples. His dad.”
He looked away for a second, jaw flexing. “I’ve missed so much already. I’ll never get that time back.”
“Nou won’t.” I said, honest. “But what you do with the time you have–that still counts.”
He turned to look at me then. Really looked. And I saw the emotion in his eyes. Not just gratitude. But something heavier. Something rooted in guilt and longing.
“I’ll never stop trying to earn it,” he said. “His trust. Yours. Whatever you give me–I’ll never take it for granted” I didn’t respond right away.
Because that was the problem, wasn’t it?
He meant it. I could tell. But meaning something and living up to
