Chapter 399 The Space Between Words
+25 BONUS
Chapter 399 The Space Between Words
Mia’s POV
“Mia—”
11
His voice hung in the empty room. Not finishing. Just my name and then nothing.
I turned away from the photo. Looked at him instead.
He was leaning against the doorframe like standing upright took effort. Which it probably did. His sweater hung loose. I could see the hollow at the base of his throat where the fabric gaped.
“Why do you have this?” I asked, pointing at the photo without looking at it again.
“Because I wanted to remember.”
“Remember what?”
He didn’t answer right away. His fingers tapped against the doorframe. One. Two. Three. A rhythm I recognized from a thousand mornings watching him drink coffee and read the news.
“What you looked like when you were happy.”
The words landed wrong. Or right. I couldn’t tell.
“I was happy lots of times.”
“Not with me.”
I wanted to argue. To say that wasn’t true. That we’d had good moments. Good days even.
But the words stuck.
He pushed off the doorframe. Walked to the window. His hand trailed along the wall as he moved, like he needed the support,
“You want coffee?” he asked.
“You have coffee here?”
“No. But I could go get some.”
“Kyle, you can barely stand.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine. You just got out of the hospital.”
Chapter 399 The Space Between Words
+25 BONUS
“Technically I left AMA.”
“That’s not the defense you think it is.”
He turned to look at me. The morning light from the window made his face look softer. Younger. Or maybe just more tired.
“You used to love this room,” he said.
I looked around. At the empty space where our life used to be.
“I loved a lot of things.”
The silence stretched. Not uncomfortable exactly. Just heavy.
My sweat had dried cold on my skin. I was shivering now. My muscles were starting to cramp from standing still after running so hard.
“There’s a blanket upstairs,” Kyle said. “In the bedroom. If you want to—”
“I should go.”
“You just got here.”
“I shouldn’t be here at all.”
“Why not? It’s your house too.”
“Was.”
“Is. I put it in your name. Remember?”
I did remember. Sort of. The paperwork had arrived while I was still in the hospital after having the twins. I’d signed it without really reading it. Too tired. Too overwhelmed.
I walked to the fireplace. Touched the mantle. My fingers came away dusty.
“The kids asked me something yesterday,” I said. Not looking at him. “After we left the hospital.”
“What did they ask?”
“If you were going to die.”
He didn’t say anything.
“And I told them I didn’t know.” I turned to face him. “Which is true. I don’t know. The doctor doesn’t know. Nobody knows.”
“Mia—”
213
Chapter 399 The Space Between Words.
+25 BONUS
“But there might be a way.” The words came out before I could stop them. “To buy more time,”
His whole body went still. “What kind of way?”
“Hugo told my mom. About a treatment. Using stem cells from—“I stopped. Started again. “From blood relatives.”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what I—”
“I know exactly what you’re about to say. And the answer is no.”
“Kyle, if there’s a chance—”
“No.”
He said it with such finality that I actually stepped back.
“They’re five years old, Mia. Five.”
“I know how old they are.”
“Then you know they can’t consent to something like that. They’re babies.”
“They’re children. My children.’
“That’s exactly what it is.” He moved toward me. Not fast. Just determined.
“It’s not some simple procedure. They’d be under general anesthesia. There are needles. Big ones. Going into their hip bones. And the recovery—”
“I know.”
Kyle’s hands had started shaking. He shoved them in his pockets.
“I found you,” he said quietly. “After twenty-five years of looking for the girl from the warehouse. I found you. Married you. Had children with you. And then I fucked it all up so badly that you spent four years raising them alone.”
“Kyle—
“I won’t let anyone to hurt them. To help me. Including you.”
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