Chapter 83: Opening Doors

Maya Maximus's voice halted me mid-step. The first response that flared inside my mind was a hard, resounding no. It almost slipped out before I could even turn to face him. But then, something stopped me—an overwhelming wave of emotion and a sudden realization. A bitter realization.  Maybe it was true. They didn’t deserve Jackson. In fact, they didn’t even deserve to be near the child I had fought tooth and nail to protect. The child who only existed in my life because I had run from them that fateful night. But Jackson... He deserved to be near his real fathers. Even if it was just for a few days. Of course, I wasn’t about to tell him the truth. Maximus and Leonardo would not be known to him as his fathers, not now—when he was too young, too innocent to understand the complexities of love, betrayal, hatred, and heartbreak. The relationship between a man and a woman, and the reasons why they separate. He didn’t need to carry the weight of my shattered past. That burden was mine to bea