316: Family Stuff
316: Family Stuff
Theo’s POV
The café was quiet, the kind of place where the hum of conversation and the clink of coffee cups created a low, comforting buzz.
I sat at a corner table, nursing a black coffee that had gone lukewarm, my fingers tapping restlessly against the ceramic mug. I’d called Ella earlier, asking her to meet me here because we needed to talk.
It had been a while—years, actually—since we’d had a real conversation. Five years, to be exact, since she found out that Amanda, Bea, Rowon and I knew about Marcus’s affair with Vanessa Monroe while he was still married to her.
That betrayal had cut deep, and Ella had chosen to distance herself from all of us. I couldn’t blame her, but it didn’t make things any easier.
I glanced at my watch. She’d be here any minute. My stomach churned with a mix of nerves and frustration. I didn’t want to be dragged back into the chaos that always seemed to swirl around Ella, but here I was, waiting for her, because of my kids.
Because of Mirella and Ben. They were my priority, and I needed to make sure they were safe from whatever storm Ella’s life might bring.
The bell above the café door jingled, and I looked up to see Ella walk in. She looked different from the last time I’d seen her—stronger, maybe, but still carrying that guarded look in her eyes.
Her dark hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, and she wore a simple dress, her doctor's coat and bag hanging from her arm as if she had just slipped out of the hospital to come see me.
She spotted me and gave a small nod before making her way over. “Hey, Theo,” she said, sliding into the seat across from me. Her voice was calm but cautious, like she was bracing herself for whatever I was about to throw at her.
“Hey,” I replied, setting my mug down. “Thanks for coming.”
She shrugged, her expression unreadable. “You said it was important. What’s going on?”
I took a deep breath, trying to organize my thoughts. This wasn’t going to be an easy conversation, but it needed to happen. “I’m sorry about what Amanda did,” I started, my voice low. “Telling Marcus about Lily’s paternity like that… it wasn’t right. I know it hurt you, and I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
Ella’s eyes softened for a moment, but her guard didn’t drop. “Thanks for saying that,” she said, her tone measured. “But if you’re here to ask me to forgive Amanda, that’s not happening. We’re not kids anymore, Theo. We don’t just get mad over petty stuff and make up. We’re adults with responsibilities, and the choices we make have bigger consequences.”
Her words hit me hard, not because I was here to defend Amanda—I wasn’t—but because they echoed my own frustration with my wife. I leaned back in my chair, rubbing the back of my neck. “I’m not here to ask you to forgive her,” I said. “Believe me, I’m pissed at Amanda too. That’s not what this is about.”
Ella raised an eyebrow, curious but still wary. “Then what is it about?”
I hesitated, thinking about Mirella’s tearful face this morning, clutching her bag in that hallway fight with Lily. “I saw your kid today at the kids’ school,” I said. “Lily, right? Her and Milla… they weren’t getting along. They were fighting over some bag Lily said was hers. It reminded me of you and Amanda, you know? Two cousins who can’t seem to get along either.”
Ella’s expression softened at the mention of the girls, and she let out a small sigh. “I’m sorry they were fighting. I want them to have a real bond, you know? A deep, respectful friendship that lasts their whole lives. Like sisters.”
I nodded, but my chest tightened. That was exactly what I was afraid of—their lives being tangled up in Ella’s world. “That’s what I wanted to talk about,” I said, leaning forward, my hands clasped on the table.
“I’m worried about how much my kids are getting caught up in… all this.” I gestured vaguely, trying to encompass the mess that was Ella’s life. “You’ve been through hell, Ella. Hiding from a maniac ex-husband for years, nearly getting killed, and now you’re tied up with another billionaire who doesn’t exactly scream ‘stable.’ I love Milla and Ben, and I want them as far away from that as possible.”
Ella’s eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn’t interrupt. She let me finish, her expression calm but intense, like she was weighing every word. When I stopped, she leaned back, crossing her arms.
“I get where you’re coming from, Theo,” she said. “I do. But you can’t just shield Milla and Ben from the world. They’re my niece and nephew, Lily’s cousins. The crap that happens in my life, in Lily’s life—it’s going to spill over to them whether I want it to or not. That’s just how family works.”
She sighed, her gaze softening as she continued. “I want them safe, too. I want all our kids to be protected, surrounded by love. I want Lily and Milla to grow up together, to be like sisters. I don’t want you to pull them away from us, Theo. We’re family, at the end of the day.”
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. Family. That word felt heavy, complicated, especially now. I wanted to believe in it, in the idea that we could all be connected without the chaos that seemed to follow Ella and her choices.
But my mind was a mess, tangled up with doubts I couldn’t shake. I looked down at my coffee, my fingers tightening around the mug. There was one question I needed to ask, one that had been eating me alive for weeks.
“Ella,” I said, my voice low, almost afraid to let the words out. “Did you ever… suspect anything between Amanda and Marcus? Like… that they were sleeping together?”
Her eyes widened, confusion flashing across her face. She leaned forward, her brow furrowing. “What? Where’s this coming from?”
I swallowed hard, my throat tight. “Just answer the question. Did you ever think they were… together? Like that?”
Ella studied me for a long moment, her expression unreadable. Finally, she shook her head. “I wouldn’t put my hand in the fire for Marcus—or Amanda, for that matter. If you’re asking me this, it’s because you already suspect something. What’s going on, Theo?”
Her response didn’t give me the clarity I’d hoped for, but it didn’t surprise me either. I leaned back, running a hand through my hair. “I don’t know,” I admitted, my voice heavy.
“It’s just… things Marcus has said, the way he talks about her. It’s like he knows things he shouldn’t. And Amanda—she’s not the same. Our marriage is falling apart, and I can’t shake the feeling she’s hiding something. I’m sorry, Ella. I just… I had to ask.”
Ella’s expression softened, a flicker of sympathy in her eyes. “I’m sorry you’re going through that,” she said quietly. “I don’t have answers for you, but… I know what it’s like to feel betrayed. If you need to talk, I’m here.”
I nodded, but her words didn’t ease the knot in my chest. If anything, they made it tighter. I wanted to believe Amanda and Marcus’s connection was in my head, but the doubts were too loud, too persistent.
And if it was true—if Amanda had been with him—what did that mean for me? For our kids? Were Milla and Ben even mine? The thought made my stomach churn, and I pushed it down, not ready to face it.
“Thanks,” I said, my voice flat. “I just… I need to figure this out.”
Ella reached across the table, her hand resting lightly on mine for a moment. “You will,” she said. “But don’t let it destroy you, Theo. You’re a good dad. Milla and Ben need you.”
Her words hit me hard, and I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Yeah. I know.”
We sat in silence for a moment, the weight of our conversation settling between us. The café bustled around us, but it felt like we were in our own bubble, two people trying to navigate the wreckage of our past and present. I didn’t have answers, and neither did Ella, but at least we’d talked. At least I’d gotten some of it off my chest.
“I should go,” Ella said finally, glancing at her phone. “My patients already need me.”
“Yeah,” I said, standing as she did. “Thanks for meeting me, Ella. I mean it.”
She gave me a small smile, one that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Take care of yourself, Theo. And… let’s make sure the girls work things out, okay? They deserve that.”
“Deal,” I said, managing a faint smile of my own.
As she walked out of the café, I sat back down, staring at my coffee. My mind was still a mess, but one thing was clear: I needed answers about Amanda, about Marcus, about my kids. And I wasn’t going to stop until I had them.