The CEO's Rejected Wife And Secret Heir novel Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Chapter 35:Lucas Steps in

Aria pov

The morning after Damien’s visit, I woke to a text message that made my stomach tighten.

Lucas Hayes: Hey Aria, hope I’m not being too forward, but I haven’t been able to stop thinking about our conversation. Would you like to have dinner this week? I promise I’ll only talk business if that’s what you prefer.

I stared at the message for a long moment, my thumb hovering over the screen. The timing couldn’t be worse—or maybe it was perfect. After last night, after watching Damien cry in Noah’s room and feeling that dangerous pull toward forgiveness, I needed distance. I needed perspective.

I needed to remind myself that there were other options in the world besides the man who’d destroyed me.

Aria: Dinner sounds nice. How about Thursday?

His response came within seconds, enthusiastic and warm in a way that felt like sunlight after living in shadows.

For the rest of the week, I threw myself into avoiding Damien. His calls went to voicemail. His texts received polite, professional responses about Noah’s safety but nothing personal. When he showed up at Monroe Global’s headquarters, my assistant turned him away with practiced efficiency.

Wednesday evening, everything changed.

I was in the kitchen preparing Noah’s favorite pasta when he wandered in from the living room, dragging his stuffed dinosaur behind him. He’d been quieter than usual all day, and I’d chalked it up to the lingering effects of his cold.

But the look on his face told me something else was bothering him.

"Mama?" His small voice was hesitant.

"Yes, sweetheart?" I turned from the stove, immediately giving him my full attention.

He climbed onto one of the kitchen chairs, his little legs swinging as he studied me with those too-observant ice-blue eyes. "Why does Mr. Damien have my eyes?"

My hand froze on the wooden spoon. Of course he’d noticed. Noah was brilliant, more perceptive than most adults gave three-year-olds credit for.

"What do you mean, baby?" I stalled, my heart hammering.

"His eyes. They’re the same color as mine." Noah touched his own face, as if checking. "Auntie Olivia said I have special eyes. Does Mr. Damien have special eyes too?"

I set down the spoon and moved to sit beside him, my mind racing. This was the conversation I’d been dreading, the one I’d hoped to postpone for years. But looking at my son’s earnest, confused face, I knew I couldn’t lie.

Olivia had warned me about this. "Children know when you’re lying," she’d said. "And the lies you tell now become the trust issues they have later."

I took a deep breath. "Noah, Mr. Damien is... he’s your daddy."

Noah’s eyes went wide. "My daddy? Like Tommy’s daddy who lives with him?"

"Yes, sweetheart. Like that."

For a moment, he just stared at me, processing. Then his little face crumpled with confusion. "But... Why doesn’t he live here? Why doesn’t he want to be my daddy?"

The question shattered something inside me.

"Oh, baby, no." I pulled him onto my lap, holding him tight. "It’s not that he doesn’t want to be your daddy. It’s complicated, but it has nothing to do with you. Do you understand? You are so loved, Noah. So, so loved."

"Then why doesn’t he live with us?" His voice was small, wounded. "Tommy’s daddy lives with him. And Maya’s daddy too. They eat breakfast together and go to the park. Why can’t my daddy do that?"

I closed my eyes, fighting back tears. How did I explain years of betrayal and pain to a three-year-old? How did I make him understand without poisoning him against his father or making him feel unwanted?

"Your daddy is very busy with important work," I began carefully.

"Does he?" Noah looked up at me with such desperate hope it nearly broke me. "Does he really love me?"

"Yes," I whispered. "He really does love you."

Noah was quiet for a moment, then: "Can he come live with us? So can we be a family like Tommy’s family?"

"It’s not that simple, sweetheart."

"Why not?"

Because he destroyed me. Because I can’t trust him. Because letting him into our lives means risking everything I’ve built.

But I couldn’t say any of that to my three-year-old son who just wanted what every child wanted—both parents living together.

"Because sometimes grown-ups need time to figure things out," I said instead. "But your daddy wants to spend time with you. He wants to be part of your life. Would you like that?"

Noah nodded eagerly, a smile breaking through the confusion. "Can we go to the park? And get ice cream? Tommy’s daddy takes him for ice cream."

"I’m sure your daddy would love that." The words felt painful but I forced them out. For Noah. Everything for Noah.

He threw his small arms around my neck. "I love you, Mama."

"I love you too, baby. So much." I held him close, breathing in his little-boy scent . "Nothing will ever change that. No matter what happens, you and me—we’re a team, okay?"

"Okay." He pulled back, already brightening. "Can I tell Auntie Olivia I have a daddy now?"

"Sure, sweetheart."

He scrambled off my lap and ran back to the living room, leaving me alone in the kitchen with tears streaming down my face.

I’d known this moment would come eventually. I’d just thought I’d have more time to prepare. More time before the careful walls I’d built between Damien and Noah started crumbling.

He didn’t want to be my daddy.

Noah’s words echoed in my mind, and I felt a fresh wave of anger at Damien. This was his fault. All of it. If he hadn’t been so cold, so cruel, so quick to believe lies about me.

***********

On Thursday evening, I dropped Noah off at Olivia’s apartment.

"Hot date?" Olivia asked, bouncing Noah on her hip while giving me an appraising look.

"Business dinner," I corrected, though the dress I wore suggested otherwise.

"Mmhmm." She wasn’t fooled. "With the handsome tech mogul who can’t stop staring at you at networking events?"

"Maybe."

"Good." Olivia’s expression turned serious. "You deserve someone who sees your worth, Aria. Someone who didn’t have to lose you to realize what he had."

"Auntie Olivia!" Noah interrupted excitedly. "I have a daddy now! Mama told me!"

Olivia’s eyes widened, snapping to mine. We’ll talk later, I mouthed.

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