Chapter 112 One Hundred And Twelve
The sound of the car door shutting echoed louder than it should have.
Antonia felt it in her bones.
Austin didn’t move away from the door. If anything, he straightened, adjusting his cuffs like a man preparing for a business meeting instead of an emotional collision.
Her pulse was out of control.
“You need to go,” she whispered urgently.
He didn’t look at her.
“I’m curious,” he said mildly. “I want to see how he reacts.”
Her breath hitched. “Austin—”
Footsteps approached.
Measured. Confident.
Kennedy.
He was dressed casually but impeccably—dark jeans, fitted shirt, sleeves rolled just enough to reveal strong forearms. In one hand, he carried a small gift bag. In the other, a bouquet.
He was smiling.
Until he saw Austin.
The smile didn’t fade immediately.
It froze.
Then it disappeared completely.
The temperature between the three of them shifted.
Kennedy’s eyes moved from Austin… to Antonia… then back to Austin again.
Disappointment flickered first.
Then something sharper.
Something dangerously familiar.
“Well,” Kennedy said slowly, his voice losing all warmth. “I didn’t realize this was a gathering.”
Austin’s lips curved in a lazy half-smile.
“Kennedy.”
He said his name like it tasted ironic.
Antonia stepped slightly forward, positioning herself instinctively between them.
“This isn’t what it looks like,” she began.
Kennedy’s jaw flexed. “Then what does it look like, Antonia?”
She opened her mouth, but no clean explanation formed.
Because what did it look like?
It looked like her past standing at her door.
It looked like unfinished business.
It looked like betrayal—even if there wasn’t any.
Austin slid his sunglasses into his pocket calmly, as if enjoying every second of this.
“I was just leaving,” he said smoothly.
“You were?” Kennedy replied coolly. “That’s interesting. Because it looks like you just arrived.”
Antonia swallowed.
Austin took one slow step down from the porch, finally giving Kennedy his full attention.
“I came to have a conversation.”
“With her?” Kennedy asked.
“Yes.”
Kennedy let out a short humorless laugh. “You came all the way to the city to have a conversation?”
Austin shrugged. “I needed to see her.”
Kennedy’s gaze sharpened at his words.
Antonia felt the tension vibrating between them like a live wire.
“Stop,” she said quietly. “Both of you.”
Neither man looked at her.
Austin tilted his head slightly.
Kennedy’s grip tightened around the bouquet.
“You have five seconds,” Kennedy said evenly, “to explain why you’re standing at her door.”
Austin glanced at Antonia briefly before returning his gaze to Kennedy.
“Does she need your permission to have visitors?”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“No,” Austin agreed. “It’s not.”
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Antonia could see it happening.
“I heard congratulations might be in order,” Austin said lightly.
Kennedy’s eyes narrowed. “For?”
“You and Antonia. I hear you’ve been… reconnecting.”
Antonia’s heart stuttered.
Kennedy’s gaze flicked to her.
“Is that what you told him?” Kennedy asked quietly.
She hated that tone.
Controlled.
Too controlled.
Austin continued, voice deceptively casual. “I’d hate to think history is repeating itself.”
Kennedy stepped closer.
“Say what you actually mean.”
Austin’s smile sharpened. “You have a habit of picking up what I start.”
There it was.
The match striking.
Kennedy’s jaw tightened visibly. “Careful.”
“No,” Austin said softly. “Let’s not pretend. You’ve always had a talent for arriving after the foundation’s been laid.”
Antonia felt her stomach drop.
This wasn’t about now.
This was about before.
This was about Ruth.
The air felt heavy.
Dangerous.
Antonia stepped between them more firmly now.
“Enough.”
They were too close.
Too intense.
“This is not the place,” she said firmly. “You’re both acting like—”
“Like what?” Austin cut in.
“Like nothing has changed,” she snapped.
“You disappeared,” Austin said, his gaze locking on hers now instead of Kennedy’s. “No explanation. No closure.”
“I didn’t owe you closure.”
“You owed me honesty.”
Antonia felt panic spike.
“Stop it. That’s enough!” she shouted.
Silence crashed over them.
Even the distant sounds of the street seemed to fade.
Kennedy’s eyes searched her face.
Austin’s gaze was relentless.
“I know we have had our differences, but leaving like that wasn't fair, Antonia,” he said.
“Leave,” Antonia said sharply, turning to him. “Right now.”
Austin’s jaw flexed.
“You don’t get to walk in here and twist things,” she continued, her voice trembling but strong. “You don’t get to reopen doors we've both closed.”
“I didn’t close them.”
Kennedy looked between them, piecing things together.
“This is what you came here for?” Kennedy asked Austin. “To cause a scene?”
Austin’s lips curved faintly. “I came for clarity.”
“You came to cause chaos.”
Austin’s expression shifted—less amused now, more raw.
“I wanted answers.”
“And you thought this was the way?”
Austin didn’t respond.
Antonia stepped closer to him, lowering her voice.
“This isn’t how you fix anything.”
His gaze dropped to her.
For a second—just a second—the rage faded.
“You don’t get to shut me out like I never mattered,” he said quietly.
Her chest tightened.
“I didn’t shut you out,” she whispered. “You forced my hand.”
Kennedy stepped forward again. “If this conversation concerns her past, you can have it somewhere else.”
Austin looked at him, something cold returning to his eyes.
“You’re very confident for someone who doesn’t know the whole story.”
Kennedy’s patience snapped.
In one swift movement, he closed the distance, grabbing Austin by the collar.
Antonia gasped.
“Don’t,” she pleaded.
Austin didn’t resist.
He just looked at Kennedy steadily.
“There it is,” Austin murmured. “Still reactive.”
Kennedy’s grip tightened. “Keep talking.”
Antonia rushed forward, pushing between them with surprising force.
“Stop it! Both of you!”
She placed a hand on Kennedy’s chest and shoved lightly.
“Let him go.”
Kennedy’s breathing was heavy.
For a moment, she wasn’t sure he would listen.
Then slowly, he released Austin.
Austin straightened his shirt calmly, as if being grabbed was a minor inconvenience.
“Impressive,” he said dryly.
“Leave,” Antonia said again, her voice steadier now.
Austin looked at her.
Really looked at her.
A muscle ticked in his jaw.
“This isn’t over.”
“It is for me.”
He studied her a moment longer.
Then he nodded once.
Not in surrender.
In promise.
He stepped backward down the porch.
As he reached the walkway, he paused.
Without looking at Kennedy, he said quietly to Antonia.
“We’re not done,” he said softly.
Then he walked away.
Silence remained.
Heavy.
Kennedy exhaled slowly.
Then he looked at her.
“Do you want to tell me what that was?”