chapter 26

Show Me......

Liam stopped talking about change.

That was the first thing Judith noticed.

No more apologies.

No more conversations about regrets and no more promises about the future.

Instead, he simply started showing up.

And somehow that was much harder to ignore.

Two weeks after the awkward dinner at the Smith mansion, Judith woke up at six in the morning to seventeen missed calls.

Her first thought was that someone had died.

Her second thought was that Julian had probably gotten into another argument.

The reality was much worse.

A pipe had burst in one of Lux Group's manufacturing facilities.

Production had stopped.

Executives were panicking.

And her phone hadn't been charged overnight.

"Wonderful."

She rubbed her forehead.

Pregnancy hormones already had her emotional.

A business crisis before breakfast wasn't helping.

By eight-thirty, Judith was in a conference room surrounded by stressed executives.

Everyone was talking at once.

Everyone had an opinion.

Nobody had a solution.

The headache developing behind her eyes was becoming unbearable.

She pressed two fingers against her temple.

Immediately, Julian noticed.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine."

"You don't look fine."

Before she could answer, another executive started talking.

The meeting dragged on for another hour.

Then another.

By lunchtime, Judith wanted to throw something.

Preferably at somebody.

Around one o'clock, her assistant quietly entered the room.

"Miss Lux."

Judith looked up.

"What is it?"

The assistant placed a bag beside her.

"Someone dropped this off."

Judith frowned.

Inside was lunch.

Healthy lunch.

The kind her doctor kept recommending.

Attached to it was a simple note.

Eat before Julian notices you skipped another meal.

— Liam

A smile appeared before she could stop it.

Small.

Unwanted.

Entirely Liam's fault.

Across the room, Julian immediately spotted it.

"Why are you smiling?"

"I'm not."

"You are."

"I'm really not."

Julian narrowed his eyes.

Then noticed the note.

His expression darkened.

"Oh, absolutely not."

Judith laughed.

For the first time all day.

That evening, after the crisis was finally under control, Judith returned home exhausted.

She expected peace.

Instead, she found Ethan and Ava sitting in her living room.

Apparently her family had decided she required supervision.

Again.

"Why is everybody in my house?"

Ava pointed at her.

"Look at those eye bags."

"I'm tired."

"Exactly."

Ethan stood.

"Did you eat?"

Judith stared at him.

Then laughed.

"You sound like Liam."

The moment the words left her mouth, the room became suspiciously quiet.

Ava's eyes widened.

Ethan looked away.

And Judith immediately regretted speaking.

Because she knew exactly what they were thinking.

That she had mentioned Liam without realizing it.

That his name had come naturally.

Comfortably.

Like someone she thought about often.

Which, unfortunately, was true.

That night, Judith couldn't sleep.

Again.

Lately that seemed to be happening more often.

She sat on the balcony wrapped in a blanket, staring at the city.

The baby shifted.

A gentle movement.

Then another.

She smiled.

The little kicks had become one of her favorite things.

A reminder that she wasn't alone.

A notification appeared on her phone.

A message from Liam.

Still awake?

Judith stared at the screen.

Then typed back.

Unfortunately.

Three dots appeared almost immediately.

Me too.

For some reason, that made her smile.

The conversation lasted nearly an hour.

They talked about insomnia.

About baby names.

About how Ava had somehow convinced everyone she was the most responsible person in their friend group despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

By the time Judith put her phone down, she felt lighter.

And that realization scared her.

Because she hadn't laughed that easily with Liam in years.

The following weekend brought another surprise.

Judith was leaving a prenatal yoga class when she spotted Liam waiting outside.

"What are you doing here?"

Liam took the bag from her hand.

"You said your car was in the shop."

"I did."

"I was nearby."

"You live forty-five minutes away."

"I was nearby."

Judith rolled her eyes.

They stopped for coffee afterward.

Or rather, Liam drank coffee.

Judith drank whatever pregnancy-safe substitute her doctor approved.

She was still offended about it.

"Do you know what I miss most?"

Liam looked up from his cup.

"What?"

"Normal coffee."

He laughed.

The sound was unexpected.

Warm.

Real.

For a moment, Judith simply stared.

Because Liam used to laugh rarely.

Now she was hearing it more often.

And every single time, it caught her off guard.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

His question snapped her out of her thoughts.

Judith looked away immediately.

"No reason."

A small smile appeared on Liam's face.

The kind that suggested he didn't believe her.

Not even slightly.

That evening, Victoria visited her son.

The moment she entered his office, she knew something had changed.

Liam looked happier.

Not dramatically.

Just enough.

The tension he'd carried since the divorce wasn't as visible anymore.

"You're smiling more."

Liam didn't even look up.

"I smile."

Victoria laughed.

"No, you don't."

She sat down across from him.

"How's Judith?"

The fact that she asked before saying hello wasn't surprising.

Liam set aside his paperwork.

"She's good."

Victoria noticed the immediate answer.

No hesitation.

No thinking.

He knew.

Because he paid attention now.

For several moments, neither spoke.

Then Victoria quietly asked,

"Do you know why she hasn't given you another chance?"

Liam leaned back.

"Because I hurt her."

"That's part of it."

Victoria shook her head.

"She hasn't given you another chance because she doesn't trust happiness."

The statement lingered.

Victoria continued.

"She loved you completely."

Her voice softened.

"When someone loves that deeply and gets hurt, they stop trusting good things."

Liam looked away.

Because he knew exactly who was responsible for that.

Later that night, Liam stood alone in the nursery he had started preparing.

A room nobody knew about except Victoria.

The walls were finished.

The furniture had arrived.

A small stuffed elephant sat in the corner.

It wasn't complete.

Not yet.

But it was real.

Just like his feelings.

Just like the future he wanted.

For months, Liam had been trying to find the right words.

The perfect speech.

The perfect apology.

The perfect way to fix everything.

Now he finally understood something important.

Judith didn't need words.

She had heard words before.

What she needed was proof.

Consistency.

Time.

A reason to believe him.

And if that was what it took, Liam was prepared to spend however long necessary earning it.

Not because he expected a reward.

Not because he thought she owed him.

Because he loved her.

And for the first time in his life, he was willing to prove it.

One day at a time.