CHAPTER 62: PROMISE ME

Bella’s pulse hadn’t slowed even after Rachel left.

The silence that followed seemed deafening. Jake still stood there, hands stuffed into his pockets, his brows faintly drawn as though trying to make sense of the tangled scene he’d just witnessed. And Timothy, oblivious to the heavy thoughts going on in Bella and Jake’s mind, was practically vibrating beside Bella, hope written across his little face.

Bella knew she was cornered. She couldn’t fight both Jake’s patient persistence and Timothy’s innocent pleading. Her fragile wall was already cracking.

She swallowed hard, turning to her son. "Come," she said, her voice steady only by sheer force of will. "We’ll go inside for a bit. Mama needs to get dressed now."

Timothy’s eyes widened with joy. "So... we’re really going?" he asked excitedly.

Bella’s lips twitched, caught between denial and surrender. "We’ll see," she murmured even though she knew the answer already.

But Timothy didn’t hear the uncertainty in her tone. He let out a cheer and ran back toward the hallway, his little feet slapping against the floor.

Jake’s gaze followed him, the corners of his mouth curving up despite the storm lingering behind his eyes. He turned back to Bella, studying her. "I’ll wait out in my car."

Bella gave the faintest nod, clinging tighter to her towel as if it were the only shield left between her and disaster. Then she closed the door.

Once she closed the door, she felt the noise of the world dimmed. Timothy darted into the bedroom, flinging himself onto the bed with all the uncontained energy of a child who had just won the biggest battle of his day.

Bella leaned against the closed door, her back pressing hard into the wood, her eyes slipping shut.

But then she realized that shutting her eyes was a mistake. Because then, memories she didn’t want to think about surged forward, uninvited and raw.

Jake’s gray eyes, sharp and burning, flashed in her mind, the way he had looked at her just moments ago, when she’d been standing in the doorway with nothing but a towel clutched around her. His gaze had lingered too long, too heavy, reminding her of another night.

Though that was the last thing she was suppose to think in that moment, but she thought about it. That night, five years ago.

Her breath caught as the images returned, raw and too vivid. The hotel room. The dim light washing over his bare shoulders. The weight of his body pressing her into the mattress, doing things she hadn’t wanted to do but had ended up enjoying them.

His hands gripping her like he was afraid she was only but a dream. The way he had kissed her—rough, desperate, as if the world began and ended in her mouth. They’d been strangers before that night but it had felt like they’d been made for each other in that moment.

She had burned under his touch. Every nerve had been alive, every heartbeat wild, and even now—after all these years—her body remembered. She’d thought since she had told herself she’d been nothing but someone who sold her virginity that her body would have forgotten his soft touch. But here she was, a part of her yearning for him now that he’d seen her that way.

Bella’s hands shook as she pressed them to her towel, trying to get a hold on herself. She hated this. She hated that one look from him could rip open a box she had kept locked for so long.

She hated that she remembered how he whispered her name, how he made her forget the world, only for her to face the reality later.

Her throat tightened. She should not be thinking about this. Not when her son was sitting right there. Not when Jake himself was waiting just outside that door.

"Mama!" Timothy’s laughter yanked her back. He was sprawled across the bed, kicking his legs in excitement. "Mama! We’re really going! With Jake!" His grin was wide, pure, unguarded. "You have to dress up, let’s go."

Bella’s chest ached as she looked at him.

How was she supposed to deny him this happiness? How was she supposed to tell her son no, when all Timothy wanted was simple joy and companionship?

But how was she supposed to survive this day without Jake noticing the truth etched in every detail—Timothy’s eyes, his smile, his stubbornness, even the way he tilted his head when curious?

She moved across the room slowly, sitting at the edge of the bed. Her fingers brushed Timothy’s hair, smoothing the soft strands back from his forehead.

"Timmy," she said softly, her voice almost trembling.

He looked up at her, still beaming. "Yes, Mama?"

Bella’s throat tightened. "You must promise me something."

His little head cocked curiously. "What?"

"You can’t... you can’t say too much to Jake. Just talk about fun things, okay? Like the playground or ice cream. Just that and nothing else."

Timothy frowned, confusion settling into his features. "Why? But he’s nice."

"Yes," Bella whispered, her voice cracking, "but... Mama just needs you to listen this time. Promise me."

Timothy’s lips pursed as though he wanted to argue, but then he nodded solemnly, sensing her seriousness. "Okay. I promise."

She kissed his forehead quickly, her heart shattering at his innocence.

Bella forced herself to move. She pulled open the closet, grabbing a simple outfit—something neutral, something safe.

Her mind spun as she laid Timothy’s clothes beside her own. She dressed him first, buttoning his little shirt while he wiggled impatiently. His eyes kept darting toward the door, eager to leave.

"You’re too excited," Bella murmured, forcing a smile she didn’t feel.

He grinned. "Because we never go out with people like him! And Mama... you didn’t tell me you knew him."

Bella froze. Her fingers stilled on the last button, her breath catching in her throat.

If only Timothy knew how complicated things really were. If not for the coincidence today, how could she have ever known father and child had already been connected without her knowledge? Was this a sign that she should tell Jake?

She finished dressing him, smoothing down his shirt with trembling hands. Then she changed quickly. The earlier they left, the earlier they’d return and she could stop worrying about whether or not he’d find out today.

When Bella finally opened the door again, Timothy bounding at her side, Jake stepped out of the car and approached them. His eyes lingered on her longer than they should have, as though trying to read what she wasn’t saying.

She lifted her chin, masking her panic behind a brittle calm. "We’re ready."

Jake’s lips curved faintly, but his eyes still carried some probing weight. "Good."

As Timothy darted forward to grab Jake’s hand, Bella’s stomach knotted tight.

This was only the beginning. And she had no idea how she was going to survive it.