Ex-Husband's Regret

Gabe.

I can still feel her soft skin under my skin. For a moment, I wanted to run my thumb across the pulsing joint on the inner side of her arms.

This new version of her is intriguing. She's a spitfire, and her new attitude is something I can see myself getting obsessed with. I like my women, confident, sexy, and have a fiery personality. I fucking love it when they put up a fight and push right back.

She's transitioned into that kind of woman, and it has me intrigued. She's feisty and isn't afraid to tell me to go fuck myself. Why the hell wouldn't I be attracted to that?

When we were married, she was boring. Her boring personality made her dull in my eyes. There was nothing exciting about her. She was way too submissive, while I liked my women with claws. She did everything she could to please me and catch my attention.

She bent backwards to get me interested in her, not knowing that she was just pushing me further away. Harper was timid and shy back then. It was also obvious that she lacked self-confidence; that alone was a turn-off.

Sighing, I push those thoughts away. Push my new curiosity when it comes to Harper Beckett, now Wood. Seconds later, I want to punch something because it's not easy to banish the feel of her skin or the vision of her in her sexy nightgowns.

They drive me fucking insane the way they mold to her new curves like they were made specifically for. I'm an ass kind of man, but her breast got me seeing nothing but their roundness. Fuck! I need to get my head straight. Harper is the last woman I want to get involved with. I don't do love, and she looks like the kind of woman who easily falls.

Shutting those thoughts down, I walk determinedly to Lilly's room. I promised Harper that I would talk to her, and that's exactly what I was going to do, though I had no clue what I was going to fucking tell her. That's the other thing that got my heart in a fucking grip. I could understand why Lilly's tears would affect me, but why Harper's? An uncomfortable feeling settled inside me when I saw her on the floor, crying her eyes out. Her hurt made me uncomfortable and I didn't like that one fucking bit.

"Lilly, can I come in?" I knocked once and asked once I reached her door.

There's silence, so I knock again. I wasn't going to get in without her permission. Being around Noah has taught me that even kids need their own privacy when they're dealing with something. Luckily for me, moments later, the door slightly opens.

Her eyes are red and puffy. It's obvious she's been crying and that thought breaks my fucking heart. I haven't known her for even a month, and she already has me wrapped around her finger. "Can I come in?" I asked, hoping that she would tell me yes.

She nods her head and then opens the door wider to let me in. I get in without wasting a single moment.

Her room was a girl's paradise. When my PI told me about her, I had my interior designer design the room for her. I was nervous she wouldn't like the room, but I was glad when she did. "Mom told me the truth," she began in a soft voice. "That you are my real dad and Liam wasn't."

The pain in her voice guts me. Kneeling down, I pull her into my arms. I rub her back in small circles as she continues to cry. I waited for her to calm down while I tried organizing my thoughts. I never once thought that I'd be in this kind of situation, but here we fucking are.

Once she calms down, I pick her up and walk with her to her bed. I sit down with her on my lap and then wipe her tears.

"First of all, I want you to understand that Liam is still your dad, even though he isn't blood related," I told her. "He raised you and was there when I wasn't, that makes him your father, Lilly."

I hated the fucker. He connived with

Harper to keep Lilly a secret from

me, but I also can't deny that he was there when I wasn't. That he accepted and raised Lilly, knowing that he wasn't his daughter. It takes fucking guts to raise a child that isn't yours and love them unconditionally. That's why I respect Rowan and why

I respect Liam. Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

"Now, that being said, I want you to understand that from here on, I plan to be your father and be there for you." I finished and kept quiet, waiting for her reaction.

"Mom said you didn't know about me," she whispered.

"Yeah, that's true, but I don't want you to blame her. She did what she thought was best and at that time, wasn't ready for a baby girl. It's not something that you'll understand right now, but in the future you will, and I hope you'll forgive me for not being ready for you."

I'm sure I was butchering the explanation, but this was what I had. After what Harper has been through and done for her, I didn't want Lilly to hate her.

"You want to be my dad?" she asked in a vulnerable voice.

Hugging her close, I whispered in her ear. "Definitely... I plan to be in your life way after I'm old and gray."

She sighs in my arms, and a kind of warmness settles right in the center of my heart. This felt just right. I've hugged Noah and Iris thousands of times, but this felt different. This felt like my fucking soul was aligning and molding itself to hers.

"I was angry, but I don't hate mom," she whispered against my chest. "I'll tell her sorry."

"I'm sure she'll love to hear that."

A movement çatches my eyes. Looking up, my eyes clash with

those of Harper. She had a soft look

in her eyes while looking at the two of us. For some reason, I wanted to see that look every day because, just like with Lilly, it brought a new and different kind of warmness into my heart.