I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe Lisa thought she could just waltz back into our lives with a bag of cash and a guilty conscience.
“You thought your money would fix everything?” I asked.
“No, I didn’t think it would fix everything, but I had to try. Please, Bryan. At least let me see Noah.”
“No,” I said firmly, stepping back. “You don’t get to disrupt his life after 15 years. You don’t get to rewrite the past because you finally decided to grow a conscience.”
Her tears fell freely now, but I didn’t care. All I could think about were the nights I stayed up with a crying baby, the years I struggled to make ends meet, and the countless times Noah asked why his mother wasn’t there.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I didn’t know what else to do.”
“Well, I do,” I said, my voice cold. “Noah and I have moved on. We don’t need you anymore, Lisa.”
Without another word, I turned and walked away.
She kept begging me to stop, but I was done. I couldn’t let her enter our lives and destroy everything.
Do you think I did the right thing? What would you have done if you were in my place?
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
