Page 79 of Crushed Vow

He didn’t meet my eyes. Just stared down at his hands — hands that had held me once when I was broken. Hands now pale and bruised and barely healed.

“Yeah,” he said flatly. No trace of pride. No smile. “She lives with her mom. Woman’s married now... to someone else. I gave her full custody. Wasn’t in any state to be a father. Not back then.”

A lump rose in my throat, and I couldn’t swallow it. My voice cracked. “Ethan... I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he said quickly, but not unkindly. “It’s life. We make our choices. Or sometimes... they’re made for us.”

Silence settled again.

“I need to see my parents too,” he added after a beat. “Haven’t been home in years. Guess... Chicago’s calling me back.”

He said it like a goodbye.

And maybe it was.

I reached for his hand, just to offer comfort—but Cassian’s voice cut through the air like a whip.

“Don’t.”

I froze. Inches from Ethan’s fingers.

“Charlotte,” Cassian warned, his tone dark, “don’t tempt me.”

I turned to him slowly, trembling with fury and disbelief. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”

“She’s not yours to command,” Ethan added, voice calm but firm.

Cassian didn’t flinch. His eyes—hidden behind those damn glasses—were unreadable.

“We’re divorced,” I said, as if that would change anything. As if anything could ever be simple with Cassian Moretti.

Ethan’s brows lifted. “Officially?”

I nodded. “Officially.”

He looked like he wanted to say something, maybe even vulnerable, but his eyes flicked back to Cassian.

And just like that, the words died in his throat.

He swallowed them.

Because Cassian was still watching. And no one survived being the target of Cassian’s wrath twice.

I hated that. Hated how Cassian’s presence stifled everything good. Every breath. Every conversation.

“I’ll come see you again tomorrow,” I told Ethan, my voice gentler. “I promise. You’re not alone here.”

But Cassian shook his head. “No, you won’t.”

“What?”

“I already gave the order. You won’t be allowed back after today.”

I took a step forward, furious. “Why the hell not?!”

“Because I won’t stand here and watch you fall for someone else while I’m trying to claw my way out of the wreckage I madeof you,” he bit out. “I’m trying to fix what I broke, Charlotte. Piece by piece. And I won’t let you slip away while I’m still bleeding for the damage I caused.”

His voice cracked on the last words, but there was no apology in his eyes. Only possession. Only torment. Only a man unraveling at the seams but still desperate to hold on.