Too Late To Love Me I Already Left With His Twins (Lydia and Dave) novel Chapter 223

Almost businesslike.

Which honestly suited us now.

After sending the address, I stayed in my office bathroom for another few minutes fixing my makeup carefully.

Not because of Dave.

Please.

But because I am a PR executive and I refuse to look emotionally disorganized in public.

There are standards.

By the time I finally reached the apartment, Dave was already there waiting.

Of course he was.

The man treated punctuality like a blood oath.

The apartment lights were warm and soft against the darkening evening outside. He stood near the dining area with one hand inside his pocket while scrolling briefly through his phone.

The moment he saw me, he straightened immediately.

“Hi.”

I walked past him calmly.

“Hi.”

There was a dining table positioned near the center of the room and the idiot actually pulled a chair out for me automatically.

Pure reflex.

Like muscle memory.

For one dangerous second, something old flickered quietly between us.

Something familiar.

Domestic.

Soft.

I killed it immediately.

I looked at the chair.

Then at him.

Then hissed softly before dragging another chair myself across the floor and sitting where I wanted instead.

Absolutely not.

This was not romance.

Nobody was doing sweet boy gentleman theatrics here.

Dave blinked once before quietly sitting back down across from me.

Awkward silence settled immediately after.

And honestly?

It was almost worse than fighting.

Because once upon a time, this man had been my husband. 2

And now we sat across from each other speaking like former business associates after a hostile merger.

I folded my hands calmly.

“So.”

Dave nodded once slowly.

“So.”

God.

Painful.

I exhaled lightly before continuing.

“Apparently you’ve met Madame Eloise.”

One corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

“Yes.”

“I figured.”

Silence again.

Then I straightened slightly.

“She asked me to speak to you without malice.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Don’t appreciate too quickly. I’m still deciding.”

That earned the smallest tired laugh from him.

Very small. 1

Barely there.

Then I got serious again immediately.

“First things first. The twins made their decision.”

His posture changed instantly after that.

---

This part

Lydia POV

Tiny shift.

But noticeable.

I continued carefully.

“They’re willing to give you a proper chance.”

For the first time since I entered the apartment, Dave genuinely looked emotional.

Just… relieved.

Deeply relieved.

I continued anyway before the atmosphere could soften too much.

“They want consistency. Stability. Actual effort. Not random appearances whenever you feel guilty.”

His jaw tightened slightly.

“That’s fair.”

“And they do not want media involvement.”

That came sharply.

Firmly.

“None.”

He nodded immediately.

“Agreed.”

“No photographs leaked accidentally. No public redemption father arc. No strategic parenting appearances.”

“Lydia.”

“That surprised me.”

“It shouldn’t.”

I folded my arms lightly.

“You love stars too.”

He looked at me then.

Really looked at me.

And suddenly something uncomfortable moved briefly through the room because once upon a time we were married.

Dangerous territory.

I moved on immediately.

“The twins may also need therapy later.”

That snapped the atmosphere back into seriousness instantly.

Dave frowned slightly.

“Therapy?”

“Yes.”

I stayed calm.

“I’m not waiting for emotional damage to fully manifest before addressing it.”

He stayed quiet.

So I continued.

“Children internalize abandonment differently. Especially intelligent children. Sometimes they process too fast emotionally without actually processing healthily.”

His face shifted slowly.

Guilt.

Again.

“I don’t want them growing up with hidden resentment issues or attachment problems,” I said quietly. “So yes. Therapy.”

After a few seconds, he nodded slowly.

“Okay.”

Then silence settled again.

This port

Heavy this time.

Different.

Because now we had reached the dangerous part.

The personal part.

I looked down briefly at my hands before speaking again.

“There’s something else.”

Dave looked up immediately.

And honestly?

For the first time all evening, I looked nervous.

Not visibly.

But internally.

Because this part mattered more than the rest.