The Ex-Wife He Can’t Have novel Chapter 10

Her parents had divorced when she was ten, and Judith had moved them back into her mother's house. Since then, the three women had relied entirely on one another to survive.

Five years ago, when Jillian found out she was carrying Killian's child, she was completely lost and had no idea how to handle the situation.

To make matters worse, Lydia had suddenly fallen critically ill and was fighting for her life in the hospital.

Staring down the towering stack of daily medical bills, Jillian hadn't told her mother. Instead, she went to the Quincy family alone.

After a DNA test confirmed the baby was Killian's, the Quincy family asked what she wanted. She told them she needed money.

The family wired her millions of dollars on the spot, and she used every cent to save her grandmother's life.

Not long after, she received a call from the Quincy family instructing her to sign the papers with Killian.

To Jillian, this had felt like an absolute miracle. Overflowing with dreams of a beautiful future and completely blinded by her love for him, she had happily rushed to tie the knot.

She had truly believed she was walking into a blissful marriage.

She never expected reality to slap her across the face so violently.

Looking back now, she realized that fate had secretly attached a price tag to its gifts long ago.

All her current misery was merely the debt she was paying for her past naivety.

That was why Jillian never truly blamed Killian. No matter how horribly he treated her, she felt she deserved it.

As Jillian led her son into the house, Connor whispered, "Mom, when are we leaving?"

Jillian frowned. "We just got here."

Connor fell silent.

Lydia finished cooking and warmly ushered them to sit at the dining table.

A steaming, freshly cooked plate of Glazed Spare Ribs sat right in the center, surrounded by all of Jillian and Connor's favorite dishes.

It had been a long time since Judith had seen Connor. As she piled food onto his plate, she happily asked him about kindergarten.

Inherently aloof, Connor gave short, indifferent answers.

"Have you signed him up for any tutoring classes? The little girl next door is already taking dance lessons," Judith mentioned.

Connor frowned, clearly not wanting to engage.

When she was little, Jillian had never understood why her mother refused to let go of a man like that. It wasn't until she grew up and met Killian that she finally understood.

Every woman had her own inescapable tragedy to endure.

At first, Jillian had despised her father for abandoning them, but she eventually made peace with it. After all, even before the divorce, he hadn't loved her much anyway.

When she was a little girl, she had pushed herself to be perfect at everything, desperately hoping for his approval, but he always treated her with cold indifference.

She had never once seen a trace of fatherly love in his eyes.

"Really?" Judith looked pleasantly surprised.

"I remember Jill used to take drawing lessons when she was little, too," Lydia chimed in.

"Too bad I never amounted to much." Jillian reached out and stroked her son's head. "Con has way more talent than I ever did. Maybe it skipped a generation."

The smile froze on Judith's face.

She set her bowl down and exchanged a heavy glance with Lydia, but in the end, neither of them said a word.