Chapter 32
Kaden
There have only ever been two moments in my life when the mere sight of a man made me want to turn violently murderous.
The first was Heath, the night I saw his hands all over Skylar.
The second is right now, standing face to face with the man who has been nothing but a nasty, irritating stain on my life.
He studies me with open curiosity and a trace of suspicion, slowly sizing me up. But there’s something else there too—distrust, jealousy… recognition, perhaps?
We’ve never officially met, but there could be a chance he knows who I am. Lucia would have definitely mentioned me in passing. Whether he’s seen me before, or even knows what I look like, I can’t be too sure.
“Hello?” His voice is deep and measured. “I’m Adrian, Zac’s dad. And you are?”
I’m relieved he doesn’t extend his hand. I don’t have it in me, now or at any point, to shake hands with this man.
“Kaden,” I reply, short with a trace of bitterness in my tone. “Hope’s friend.”
His gaze darts briefly to Hope, who stands silently, taking everything in, before snapping back to me.
“The friend whose housewarming you went to last night?” He aims the question at Hope, yet his eyes never leave me, sliding over me like a challenge—appraising, judging. I do the same, quietly studying him, wondering what it is about this guy that makes women fawn over him.
He’s good-looking in that ‘hot nerd’ sort of way, with a Clark Kent hairstyle and ocean-blue eyes. He’s half an inch taller than me, but leaner, not as muscular. From the skin that’s visible, not a single tattoo in sight.
Honestly? I think he punched well above his league with Hope. If I were him, I would’ve thanked my lucky stars that someone like her even gave me a chance at all.
“No, it wasn’t.” Hope answers, a hint of irritation in her voice. “It was his friends.”
“Are you two…?” He doesn’t finish the question, but we can guess what he’s implying. He assumes we’re either dating or fucking each other. Neither is true.
I don’t need to respond because Hope cuts in before I can.
“Adrian, we’re just friends. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“How long have you known my ex-wife, Kaden?” he asks, brushing off Hope’s remark and heated glare, his attention fixed on me now.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but I have to agree with Hope. The details of our friendship are none of your business, and I’d appreciate it if you respected that.”
His eyes narrow, sharp and hostile. Clearly, I hit a nerve. He angles his head slightly to the side, his gaze drifting over me once more. “Why does it feel like I’ve seen you before?”
“I can assure you, we’ve never met.”
He points and shakes a lanky finger at me, the condescension setting my teeth on edge, and I have to stop myself from wanting to snap it in half.
“No… there’s something familiar about you. Like I’ve seen you from somewhere. I just can’t remember where and when.”
Suddenly, something snaps in his expression. His body stiffens, and his eyes widen in shock.
That look—I know it immediately—it’s recognition.
“Oh my god!” he says.
I glance at Hope, her brow drawn tight. She seems just as tense as I am, waiting for Adrian’s sudden revelation. From the disbelief etched in his expression, it’s clear he’s figured out who I am.
“You’re him, aren’t you?”
“You’re gonna have to be more specific than that.”
“You were with Lucia. Her boyfriend.”
Hearing that name again, from his mouth of all people, sets my blood on fire. The way he says it—so casual, so familiar, like he knew her more than he should have, like everything they did, and the lives they destroyed, meant absolutely nothing.
The sheer nerve of him dropping his affair partner’s name into this conversation, in front of Hope, no less, sends fury roaring through me, hot and relentless.
“And tell me, how is it that you know my ex-girlfriend?”
He has the audacity to look guilty, after all this time.
“She was my assistant, my TA at the school we both worked at,” he explains, carefully omitting the fact that he had a five-month long affair with her, and got her pregnant.
Hope scoffs, and we both turn to her. Her arms are crossed over her chest, every line of her body taut with anger—anger aimed squarely at her ex-husband.
“Oh, for God’s sake, Adrian. He knows she was more than just your TA. He knows you were fucking her while they were still together!” she snaps, and it’s almost laughable how quickly the colour drains from his face.
“I...um...I,” he swallows, his gaze flicking nervously between Hope and me.
“Save your breath,” I say, not caring to hear what he has to say. “You actually did me a favour. You spared me from building a life with someone so vile, so toxic. But it still doesn’t excuse you for what you did to your own family.”
“You think I don’t know that? You think I don’t know that I blew up my entire life because of what I did? Trust me, I fucking know. And I’ve paid for it dearly,” he murmurs, his sad eyes flicking to Hope.
She remains standing with her arms crossed over her chest, her expression unreadable.
“I’m curious,” he continues, his gaze moving between Hope and me, once again. “How did you two end up meeting?”
“Who do you think told me about your affair?” It’s Hope who answers this time.
“I thought you said you had a PI follow me?”
“I didn’t say I was the one who hired him.”
Adrian snaps his head in my direction, his brow furrowed tightly. “You had someone follow me?”
“Not you—Lucia,” I reply, teeth clenched. “You just happened to pop up in the file.”
“So what? You decided to get your revenge on me by going straight to my wife—showing her everything you’d dug up about me, tearing our family apart.”
“No, Adrian, you tore our family apart,” Hope says, her voice tired and edged with irritation, as though she’s had to repeat those words far too many times. “Kaden only did what you were too much of a coward to do—tell the truth.”
He lets out sharp breath, his jaw clenching as everything finally sinks in. He’s quiet for a brief moment, just staring past me at the street beyond.
“Let me guess, you two have formed some weird bond over the betrayal and are friends now. Have you been seeing each other this whole time?”
“We’ve been friends for a few weeks now,” Hope says. “He’s been helping Zac and me out a lot.”
“You’ve introduced this man to our son!” he snaps. “The man who literally has a personal vendetta against me for sleeping with his girlfriend?”
“Mate, I don’t have a personal vendetta against you. I couldn’t care less about you or Lucia,” I bite back.
“Adrian, not everything is about you. My friendship with Kaden was completely unexpected. We hadn’t seen or spoken to each other for over a year. It was by pure chance that we crossed paths again.” She meets my gaze and offers me a soft, genuine smile that always seem to thaw my heart.
I give her a wink, unfazed by Adrian silently watching every bit of our exchange.
“Wait,” he interrupts our little moment. “I remember something—something Lucia once brought up in a conversation.”
We both glance his way, but a knot begins to churn deep in my stomach, like some instinct already knows what he’s about to reveal.
“Oh my god. I remember now. She told me about the history of your relationship.”
I go still. “Adrian, don’t,” I warn, shaking my head, my eyes searching his with a near-pleading look.
Hope is looking between us, with a puzzled look in her expression. “What about it?” she asks.
My heart feels as though it’s sinking to the bottom of my stomach.
“Do you want to tell her, Kaden, or should I?” he sneers, an arrogant smirk spreading across his smug face.
My jaw clenches so tightly it feels as though my teeth might shatter. “I was going to tell her today, Adrian,” I respond anxiously.
“Tell me what?” Her frown deepens. “Tell me what, Kaden?” she repeats, her gaze now solely on me.
I try to speak, but the words won’t come. They catch in my throat, choking me like a bone lodged deep inside. That’s when Adrian seizes the opportunity to speak on my behalf.
“Oh, my dear, Hope. He really has been fooling you, hasn’t he?”
“Can someone just tell me what the fuck is going on?” Hope finally snaps.
“Your new friend here, isn’t who you think he is. He’s been keeping quite a big secret from you this whole time.”
“Hope...,” I murmur, as I hold her gaze. “I’ve been meaning to tell you, I swear. Please forgive me.”
Adrian’s cold laugh slices through the air, dripping with malice. The sight of him revelling in my misery only fuels the hatred burning inside me.
He casts me a look that practically screams victory. “Once she finds out the truth about you, I’m not so sure she’ll ever forgive you.”
“Adrian stop this!” Hope barks. “Whatever sick twisted game you’re playing isn’t going to work.”
“Hope, darling, if you’d bothered to look into his past at all, or just simply asked him how he and Lucia came to be—you’d know this man is no different from me.”
Hope looks more confused than ever, and Adrian doesn’t hesitate to spell everything out for her—in a way she understands all too well.
“You see your new friend here, the one I’m fairly certain has already gained your trust, is nothing but a liar and a cheat. He betrayed his wife the same way I had, by having an affair with Lucia—his wife’s best friend.”
My eyes close, my chest caving in as if something heavy is crushing down on it. My heart and lungs constrict, and oxygen isn’t coming through fast enough. I feel almost light-headed. I’m almost too afraid to open my eyes, scared of seeing the devastation and hurt in Hope’s face.
“Is that true?” she says softly, her voice trembling slightly.
I open my eyes, and they instantly lock with hers. The look she gives me is one I feared all along, one that will linger with me for a very long time.
This isn’t how I wanted to tell her, and not with Adrian standing right there, ready to offer his support. But it’s done. It’s out. There’s no escaping the truth now.
I nod, slowly, and the sound that slips from her lips nearly shatters me.
“It’s true. Everything he said is true,” I finally admit.
She lets out a small sob, stepping back as if my words have physically struck her. Tears well in her eyes, and I want nothing more than to collapse to my knees and beg for her forgiveness.
“Hope, I’m so sorry. I was going to tell you. I was planning to tell you everything today.”
“You should’ve told me the first time you threw Adrian under the bus!
” she shouts, fury lacing her words. “All this time, while we’ve been getting to know each other, did it never occur to you to tell me how you betrayed your wife too?
Did it never even cross your mind to say that Lucia didn’t just destroy my marriage, but helped destroy yours too? ”
Her hand flies to her mouth, as she tries to stifle her cries.
“It’s been eating at me since the first day we met. I just didn’t know how to tell you. Hope, you were already so heartbroken. I couldn’t bear to add to your pain.”
“Oh, but you have, Kaden. You have.”
Disappointment, disgust, anger—hurt flickers behind her arctic blue eyes, and I realise, with a sinking feeling, that she may never forgive me after this.
I take a step towards her, and she immediately retreats. Adrian moves in front of her in a flash, putting himself between us, as if I’m some monster she needs protection from.
“I think it’s time for you to go,” he orders, his voice cutting and cold.
I ignore him and try to glance past his shoulder towards Hope, but her gaze is lowered as if the mere sight of me is just too painful.
“Hope, can we please talk,” I say softly, pleadingly. “There’s still so much more I need to say.”
“Just go home, Kaden,” she murmurs quietly, her voice heavy with sorrow, striking me hard in the chest.
Before I can say another word, Adrian is already closing the door, trying to lock me out of Hope’s life for good.
But just before it fully closes, I catch a glimpse of Zac standing in the hallway—his sad, disappointed look the last thing I see before the door finally clicks shut.