His Heir, Her Secret - Chapter 20: Chapter 20
You are reading His Heir, Her Secret, Chapter 20: Chapter 20. Read more chapters of His Heir, Her Secret.
Isla
I didn’t know how long I stood there, my hand still resting on Lucien’s chest, feeling the steady beat beneath my palm—a reminder that the man I’d feared was gone. That the man standing before me was something new, something maybe worth trusting.
But trust wasn’t a light switch you could just flip. It was a thousand tiny moments stitched together, and we were barely past the first.
He pulled his hand away gently, his eyes searching mine like he was trying to read the doubts I couldn’t say aloud.
“I want this, Isla,” he said quietly, voice low and earnest. “All of it. The hard parts. The messy parts. The parts I broke.”
I swallowed hard, feeling a lump rise in my throat. “You don’t get to promise me that, Lucien. Not yet. Not when there are still pieces of you locked away—pieces I don’t know if I’ll ever get to see.”
His jaw tightened, but he nodded slowly. “I know. I’m ready to show you those pieces, if you’re willing to look.”
I blinked, surprised at how much that simple sentence cracked the walls I’d built around my heart. Years of hurt and fear had built an invisible fortress, but in this moment, I felt a small crack form.
Leo was asleep upstairs, blissfully unaware of the storm swirling around his parents. Sometimes I envied his innocence, the way his world was simple and pure. I wanted to protect that for him, but I wasn’t sure if Lucien and I could protect each other yet.
“Tell me why you stayed away for so long,” I whispered, voice barely above the hum of the refrigerator. “Not just because you were scared. Tell me the truth.”
He looked away, the shadows in the room seeming to deepen around him. His hands clenched into fists, knuckles white. “Because I thought I was protecting you. Because I was terrified that bringing you into my world would destroy you.”
I stepped closer, the tension between us almost unbearable. “You didn’t protect me, Lucien. You left me alone to figure out how to be a mother and a woman without you.”
His eyes flickered with pain, and I saw something I hadn’t seen in years—a man broken, yes, but desperate to make things right. “I was a coward,” he admitted, voice raw. “But I’m here now.”
The words echoed in the small kitchen, louder than any grand declaration. I wanted to believe them. I wanted to believe him. But how?
The memory of the months after he left still haunted me—the loneliness, the sleepless nights, the silent dinners with only Leo’s breathing for company. I’d fought for us, even when I didn’t know if ‘us’ still existed.
I bit my lip, trying to hold back tears I refused to cry. “You missed so much, Lucien. Leo needed you. I needed you.”
“I know,” he said, his voice cracking. “I’m ready to make up for lost time.”
He took a hesitant step closer, eyes pleading. “I want to be here—for you, for Leo, for us.”
I wanted to believe that was enough. But the truth was, I was scared. Scared he’d come back only to leave again. Scared that the past would repeat itself.
“Why now?” I asked, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “Why come back after all this time? After everything you missed?”
He looked down for a long moment before meeting my gaze again. “Because I couldn’t stay away. Because the thought of you and Leo without me… it was unbearable. I realized I wasn’t just fighting for a company or a title anymore. I was fighting for my family.”
I searched his eyes, trying to find any hint of doubt or insincerity. There was none. Just a raw, aching honesty that made my heart ache in return.
“I don’t know if I’m ready to trust you again,” I whispered, stepping back. “Not after everything.”
He nodded slowly, not angry or frustrated, just understanding. “I don’t expect you to. Not yet. But I’m here, Isla. And I’m not going anywhere.”
The air between us shifted, a fragile thread of hope weaving through years of pain and regret.
I looked at him and saw a man who had changed, who was willing to fight—not for power or control, but for the family he’d almost lost.
“Okay,” I said, voice steady but cautious. “We start slow. No promises. No expectations. Just time.”
He smiled, a real smile that reached his eyes. “Time sounds perfect.”
He reached out and took my hand again, warm and steady.
And for the first time in a long time, I let myself believe in the possibility of us.
I didn’t know how long I stood there, my hand still resting on Lucien’s chest, feeling the steady beat beneath my palm—a reminder that the man I’d feared was gone. That the man standing before me was something new, something maybe worth trusting.
But trust wasn’t a light switch you could just flip. It was a thousand tiny moments stitched together, and we were barely past the first.
He pulled his hand away gently, his eyes searching mine like he was trying to read the doubts I couldn’t say aloud.
“I want this, Isla,” he said quietly, voice low and earnest. “All of it. The hard parts. The messy parts. The parts I broke.”
I swallowed hard, feeling a lump rise in my throat. “You don’t get to promise me that, Lucien. Not yet. Not when there are still pieces of you locked away—pieces I don’t know if I’ll ever get to see.”
His jaw tightened, but he nodded slowly. “I know. I’m ready to show you those pieces, if you’re willing to look.”
I blinked, surprised at how much that simple sentence cracked the walls I’d built around my heart. Years of hurt and fear had built an invisible fortress, but in this moment, I felt a small crack form.
Leo was asleep upstairs, blissfully unaware of the storm swirling around his parents. Sometimes I envied his innocence, the way his world was simple and pure. I wanted to protect that for him, but I wasn’t sure if Lucien and I could protect each other yet.
“Tell me why you stayed away for so long,” I whispered, voice barely above the hum of the refrigerator. “Not just because you were scared. Tell me the truth.”
He looked away, the shadows in the room seeming to deepen around him. His hands clenched into fists, knuckles white. “Because I thought I was protecting you. Because I was terrified that bringing you into my world would destroy you.”
I stepped closer, the tension between us almost unbearable. “You didn’t protect me, Lucien. You left me alone to figure out how to be a mother and a woman without you.”
His eyes flickered with pain, and I saw something I hadn’t seen in years—a man broken, yes, but desperate to make things right. “I was a coward,” he admitted, voice raw. “But I’m here now.”
The words echoed in the small kitchen, louder than any grand declaration. I wanted to believe them. I wanted to believe him. But how?
The memory of the months after he left still haunted me—the loneliness, the sleepless nights, the silent dinners with only Leo’s breathing for company. I’d fought for us, even when I didn’t know if ‘us’ still existed.
I bit my lip, trying to hold back tears I refused to cry. “You missed so much, Lucien. Leo needed you. I needed you.”
“I know,” he said, his voice cracking. “I’m ready to make up for lost time.”
He took a hesitant step closer, eyes pleading. “I want to be here—for you, for Leo, for us.”
I wanted to believe that was enough. But the truth was, I was scared. Scared he’d come back only to leave again. Scared that the past would repeat itself.
“Why now?” I asked, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “Why come back after all this time? After everything you missed?”
He looked down for a long moment before meeting my gaze again. “Because I couldn’t stay away. Because the thought of you and Leo without me… it was unbearable. I realized I wasn’t just fighting for a company or a title anymore. I was fighting for my family.”
I searched his eyes, trying to find any hint of doubt or insincerity. There was none. Just a raw, aching honesty that made my heart ache in return.
“I don’t know if I’m ready to trust you again,” I whispered, stepping back. “Not after everything.”
He nodded slowly, not angry or frustrated, just understanding. “I don’t expect you to. Not yet. But I’m here, Isla. And I’m not going anywhere.”
The air between us shifted, a fragile thread of hope weaving through years of pain and regret.
I looked at him and saw a man who had changed, who was willing to fight—not for power or control, but for the family he’d almost lost.
“Okay,” I said, voice steady but cautious. “We start slow. No promises. No expectations. Just time.”
He smiled, a real smile that reached his eyes. “Time sounds perfect.”
He reached out and took my hand again, warm and steady.
And for the first time in a long time, I let myself believe in the possibility of us.
End of His Heir, Her Secret Chapter 20. Continue reading Chapter 21 or return to His Heir, Her Secret book page.