Chapter 237 237

Chapter 237 237


Lucas stayed quiet for a few seconds.

Then something inside him seemed to settle.

He lifted his head from Granny’s lap. “I’m going to tell her.”

Granny blinked, caught off guard. “Tell who?”
“Blair.”
The name came out before he could second-guess himself.
Granny’s eyebrows shot up.
Lucas sat up straighter, wincing as a sharp pull tugged across his fresh stitches. “I don’t care anymore.”
“Lucas—”
“I’ve spent five years making everything agonizingly complicated,” he said, dragging a tired palm over his face. “I’m done.”
He swung his legs to the floor and stood.
Granny reached out, catching his sleeve. “You were shot yesterday!”
“I know.”
“You literally just walked out of an ICU.”
“I know.”
“You need to lie down.”
“I will.”
“Lucas!”
He was already moving toward the door. “I’m telling her today.”

Granny watched his retreating back, shaking her head with a faint, helpless smile. “Stubborn, reckless boy.” She called out after him into the foyer, “And tell your mother to get some sleep while you’re at it!”

Lucas offered a brief wave over his shoulder without slowing down. “I will!”
He didn't.
He didn't even think about it. He turned down the quiet hallway leading straight to the east wing.
His heart was hammering against his ribs so hard it almost out-paced the physical ache in his torso. He had no speech prepared. No smooth, carefully rehearsed confession. No dramatic setup.

He wasn’t going to stand in front of a bathroom mirror practicing I love you, Blair. He wasn’t going to test the cadence against a blank wall, or draft a text and delete it a hundred times over.

He was just going to say the words. That was it.
“I love you, Blair,” he muttered under his breath as he walked, testing the weight of it on his tongue. He gripped the polished stair railing tight as another dull wave of pain throbbed through his side. “I’m done pretending I don’t.”
He reached her room at the far end of the corridor.
His steps slowed to a heavy drag. The door was cracked open just an inch.
Lucas stopped outside, the sudden burst of confidence he’d found downstairs threatening to leak right out of him. He took a slow breath, then another. Just say it.
He pushed the door inward.
Blair was sitting on the edge of the mattress. Down on the rug nearby, Mave was completely lost in his own world, making quiet little spaceship sounds as he zoomed two plastic figures through the air.
Blair looked up at the sound of the hinges. Her eyes went wide. “Lucas?”
She was on her feet instantly.

“What are you doing up?” she asked, stepping toward him. “Why aren't you resting?”
Lucas just stared at her. His mouth opened, but his throat locked up completely.
Blair’s brow furrowed. “Lucas?”
He swallowed dryly. “I...” He stopped. His heart was slamming against his sternum like a trapped bird.
Blair waited, her eyes searching his face, completely still.
Lucas took a step into the room, his eyes softening as he looked at her standing there in the soft morning light.
“I need to tell you something.”
And then—nothing.
His mind went totally, completely blank. Every word, every feeling, every ounce of conviction he’d built up on the walk over vanished into thin air.
Mave looked up from the carpet, clutching a plastic toy. “Daddy?”
Lucas didn’t even hear the little boy. He couldn’t look away from Blair if he tried.
And Blair could see it written all over his face.

Lucas swallowed hard, his throat dry as dust.
“I…”
The syllable barely scraped out.
Blair kept her eyes locked on his, her head tilted, waiting.
Lucas forced himself to take a breath, opening his mouth to try again. “I—”
A loud, piercing ring shattered the quiet.
Both of their heads snapped toward the bedside table where her phone was vibrating violently against the wood. Blair’s brows pulled together in confusion as she reached over and picked it up.
“Hello?”
A beat of static filled the line, followed by a shaky, breathless voice that made the air leave Blair’s lungs.
“Blair…”
Blair’s eyes went wide as saucers. “Mom?”
Before another word could be spoken, the line clicked dead. A second later, the screen lit up with an incoming text notification. Blair tapped it, her gaze sweeping across the message, and the tiny bit of color left in her face completely drained away.

Her fingers locked around the edges of the phone so tight her knuckles turned white. Slowly, she looked up, her panicked eyes meeting Lucas’s.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Brooks. I have to go. Right now.”
Lucas blinked, completely thrown. “Wait—what? Who was that?”
Blair didn’t answer. She was already moving, crossing the room in three fast strides to where Mave was playing on the rug.
“Baby,” she said, her voice strained as she dropped to her knees.
Mave looked up, his plastic spaceship hovering in mid-air. “Mommy?”
Blair cupped his small face, pressing a hard, desperate kiss to his forehead. “Mommy has to step out for a little bit, okay? I need you to stay right here and be a good boy.”
“Where are you going?” Mave asked, his brow furrowing just like his father’s.
“I’ll be right back. I promise.” She kissed his cheek one more time before springing back to her feet.
She offered Lucas one last, frantic glance. “I’m really sorry.”
Before he could even open his mouth to stop her, she turned and rushed out the door, her hurried footsteps echoing down the hallway until they faded completely.

Blair practically flew down the grand staircase, her shoes slapping against the floor as she took the steps two at a time.
Her heart was hammering against her ribs, her mind spinning around that single, raspy word on the phone.
Mom.
It didn't make any sense. After five years of radio silence, why now? Why today?
She hit the ground floor and made a sharp turn toward the main entrance, her eyes glued to the front doors. She was moving so fast she didn't even notice the shadow crossing the foyer until she almost plowed right into it.
“Watch where you’re going,” a sharp, icy voice snapped.
Blair skidded to a halt, her hand flying to her chest.
Olivia.
“I’m sorry,” Blair blurted out, her tone rushed, breathless, and entirely unbothered by the irritation written across the other woman's face.
She didn't waste another second explaining herself or waiting for a sarcastic retort. 

Side-stepping Olivia, she pushed past and hurried straight out the massive double doors.
Olivia slowly turned on her heel, her dark eyes narrowing as she watched Blair practically sprint down the driveway toward the main gate.

Olivia’s fingers tightened around the strap of her bag, her eyes tracking Blair until she vanished past the hedge line