Chapter 8
The wedding reception had ended. After tucking Jayden into bed, I prepared to help Ryker clean up.
But he wouldn’t let me touch a thing, insisting on handling everything himself while I rested.
Watching him move efficiently around the room, my heart softened.
After all those painful days with the Thorne family, being cared for so thoughtfully created a stark
contrast.
Looking back, my parents often mentioned that Ryker had loved me for years. When I married Knox, he stayed single. After I was widowed, he hoped to marry me, but I was determined to stay faithful to Knox’s memory. So Ryker kept waiting–for a full three years.
I realized his feelings for me matched or even surpassed what I once felt for Knox.
Thankfully, we had finally found our way to each other. In this relationship, no one needed to wait any longer.
BANG!!
The front door suddenly shook with violent pounding, as if someone was trying to break it down.
I frowned, walking over to open it.
Standing there was both the last person I expected and the one I somehow knew would
appear–Knox.
Blood still stained the corner of his mouth, and his clothes were filthy with dust. I stepped back instinctively, with a barely concealed revulsion I didn’t even realize I felt.
Before I could react, Knox dropped to his knees with a thud, his voice agonized but restrained:
“Aria, you figured it out, didn’t you? I never died–I’ve been lying to you all this time. Beat me, kill me, do whatever you want. Just let out your anger!”
I looked down at him, my expression unchanged: “I won’t take anything out on you because I simply don’t care anymore.”
14:27
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Three Years a ‘Widow‘… Until I Found His Secret!
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Chapter 8
Staring into my cold gaze, he was bewildered: “How? How can you not be furious? Even I think I
deserve to die for what I’ve done…”
Just then, Jayden appeared, rubbing his sleepy eyes. Knox’s face instantly lit up with hope.
No matter what happened, Jayden was still his flesh and blood–a fact that couldn’t be changed no matter how many times I remarried.
But Jayden’s first words shattered that hope: “Uncle, why are you here?”
Knox’s face crumpled in despair. Now even his son refused to acknowledge him. He could only anxiously press for an answer:
“I’m your dad! You always knew it was me, didn’t you?”
Though small in stature, Jayden’s tone was remarkably composed: “You’re the one who told me not to call you that. Now I’m calling you Uncle like you wanted, so why aren’t you happy?”
‘Besides, my new dad treats me really well. Uncle, please stop bothering us.”
Knox’s mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.
Ryker arrived at the perfect moment, taking my hand and Jayden’s. Without ceremony, he told Knox
t was time to leave.
Seeing our happy family of three–a unit with no place for him–Knox could only watch as the door irmly closed in his face.
A few days later, due to some paperwork issues with the wedding, I moved into a temporary apartment not far from the military base.
I thought we might finally have some peace, but Knox clearly hadn’t given up…
14:27
