Chapter 102 Chapter 102
Sebastian’s POV
I don’t sleep.
I lie on my back and stare at the ceiling like it might confess something if I watch it long enough. The room is dark, too quiet, the kind of silence that presses against my ears until my own thoughts feel loud enough to bruise.
Every time I close my eyes, she’s there.
Lena.
Not as she was at the party, not frozen and exposed under the weight of my son’s rage—but earlier. In my study. Hesitant. Uncertain. The way her breath caught when I touched her, like she was stepping toward something she knew could hurt her and did it anyway.
I drag a hand down my face and exhale slowly.
That’s the part that won’t let me rest.
Because if she came to me just to hurt Wes—if I was a weapon, a reckless choice born out of bitterness—then I misread everything. I let myself be pulled into something ugly without seeing it clearly.
But if that’s true… why did she hesitate?
Why did she pull back first?
Why did she look afraid—not triumphant—when I kissed her?
My mind splits itself in two, arguing in the dark.
She could have wanted revenge.
She loves you.
Both feel possible. Both feel unbearable.
I turn onto my side, then onto my back again. The sheets are tangled around my legs like they’re trying to keep me here, pin me to this moment, force me to sit with it.
I replay her voice. Soft. Controlled. Not cruel.
I replay Wes’s face—red with fury, disbelief cracking through him like broken glass. The sound of my hand connecting with his cheek still echoes in my skull. Sharp. Final. A sound I never imagined making.
I swallow hard.
I didn’t raise him to speak to women like that.
I didn’t raise him to reduce someone to a slur.
But I also didn’t expect to be standing between my son and the woman I—
I stop that thought before it finishes.
Love is too fragile a word tonight. Too dangerous.
I glance at the clock. 3:12 a.m.
I’ve slept maybe an hour. Fragmented pieces that dissolve the moment I wake, leaving behind nothing but tension and the dull ache behind my eyes.
I think of Lena’s face when Wes stormed out.
Shock. Shame. Devastation.
Not guilt.
That distinction matters, even now.
By the time the sky outside the windows begins to lighten, I’ve given up on sleep entirely.
Morning arrives without answers.
I shower, dress, move through the house like a man performing tasks he’s memorized rather than chosen. The mirror reflects someone older than I remember being. Lines at the corners of my eyes I don’t recall earning.
My phone sits on the dresser.
I don’t check it.
If there’s a message from Lena, I’m not ready to read it. If there isn’t, I’m not ready for that either.
I button my cufflinks and tell myself I need clarity before emotion.
It’s a lie. Emotion already has its hands around my throat.
I grab my jacket and head for the door.
That’s when I hear her heels.
Measured. Familiar. Uninvited.
“Sebastian.”
I stop.
Victoria stands in the entryway like she belongs there, dressed impeccably, lips curved in something that isn’t quite a smile. She looks satisfied in the way people do when they think they’ve arrived just in time to watch something burn.
“How did you get in?” I ask flatly.
She lifts a brow. “The code hasn’t changed.”
It should have.
I step fully into the room and face her. “This isn’t a good time.”
She laughs softly. “I can imagine.”
There it is—the opening strike.
“I heard,” she continues, strolling farther inside as if this is still her home, “that you had quite the scene last night.”
I say nothing.
She turns to me, eyes sharp. “Sleeping with our son’s ex-girlfriend. That’s… impressive, even for you.”
My jaw tightens. “Watch your mouth.”
“Oh, don’t pretend this is about manners.” Her gaze flicks over me, assessing. “Tell me—was it worth it? Or was she just trying to hurt him?”
The words land exactly where she intends them to.
I take a step closer. “You don’t get to speculate about my private life.”
She scoffs. “Private? Sebastian, the entire house heard him storm out. You slapped him.”
“I warned him,” I say, voice low. “He crossed a line.”
“And she didn’t?” Victoria snaps. “You really think it’s a coincidence she ends up in your bed after breaking his heart?”
I feel something cold settle in my chest—not doubt, but fury.
“You will not talk about her like that,” I say.
Victoria laughs again, sharper this time. “Listen to yourself. Defending her already. She’s manipulative, Sebastian. Young. Hurt. Exactly the kind of woman who would crawl into your arms just to prove something.”
I step forward until we’re only a foot apart. “Enough.”
She blinks, surprised by the steel in my voice.
“Wes is an adult,” I continue. “Lena is an adult. Whatever history they share is not yours to weaponize.”
“She humiliated him.”
“She didn’t humiliate him,” I snap. “He walked in uninvited and chose cruelty.”
Victoria folds her arms. “You always do this. You pick the stranger over your own family.”
I shake my head slowly. “No. I pick accountability.”
Her lips thin. “You’re losing control.”
I meet her stare without flinching. “And you’re overstepping.”
Silence stretches between us, thick and charged.
Finally, she exhales sharply. “You’re blind if you don’t see what she’s doing.”
I open the door.
“Get out,” I say calmly.
She stares at me, stunned. “Excuse me?”
“You’re welcome here because you are Wes’s mother,” I say. “That is the boundary. Do not cross it again.”
Her face twists with anger. “You’ll regret this.”
“Leave,” I repeat.
For a moment, I think she might refuse. But then she grabs her bag and storms past me, heels striking the floor like punctuation marks.
The door slams behind her.
The house is silent again.
I stand there longer than I should, staring at the closed door, my heart still racing.
Everyone has an opinion about Lena.
Everyone wants to define her—victim, manipulator, mistake.
No one is letting her speak.
I grab my keys and step outside, the morning air cool against my face.
I don’t know the truth yet.
But I know I won’t let anyone else decide it for me.