Chapter 5 - Meeting the Monsters
Blake froze entirely.
I turned around. Finn was standing in the hallway, holding a stuffed dinosaur.
He stared at Blake with wide, curious green eyes.
Blake’s breath hitched. He looked like he was looking at an angel.
“Hi,” Blake whispered, his voice incredibly gentle.
Finn hid slightly behind my leg. “Hi. Are you lost?”
A painful smile broke across Blake’s face. “Yes. I think I’ve been lost for a very long time.”
I sighed, rubbing my face. I couldn't do this on the porch. I couldn't be cruel in front of my children.
“Come inside, Blake. Before you ruin my marble floors with your wet shoes.”
I handed him a towel. He dried off awkwardly, his eyes never leaving Finn.
Soon, Leo and Max came running into the living room, stopping dead in their tracks when they saw the stranger.
“Whoa,” Leo said, crossing his arms exactly the way Blake usually did. “Who are you?”
Blake looked at the three boys. His three sons.
His hands were shaking so badly he had to grip the edge of the sofa.
“My name is Blake,” he said softly.
“Are you Mommy’s friend?” Max asked, tilting his head.
Blake looked at me, a silent question in his eyes. He was letting me set the boundary.
“He’s… someone I used to know a long time ago,” I said carefully.
“Do you like Legos?” Finn asked suddenly, holding up his dinosaur.
Blake blinked, tears welling up in his eyes again. “I love Legos.”
For the next two hours, the billionaire CEO of a global energy company sat on the floor of my living room.
He didn’t check his phone. He didn’t mention the stock market.
He built a giant, chaotic spaceship out of mismatched Lego bricks, listening intently as three five-year-olds commanded him around.
“No, not the red one! The blue one!” Leo ordered.
“Yes, sir,” Blake replied, happily following the toddler’s orders.
I watched from the kitchen counter, sipping coffee, Lucas standing beside me.
“He’s actually trying,” Lucas admitted grudgingly.
“It’s day one,” I muttered. “Let’s see how he handles it when they have a tantrum or get sick. Money can’t fix a fever.”
But as the weeks turned into a month, Blake proved me wrong.
He didn't move back to New York.
He bought a house three streets down from mine.
He stepped back from the daily operations of his company, appointing a CEO to take his place.
He showed up every morning at 7 AM to help me make pancakes before preschool.
He didn't bring expensive, flashy gifts to buy their love.
He brought his time.
He learned that Leo hated crusts on his sandwiches.
He learned that Max needed a nightlight because he was afraid of the dark.
He learned that Finn had mild asthma and needed his inhaler before soccer.
He was becoming a father, piece by piece, right in front of my eyes.
But he still hadn't told them who he really was.
He was waiting for my permission.
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The ice around my heart was slowly melting, but the memory of the betrayal still held me back.
Until the night everything went terribly wrong.
