Page 43 of Entwined Lies (Entwined #1)

Isabelle

The idea of visiting Jake was this weird mix of excitement and dread.

Seeing him was a relief, sure, but when Luca casually mentioned he’d tag along, a jolt of panic hit me.

The thought of Luca being anywhere near him, putting the pieces together—every muscle in my body went taut, wired like I was bracing for an explosion.

I knew I’d have to tell him. He wasn’t an idiot; he’d figure it out eventually.

But facing that reality? I wasn’t ready.

The car ride was silent, but not the good kind.

It was thick. Stifling. Every turn of the tires brought me closer to the moment I couldn’t avoid—the one where the truth I’d kept buried might finally crack wide open.

I told myself to breathe. To stay calm. But with Luca beside me, that panic I’d been holding back started to crawl higher in my throat.

Then we turned the corner, and there it was.

My childhood home.

Jake and Mom were in the yard, crouched in the flowerbeds.

The house stood behind them—two stories of quiet gray, that wide wraparound porch, and the same turquoise door I used to swing open a hundred times a day. The trees still towering above it all, like sentinels. Like they remembered every version of me.

I’d watched Jake play in that yard a thousand times, back when this house had been our refuge after he was born. But with Luca next to me now, something shifted. It was different, unsettling. Like I’d just crossed an invisible line I’d spent years trying not to even approach.

Luca’s eyes were on me. I could feel it, that slow burn of his stare crawling across my skin. But I kept mine on Jake.

My stomach knotted as he slipped inside the house, and we climbed out of the car. I glanced at Luca—quick, careful.

What was he thinking? How much longer before he started putting the pieces together?

My mom greeted us with a smile, warm and easy, welcoming Luca like he belonged here. Like she didn’t feel the fracture in me.

It was a sweet moment. But it dragged up memories I’d rather bury.

I’d dropped the bombshell that I’d gotten pregnant from a one-night stand, and that had been more than enough to knock the wind out of her.

But it wasn’t until years later that I let slip who Luca actually was.

She just listened, stone-faced, and when I finally finished, there was this painfully long pause.

She just sighed, like, ‘Could this train wreck possibly get any worse?’

And, of course, it did. When I told her I’d ended up marrying Luca and kept lying to him, she didn’t even blink. In her usual way, she kept her mouth shut and let me make my choices, hoping I wouldn’t end up in a ditch somewhere.

That’s the thing about my mom. She’d always been my rock, even when she’d probably wanted to knock some sense into me. And now, here she was again, playing the part, smiling like everything was fine, even though I knew she was holding back a million concerns.

For a second, as she pulled me into a hug, I let myself pretend. Pretend this was normal, that Luca and I were just a regular couple visiting family, no secrets, no threats hanging over us.

But it didn’t stick. The tension was still there, humming beneath my skin, warning me this could turn into a disaster at any second .

Jake spotted me. His face lit up.

He came running, eyes bright, arms out, yelling, “Mom!”

God, he was so innocent, so untouched by all this mess.

I crouched and caught him, holding tight.

“Hey, sweetie,” I murmured.

I focused on him—his breath in my ear, the feel of his arms around my neck. Anything but the heat seeping into my back from where Luca stood.

What’s running through his head? Does he even realize how close he is to figuring it out? Hell, maybe he already has.

I couldn’t make myself turn around. I didn’t want to see what was there—didn’t want to risk catching something in his eyes I couldn’t unsee.

But when I finally looked over my shoulder…

He wasn’t looking at me. He was watching Jake, this small smile playing at his mouth, eyes soft in a way I wasn’t ready for.

Warm. Gentle.

And it hit me—hard and fast.

That’s what I’d been running from.

Because watching them—my son, and the man I wasn’t supposed to fall for—

It cracked something open in me I’d been trying like hell to keep sealed shut.

The porch was warm beneath my feet, the sun low, everything dipped in that end-of-day stillness. Mom stood next to me, quiet. Watching with me, but not saying a word.

Jake bounced on the balls of his feet, his skateboard in hand, Luca beside him like it was the most natural thing in the world.

I leaned against the railing, ready for Luca to mumble some bare-minimum praise just to keep Jake happy .

But he was all in.

Arms crossed, eyes focused, he nodded like it actually mattered—like every detail of Jake’s kickflip breakdown was worth listening to.

Luca offered tips and crouched down to adjust Jake’s foot on the board, as if he’d done this a million times.

It was more than politeness, more than a passing interest. And that scared the hell out of me.

Mom nudged me, her eyes flicking from Jake to Luca. “You know, I think he already knows.”

“No. He can’t.” I shook my head, though my words felt more like a prayer than a fact.

Because the longer I watched them, the less sure I became.

Maybe Luca had figured it out the moment he saw Jake. It didn’t take a genius to see how much Jake looked like him. And now, every time Luca glanced at Jake, I couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d already put the pieces together—that he was just waiting for me to pull him aside and admit it.

Mom hummed. “You sure about that? He doesn’t look like a man just going through the motions.”

“That’s ridiculous. I’d know.” I clung to the lie like it might hold me together. Like saying it out loud made it true.

Mom’s eyes softened, but her next words hit sharply. “Would you?”

I swallowed hard.

Jake looked up and grinned. “Mom! Luca says he can do a kickflip too! Can you believe that?”

“You think you can do that?” I gave Luca a look, one brow lifting.

They both tilted their heads—same half-grin, the same dimple.

“You’d be surprised, Siren. I was a kid once too.”

“Mm-hmm. I’ll believe that when I see some proof.”

Luca rolled his shoulders and gave it a shot. The board flipped, almost taking him with it, but somehow he stayed on his feet .

“Not bad,” I called, arms crossed, a grin tugging at my lips.

“Almost doesn’t count.”

Looking down, he took a deep breath and went for it again. He nailed it. One perfect, no-fumble kickflip that landed so clean it could’ve been on a highlight reel.

Jake’s mouth fell open. “No way! How’d you do that?”

Luca shrugged, handing the board back. “Just because I’m older now doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten everything.”

Jake’s laughter lit up the whole driveway.

My heart clenched so hard I had to look away.

Luca fit into the moment as if he’d always been part of it—like this was just his place now, without question.

And there it was again. That thought I kept pushing down, kept pretending wasn’t real. That maybe this wasn’t just another chapter waiting to close, but something permanent.

It made me want to tell him. Everything.

But I didn’t.

I just stood there, lips pressed tight, frozen in place by all the things I couldn’t take back once they were said.

When it was time to leave, Jake clung to me, trying not to cry.

“Do you have to go?” he asked, voice wobbling.

I kissed his head, swallowing the knot that had lodged itself in my throat. “I’ll be back soon, okay?”

He nodded, eyes glossy.

Luca stepped in, nudging Jake’s skateboard with his foot. “Next time I come around, I expect to see that kickflip, alright? You got this.”

Jake’s face brightened, as if Luca had just handed him the most important challenge in the world. His grin stretched wide, any trace of disappointment erased in an instant.

Luca didn’t hesitate. Didn’t question whether there would be a next time. He said it like it was a given, like he’d already decided he belonged in Jake’s life.

And in that moment, it hit me. He knows.

I stayed silent the whole way home, hands clenched, mind racing, while my brain tried to build sentences that didn’t feel like landmines.

When we pulled into the driveway, Luca broke the silence.

“I know about Jake.”

It was the perfect moment to come clean, to finally lay it all out.

Yet, just like every other time, I chickened out.

I clung to that last shred of denial, like a lifeline made of bad decisions.

Because, why not? If I could keep up the act just a little longer, maybe the universe would throw me a bone and the truth would magically rewrite itself.

Luca wasn’t stupid. Hell, he’d probably figured it out the second he saw Jake. Still, I couldn’t stop myself from stalling. I needed just a few more moments to pretend I had control.

“What do you mean?”

His eyes stayed locked on the steering wheel. “I’ve known for a while. You didn’t have to hide him.”

My stomach dropped. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I figured you’d tell me when you were ready.” He shrugged, finally turning to face me. “And yeah, I get why you kept it to yourself.”

My vision blurred. “I thought you’d be angry.”

“I was. But I get it. You protected him. That’s what a good parent does. I respect that.”

Luca switched off the engine. The silence that followed felt like a verdict.

He reached over, his fingers curling around mine.

“I love you, Siren.” His voice was low. Barely there. But it hit like a bomb.

I went rigid .

“No. You love fucking me,” I snapped. “Let’s not pretend this is something it’s not.”

“You really think that’s all this is?”

“Yeah.” I yanked my hand away like his skin burned. “I heard you talking to Enzo. You said it yourself—temporary. So don’t sit here and feed me lies.”

His eyes narrowed. “You were eavesdropping?”

“Well, let’s just say I heard enough. So if you’re only doing this because of Jake, then don’t. He doesn’t need someone pretending to care.”

“Isabelle, Jake has nothing to do with this.”

Every inch of me was aching for an answer that didn’t feel like another lie. “Then why? Why now?”

“Because I’m tired. Tired of pretending this doesn’t mean everything.” He reached out and tilted my chin up until my eyes met his. “I’ve spent my life knowing fairytales weren’t written for people like me. But then you showed up. And now I can’t stop wanting one anyway.”

It would’ve been so easy to say ‘I love you’—to believe love could fix the mess I made.

But the truth was tangled in the secrets I still held back, ticking like a bomb ready to blow.

Sooner or later, everything would go up in flames—and the best I could hope for was him walking away.

The worst? Well, I’d probably end up as another cautionary tale, buried in a shallow grave.

He took a deep breath, his eyes searching mine. “You don’t have to respond. But I needed you to hear it. And maybe one day… you’ll believe I meant every word.”

There was a vulnerability in his voice that shattered me—quiet, honest, devastating. I couldn’t keep pretending. Couldn’t keep holding him at arm’s length.

“I love you,” I murmured, my voice shaking .

For a beat, he just stared. Like he hadn’t expected me to say it at all. Then his face softened into something I’d never seen from him before. He pulled me close, his forehead resting against mine, his breath mingling with mine.

And I let myself fall deeper into this twisted fantasy, even knowing exactly how it would end.