Chapter 20
CHAPTER 20
T aylor sat across from Caleb in the quiet corner of the restaurant, her glass of wine untouched as she watched him carefully. The flickering candlelight softened the lines of his face, but it couldn’t hide the tension in his jaw or the way he tapped his fingers lightly against the table, a restless rhythm that betrayed his nerves.
She wasn’t sure what to expect tonight. After everything that had happened—the hospital, the revelation about Liam, and the shock that came with it—this dinner felt like uncharted territory.
“Is the wine not any good?” Caleb asked, his voice low and hesitant.
She blinked, startled by the question, then glanced at the glass in front of her. “No, it’s fine,” she said quickly, wrapping her fingers around the stem. “I’m just... thinking.”
His lips quirked into a faint smile, though his eyes remained serious. “About what?”
“About a lot of things,” she admitted, her voice soft. She took a small sip of the wine, hoping it would steady her. “Mostly Liam. And how we’re going to navigate all of this.”
What could she honestly expect from Caleb? The man came from a family surrounded by whispers of wealth—rumored to be billionaires. She didn’t know the full truth, but the idea of that kind of money and influence terrified her.
Her biggest fear was that Caleb or his family would decide to take her to court, using their resources to try to get custody of Liam. She’d fought too hard and sacrificed too much to let anyone take her son away from her.
So far, Caleb hadn’t said anything to suggest that was on his mind, but the worry gnawed at her anyway. She had to trust— hope —that Caleb understood what was best for Liam. A child needed their mother, and no amount of wealth or privilege would change that.
And he had to know if he even hinted at trying to take Liam from her, it would be the end of whatever fragile bond they were rebuilding. It wouldn’t just destroy any chance they had of a future together—it would completely shatter her trust in him.
Liam was her son, her life, and she’d do what was necessary to keep him with her.
Caleb nodded, his expression sobering. “I’ve been thinking about that too. A lot.”
He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled a folded piece of paper, sliding it across the table to her. Taylor hesitated before picking it up, unfolding it to reveal a handwritten list.
“I started jotting things down,” Caleb said, his voice quiet. “Custody arrangements, legal stuff, child support—things I thought we needed to discuss.”
Taylor stared at the paper, the realization that Caleb was taking this seriously. The sight of his careful handwriting, the deliberate effort he’d put into organizing his thoughts, tugged at something deep inside her.
“If you don’t mind,” Caleb began, his tone steady but determined. “I’d like to contact my lawyer. Draw up a will, set up a college fund—make sure that if anything happens to me, Liam will be taken care of.”
Taylor’s breath caught, her hand tightening slightly around her glass. Caleb’s gaze was unwavering, his seriousness unmistakable.
“I’m taking his protection very seriously,” he continued, leaning forward slightly. “He’s a Burnett. And while I’m not certain you fully understand what that means, I do. It comes with privileges, yes, but also risks. I want to make certain he’s protected in every way possible.”
For a moment, Taylor couldn’t speak. The intensity of his words, the fierce protectiveness in his tone, left her momentarily stunned. Finally, she set her glass down carefully and met his gaze.
“Caleb,” she said softly, her voice measured, “that’s... a lot to take in. But I think it’s a good idea.”
He exhaled slightly as though her agreement eased some of the tension inside him. “Thank you. I—he’s my son, Taylor. I need to know he’s safe, no matter what.”
Her heart twisted at the sincerity in his voice. For all her doubts and fears, in this moment, she could see how deeply he cared—not just for Liam, but for the responsibility he now carried. It was both daunting and oddly reassuring.
“Child support,” she echoed, glancing up at him.
Caleb nodded firmly. “It’s non-negotiable. I want to provide for Liam—financially, emotionally, in every way I can.”
"Your family," Taylor said, her voice quiet but edged with uncertainty, "will they accept him?"
While Taylor believed Caleb genuinely cared about Liam—she could see it in how he looked at him and the effort he was already making—her worry didn’t stop there.
His family.
How would they feel about her son? Would they welcome him with open arms or see him as an inconvenience, a complication?
Taylor couldn’t shake the fear that the Burnetts, with all their wealth and status, might not fully accept her son. And if they didn’t... well, that was a deal breaker. No amount of charm or promises from Caleb could make up for her son being treated as less.
Liam deserved to be loved and embraced, not judged or excluded. And if Caleb’s family couldn’t give him that, then this—whatever “this” was between her and Caleb—would have to end.
Caleb’s expression shifted, a shadow of something she couldn’t quite name passing over his face. He leaned back in his chair, his jaw tightening briefly before he met her gaze.
“They’ll accept him,” he said firmly. “He’s a Burnett, Taylor. That means something to my family.”
“But will they want to accept him?” she pressed, her fingers tracing the rim of her glass. “Or will they see him as... an inconvenience? Someone who doesn’t fit into their plans?”
“They’ll come around,” he said, his voice quieter now. “And if they don’t, that’s their problem, not his. I’ll make sure they treat him with the respect he deserves.”
Taylor studied him, her brow furrowing. “And what about you? Do you think he fits into their plans?”
Caleb hesitated, the weight of her question pressing down on him. “I don’t care about what they believe or think,” he said, his voice steady. “Liam is my son, and nothing—no one—is more important than that.”
The conviction in his tone eased some of the tension in Taylor, but the uncertainty still lingered at the edges of her thoughts. “I hope you’re right,” she said softly, “for his sake.”
In college, it had always been whispered that Caleb was wealthy, though he’d never flaunted it. The rumors had painted him as part of some old-money dynasty, but Taylor hadn’t paid much attention back then. All she’d known was that he came from a ranching family, and from the little he’d shared, it was one of the largest in the state.
Beyond that, Caleb had kept quiet about his family, and Taylor had never pressed. Back then, it hadn’t mattered. She’d cared more about how he made her laugh and how he’d looked at her like she was the only thing that mattered. The specifics of his family’s wealth and status had felt like details for another day—one that, as it turned out, had never come.
She studied him, her heart pulling in two directions. Part of her wanted to let him in, to trust this version of Caleb, who seemed so earnest, so willing to step up. But the other part, the one still scarred from years of hurt, whispered caution.
“What you’re doing seems more than fair,” she said finally, setting the paper down. “But we need to take it slow. Liam doesn’t even know you’re his father yet. I don’t know how to tell him.”
Caleb’s shoulders sagged slightly, and he nodded. “I know. I don’t want to rush anything. I want to be there for him.”
Taylor pressed her lips together, her gaze dropping to the table. “It’s going to take time, Caleb. For him and me.”
“I get that,” he said quickly, his voice steady. “I do. And I’m willing to put in the time.”
His sincerity felt real, but she still had doubts. She picked up her glass again and took another sip of wine as she tried to sort through the emotions swirling inside her.
After a moment of silence, Caleb cleared his throat. “Can I ask you something?”
Taylor looked up, her brow furrowing slightly. “Of course.”
“Would you have ever told me?” His voice was soft, almost tentative. “About Liam. I mean, I know why you didn’t... but I keep wondering if there was a moment when you thought about it. When you almost did.”
Her grip on the glass tightened, her stomach twisting. “Of course, I thought about it all nine months,” she said, her voice quieter than she’d intended. “So many times I wanted to pick up the phone, Caleb. But you were gone. And when I did reach out, you made it clear there was nothing left between us. You didn’t give me any reason to believe you’d want to know.”
He winced, his jaw tightening as he leaned back in his chair. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” he said quietly.
“I know,” Taylor replied, her tone sharper than she intended. “But it doesn’t make it hurt any less.”
Silence fell between them, heavy and charged. Caleb’s gaze dropped to the table, his fingers tracing the edge of his water glass.
“You know, I’ve been thinking about that a lot,” he said finally, his voice low. “About how much I hurt you. About why I walked away in the first place.”
Taylor frowned, leaning forward slightly. “Why did you walk away, Caleb? I never understood.”
He hesitated, his gaze shifting to the flickering candle between them. For a moment, she thought he might tell her, might finally share the truth behind the decision that had shattered them. But then he shook his head, a faint, bitter smile tugging at his lips.
“Not something I’m ready to talk about,” he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. “Not yet. Besides, it will ruin the night.”
Disappointment flickered through her. But she didn’t press. If there was one thing she’d learned over the past few weeks, Caleb needed time just as much as she did.
“Okay,” she said softly.
He looked up at her, his expression a mixture of gratitude and guilt. “Thanks.”
Another silence fell, but this one felt less heavy, less fraught. Taylor studied him across the table, his emerald eyes darkening with tension. He looked older, more weathered than the boy she’d fallen for in college. But there was something else, too—something softer, more vulnerable.
“Do you ever think about your parents’ marriage?” Caleb asked suddenly, breaking the quiet.
Taylor blinked, startled by the shift in conversation. “Sometimes,” she admitted cautiously. “Why?”
Caleb leaned back in his chair, his gaze distant. “I think about mine all the time,” he said, his voice low. “About how toxic it was. How they could never seem to get it right. And I think about how much I hated being in the middle of it.”
Taylor’s breath caught at the rawness in his tone, the pain that flickered across his face.
“I was always scared of ending up like them,” he continued, his fingers tapping against the table’s edge. “Scared of screwing it up the way they did. Of becoming like my father.”
“I see you as your own man,” Taylor said softly, her voice steady despite the ache filling her. She paused, studying his face, searching for something she couldn’t quite name.
The truth was she knew so little about the family that had shaped him. She’d never met his mother or father, never even asked much about them. And now, as she sat across from him, she realized she didn’t even know if they were still alive.
It wasn’t for lack of curiosity. Back in college, Caleb had kept his family at a distance, deflecting questions with an easy charm that had made it seem unimportant. At the time, she hadn’t pushed—it hadn’t felt like her place. But now, she wondered if she’d been wrong not to ask.
They were Liam’s grandparents, and Taylor realized with a pang of guilt that she knew nothing about them. For Liam’s sake, she needed to know.
What kind of people were they? Were they kind and warm, the sort of grandparents who would dote on a little boy, or were they cold and distant like Caleb sometimes seemed to hint?
The questions felt too big to ignore now especially with Caleb stepping into Liam’s life. If his parents were still around, they’d likely want to know about their grandson. And Taylor needed to be prepared for whatever that meant—for her, Caleb, and most importantly, Liam.
He let out a hollow laugh, shaking his head. “I’ve spent so much of my life trying not to be him that I don’t even know who I am anymore. And now... now I’ve got Liam. And I don’t want to mess this up, Taylor. I don’t want to let him down.”
His vulnerability cut through her defenses. “You won’t,” she said, her voice quiet but firm. “You’re here. You’re trying. That’s more than a lot of fathers do.”
He looked up at her, his eyes searching hers. “Do you really believe that?”
Taylor nodded, her throat tight. “I do.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The air between them felt charged and fragile, filled with unspoken possibilities.
“Thank you,” Caleb said finally, his voice soft.
“Someday,” Taylor said softly, her eyes steady on his, “when you’re ready, I want you to tell me about your parents. I need to know about them, Caleb—because they’re Liam’s grandparents.”
Caleb’s jaw tightened, and he glanced away, his fingers tracing the edge of his glass. The silence stretched between them, heavy and loaded, before he finally nodded.
“Someday,” he said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’ll tell you. But you don’t have to worry about them. They’re dead.”
Taylor studied him for a moment longer, sensing the weight of whatever he held back. She wanted to press, to ask more, but the guarded look in his eyes stopped her. For now, she’d let it rest. But not forever.
Taylor managed a small smile, though her heart was still heavy with the weight of everything unsaid. They had a long road ahead of them, but for the first time in years, she felt a flicker of hope that they could find their way.