Alpha Your Warrior Ex-Wife is Back (by Aurora Starling) novel Chapter 17

Chapter 171

Nova’s POV

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I could see how excited Leo was to see Mom and Dad looking all lovey dovey at each other. He’d always said he wanted them to get back together, and this seemed to be a step in the right direction toward that, for him.

I didn’t like it.

I was warming up to Dad, sure, but that didn’t mean I was ready for him to be my full–time Dad. I’d been so close to fully accepting him, but then he tried to keep me from my Mom. My mom said I should try to forgive him, and that he even tried to bring our family back together.

But, from how I saw things, our family never would have been in danger of being separated to begin with if Dad hadn’t started everything! Now, not only was I supposed to accept him as my Dad, but a full–time one at that?

I didn’t have any faith that he would treat my mom right. After all she’s gone through, and now breaking up with Uncle Ivan, she deserved better than to have her heart broken again! And Dad had already proven that he was good at breaking her heart!

So while Leo smiled, all teeth and excitement, I glowered.

I didn’t hate him. He’d been buying me things, including the Mr. Bear I slept with now, but that didn’t mean he was fully forgiven! And yeah, he’d gone out of his way to spend more time with me, which was nice, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to be with my mom!

My biggest fear…

What if he just ended up hurting us again?

“Maybe we can help them get together,” Leo said. “They seem like they only need a little bit of a push and then –”

“No,” I said.

“But?”

“No,” I said again. “I don’t want that to happen.”

“But we could be a family.” Leo looked at me with his doe eyes and I almost broke. It would be so nice to see Leo every day and not just two weeks a month. We could even start going to the same school, and maybe make some other friends.

But I wasn’t ready…

Not yet.

“Give me time,” I said. “I want to talk to Dad about some things. Then… maybe.”

10:37 Mon, Feb 9

Chapter 171

ZD

“Okay,” Leo said, but his disappointment was clear. He didn’t want me to have to think about it at all, but at least he seemed willing to wait while I did so.

I waited until later, after Mom and Dad separated to do different things. Mom and Leo were in the living room, while Dad stepped away to read a book out in the gardens. I followed him there.

He had just sat down, yet before he opened the book, he turned and looked at me. “Everything okay, Nova?” He set the book aside, and I felt more comfortable going to him, knowing he was going to put me above the thing he had wanted to do. Maybe he would take my concerns seriously.

“I wanted to talk to you about something,” I said.

“You can talk to me about anything,” he told me.

“Even Mom?” I asked, disbelieving.

He blinked with surprise, but then said, “Yes, even your mom.”

I didn’t give him even a minute to recover from that question before I hit him with another. “Do you like her?”

“Of course, I do,” he said.

“Yeah, but do you like like her.”

He paused a minute this time. “Oh, I think I understand. Your mother and I have a sort of history, Nova. It makes things messy, and there are hurt feelings there that I am trying to make up for. But I am very fond of your mother. She’s the bravest, strongest woman I know. She’s withstood so much and still is such a great person and a great mother. It’s like she doesn’t carry any bitterness to a world that tried so hard to hurt her. Or toward me, when I… made mistakes.”

His face added sadness and he clearly felt bad for the past.

“What if that happens again?” I asked.

“It wouldn’t,” he said. His gaze found mind and held it firmly. “I will never make those mistakes again, Nova. Even if your mother doesn’t want to be with me, I will support and respect her, while loving you and Leo for the rest of my life. I made mistakes but I am smarter now. I won’t fall for the lies I’m told ever again, especially in regards to her. I will only ever believe her and you two children above anyone else. You are my family. You are my life now. I will never hurt you.”

I didn’t want to believe him, and yet…

He seemed like he meant it.

“You are sure?” I asked.

He reached out and took both of my hands in his. His own were so big and strong. Good, Dad hands.

“I’m so sure, I’d stake my life on it,” he said.

10:38 Mon, Feb 9

Chapter 171

The words soothed me and I started to think… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if he became my full–time Daddy and married my Mom.

Claire’s POV

“Claire,” George asked me, interrupting my time with Leo. I excused myself a moment, to step into the hallway with him. “Forgive my asking, but I’ve noticed that you and Ivan are more distant than you were when you came to ask for my blessing.”

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