Chapter 230 My Dream
ROWAN
Fuck it. He ruined the moment.
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I’d been running around all day, fixing what needed fixing, lifting what no one else wanted to lift, hammering, sawing, scrubbing–anything that kept me in Tessa’s world. My body was aching, but my mind was restless with only Tessa running inside it.
After everything I had done today, I wanted to go home to her.
Wouldn’t it be great?
Even when you’re tired, even when the day tears you apart, youe home and she’s there. She’s waiting for you. The sight of your wife–your mate–and your child running into your arms, filling every hollow ce with warmth. That’s be my dream now.
However, he arrived and ruined the moment.
Owen.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he eximed.
“Nothing,” I answered as I straightened. I was only admiring Tessa for being such a beautiful being.
“I heard from Noelle that an intruder was here,” he muttered, eyes narrowing. “Looks like I came at the right time.”
I clenched my fists. He said it like I was some kind of threat. I was about to retaliate when she spoke.
“Is
your work trip done?” Tessa asked softly. I pursed my lips. She never used that tone with me
anymore.
He nodded in response, and in one easy step, he closed the distance between them. My chest seized as he leaned his head against her shoulder.
“I’m tired,” he muttered, and it felt like a mockery of my own exhaustion.
Just then, the door creaked open.
“Uncle Owen!”
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Ca’s voice lit up the night, her little feet pattering against the wood until she wasunching herself into his arms. He caught her effortlessly, spinning her around while her giggles filled
the air.
I couldn’t breathe.
I was watching a family. My family.
But I wasn’t in it.
I was on the outside, standing there like a stranger, watching as the picture I’d been breaking myself apart to piece back together belonged to someone else.
It hurt in a way no wound ever had. It would have been better if blood had spilled from my body instead. However, watching this felt like everything was spilling from my soul.
Tessa looked at me, her lips parting but closing once more.
“You should go, Rowan.”
The words hit harder than Owen’s shove. I looked into her eyes and silently asked her to take her words back. However, she didn’t budge, and in the end, I had no choice but to obey.
I gave them onest look before I turned away.
Ca’sughter still echoed in my ears, her arms wrapped tight around Owen’s neck, her little voice bubbling like a song. She was happy, so utterly happy, and I couldn’t fault her for that. My daughter deserved joy and warmth; as well as the things I had failed to give her back then.
She looked at me over Owen’s shoulder, her face flowing with innocence. “See you tomorrow, mister!”
Mister.
That’s all I was to her. A stranger who happened to show up now and again. Nothing more, nothing less. My throat tightened at the word, and I swallowed down the ache before it could show on my face. I couldn’t hate her for it. If anything, it was the truest reflection of how much distance I had put between us.
It was my own doing, so I forced myself to turn and walk away.
The night air was cool, brushing against my sweat–soaked shirt as I made my way back toward Edith’s house. My body was screaming for rest, but my heart wouldn’t shut up.
I stopped in my tracks when I heard footsteps trailing behind me.
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I stopped, letting out a sharp sigh as I turned. “Did youe here to rub it in
my face?”
For a moment, silence stretched between us. Then Owen stepped closer until he was in front
of me.
“No,” he said finally. “I came here to tell you to leave.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Leave?”
“Yournd needs you,” he answered without hesitation.
A bitterugh threatened to crawl out of my throat, but I forced it down, pursing my lips instead. It was always the same chains binding me.
But what about what I need?
The thought screamed in my skull. What about my daughter? What about the little girl who should be calling me father, not mister? What about Tessa, who still lingered at the edge of every dream I dared to have?
It was as though he heard me.
“I’ll take care of them,” Owen said firmly.
My breath hitched.
“I’ve been doing so since the moment you rejected Tessa,” he continued. “So it’s not new to me. I’m working to be more stable and have my own office. And with that, I’ll have more time for them.”
My chest squeezed so tightly it was almost unbearable. He spoke with such conviction, as though he’d already built a life around them. I clicked my tongue. “So, you do like her.”
His gaze didn’t waver. “What about it?”
Inside, I already knew. It was in the way he looked at her, the way his presence lingered in her space as naturally as breathing. I just hadn’t wanted to believe it. I hadn’t wanted to admit that all this time, while I was chasing titles and drowning in mistakes, Owen had been there for the
two of them.
A taunting look crossed his eyes, like he expected me to break under its weight.
Instead, something else slipped from my lips. “Thank you,” I muttered.
His brows furrowed, his mouth tightening in confusion. For once, Owen had no immediate
Chapter 230 My Dream
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The words tasted bitter in my mouth, but I couldn’t deny their truth. As much as I hated it, as much as it tore at me to picture him where I should have been, I couldn’t ignore the reality. Tessa and Ca were who they were today because of him. If it weren’t for Owen, I couldn’t guarantee they would still be here at all.
But that didn’t mean I was letting go.
I straightened, meeting his gaze. “But I’m not giving up,” I said.
His eyes narrowed, studying me.
“For a long time, I’ve been fighting for the wrong thing,” I continued.
“I’ve worked so hard for it, lost myself chasing it. But now…” My fists curled at my sides, my chest rising with certainty. “Now that I’m fighting for the right thing, expect me to fight even harder.”