#Chapter 205: Pangs of Regret

Olivia The door clicked shut, leaving Nathan, the twins, and I standing alone in the hallway. I watched in a state of numb shock as Ryan hobbled down the steps on his crutches, then climbed into one of the cars. They drove away, but the paper outlining Ryan’s intent to take Elliot from me still lingered on the floor where it had fluttered down, as though smirking at me. With a sigh, I turned. “That could have gone worse,” I murmured, more to myself than to anyone. Nathan stood rigidly at the entrance to the living room, the tension in his broad shoulders unmistakable even from where I stood. His normally calm blue eyes bore into me with a mix of anger and disbelief, and I felt a knot form in my stomach. “How could you?” His voice cut through the silence of the room, low and dripping with incredulity. “Letting Ryan, of all people, hold Elliot? What were you thinking, Olivia?” Each word was a knife, stabbing at the walls of defense I’d built up. “I weighed