But I was weak.

After she fixed her hair, she turned to me, barely making eye contact with me. “I’ll walk you out…”

We left her bedroom and took the stairs to the bottom floor. Because the universe hated us, Maria walked by, holding a cup of morning coffee, fully dressed. She opened her mouth to address her daughter, but when she realized I was with her, she shut it again. Our wrinkled clothes and messy hair made it obvious we’d spent the night together. And the stupid smirk on her face told us she figured that out. “Nice to see you, Hades.” She excused herself down the hallway and ignored her daughter.

I wasn’t ashamed of being caught. It was Sofia’s problem.

We stepped outside onto the front porch to say our goodbye.

I didn’t know what to say because nothing had changed. I could tell her last night was a mistake and it shouldn’t happen again, but I didn’t have the audacity to say something so cold. This was hard for both of us. Maybe it was better to say nothing at all. “I’ll come down a few days before the birth.”

Sofia crossed her arms over her chest and stared at the ground. Her makeup was a mess because she hadn’t washed her face like she normally did. Her hair looked like she had just stepped out into a storm.

“And I’ll stay for a week or two.”

She gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

I didn’t see what benefit Andrew would get, having me in his life. I was a dangerous man who did dangerous things for money. My partner was a psychopath who was completely unpredictable. I would only be around once in a while, and when Sofia eventually remarried, her new husband would be more of a father than I ever could. I would have to sit there and watch some new guy replace me in every way imaginable.

Could I do that to myself?

Ash warned me about Antonio, and now that I’d seen the guy in person, I realized how much of a threat he was. He was young, good-looking, and judging by the way he treated Sofia, he thought the world of her. He was clean, simple, and they both had the priority of the hotel in common. It wouldn’t take her long to realize he was the perfect partner.

And all the bad things that had ever happened to her…happened because of me.

“Do you need to leave right now, or can you stay a bit?” She lifted her gaze to meet mine, unease in her expression.

I wanted to stay, but I couldn’t. “No.”

“So, I won’t see you until Andrew is born?” Her voice broke off in pain.

Last night was such a mistake. Shouldn’t have happened. “Yes.”

She tightened her arms over her chest and nodded.

I turned away and left…because I couldn’t do this anymore.

I sat on the balcony late at night and drank my scotch alone. I leaned forward over the table with my temple resting against my hand. There was no amount of booze that could wash away my regret, my overwhelming depression.

What the fuck was I thinking?

I should’ve left.

I closed my eyes and tried to block the memory from my brain. Everything was so good, from the sex to the whispers she would utter in the dark, but it made my life so much worse. That was a tease, torture. It only reminded me of what I didn’t have anymore. Now I had to sleep in a bedroom I used to share with her and pretend her ghost didn’t haunt me every night.

How was this supposed to work? Really?

I was supposed to casually sleep with her every time the loneliness became too much? I would wait around for her even though there was nothing to wait for? And then when she started dating somebody, she would break it off with me? And I would just be fine with that?

I would never be fine watching my soul mate end up with another guy.

And watching my son go with her.

That was an outcome I refused to accept. I was a good man and didn’t deserve that punishment. It didn’t matter how much I loved her, how much I loved Andrew, I couldn’t put myself through that. The years would pass, and I would see Andrew on Christmas with his new family. I would always be a stranger…always be second best.

I couldn’t live like that.

The best thing for me to do was to disappear.

We stepped inside the factory and surveyed the damage we’d done. Some idiot thought he could flood the market with his own product since Maddox’s original power had been disrupted and mine was questionable. Clearly, they didn’t get the memo that we were in a partnership now.

Three men were in the center of the room, their guns on the floor and their hands by their sides. They were outnumbered, and no amount of negotiation would spare their lives. Their product would be dumped, and their unused chemicals would be seized for our own production.

Tags: Penelope Sky Betrothed Billionaire Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net