Prologue (Continued):
Years had passed since Vanessa walked out, but the pain was still fresh. One quiet afternoon, the doorbell rang, and there she was—standing in front of me like a ghost from the past.
“I need to talk,” she said, her voice small, almost fragile.
I froze, unsure of what to do. Anger, confusion, and bitterness all surged within me. I had rebuilt my life without her, but seeing her again—after everything—brought all those old wounds rushing back. Still, I stepped aside, letting her in.
She looked tired, older, and her eyes held a mixture of guilt and fear. She sat down, and I waited for her to speak.
“I’m sorry for everything, James. I never meant to hurt you or Aiden,” she said, her voice trembling. “But there’s something I need to tell you. Something you don’t know.”
I didn’t speak, just stared at her, waiting for the bombshell. My pulse was racing, a sense of dread creeping over me.
“Aiden… he’s not yours,” she said, barely above a whisper.
The words hit me like a punch to the gut. My breath caught, and I felt my world shift beneath me. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. Everything I had built, every sacrifice I’d made for our son, felt like a lie.
“What?” I managed to choke out.
She looked away, tears welling up in her eyes. “I never told you the truth. He’s not yours, James. I—I had an affair, and Aiden’s father… it’s not you.”
I felt like the floor had disappeared beneath me. The pain, the betrayal, it all came rushing back in waves. My heart, which had been slowly healing, shattered once more. I couldn’t fathom what she was saying, couldn’t understand why she was telling me this now, after all these years.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered again, but I couldn’t hear her anymore. The weight of her words crushed everything I thought I knew about my life.
And just like that, my world fell apart once more.