chapter 35

The problem with rebuilding trust was that it happened so slowly you barely noticed it.

Then one day, you looked back and realized things had changed.

Not all at once.

Just little pieces at a time.

A phone call here.

A shared laugh there.

A moment of comfort when there should've been awkwardness.

A feeling of safety where there used to be uncertainty.

Three days after the storm, Judith found herself standing in the nursery at the Lux estate.

Or rather, what would eventually become the nursery.

At the moment it looked like a battlefield.

Boxes everywhere.

Furniture waiting to be assembled.

Paint samples scattered across the room.

Chaos.

Complete chaos.

"This was a mistake."

Julian looked up from a box.

"What was?"

"Everything."

Judith gestured wildly.

"The room."

"The furniture."

"The entire concept of babies."

Julian laughed.

"You've officially reached the nesting stage."

"I'm officially losing my mind."

Before Julian could answer, another voice joined the conversation.

"I brought lunch."

Judith closed her eyes.

Of course it was Liam.

At this point, she was beginning to suspect he had installed tracking software in her life.

"How do you keep finding me?"

Liam entered carrying several bags.

"You told Ava."

Judith immediately sighed.

"Ava tells everybody everything."

"She's very helpful."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

Julian and Liam shared an annoyingly united look.

Judith hated it.

Mostly because they were enjoying themselves.

The afternoon passed surprisingly well.

The nursery slowly started looking like an actual room.

Julian assembled furniture.

Liam unpacked boxes.

Judith supervised.

Which was apparently code for sitting in a chair and criticizing everyone else's work.

Around four o'clock, Ava arrived.

"Wow."

She looked around.

"The baby's rich."

"The baby isn't even born yet."

Judith frowned.

Ava pointed toward a mountain of stuffed animals.

"Tell that to Liam."

Liam didn't even look embarrassed anymore.

That was the worrying part.

As the afternoon continued, laughter filled the room.

Arguments too.

Mostly about furniture.

And baby names.

And why Liam believed a child needed twenty-seven stuffed animals.

Nobody won that argument.

Around sunset, Richard and Eleanor arrived home.

They stopped in the doorway.

Watching the scene unfold.

Judith laughing.

Julian arguing.

Ava eating snacks she didn't bring.

Liam holding a stuffed elephant while reading assembly instructions.

For a moment, neither parent spoke.

Then Eleanor smiled.

"He looks like he belongs here."

Richard glanced toward Liam.

Then toward Judith.

"Yeah."

He did.

That realization surprised both of them.

Not because Liam was perfect.

Far from it.

But because he had become part of the family again without anyone realizing it.

Later that evening, everyone eventually left.

Except Liam.

Not intentionally.

A storm had started.

A bad one.

The roads flooded quickly.

Travel became difficult.

Richard insisted he stay until conditions improved.

Judith suspected her father enjoyed creating opportunities.

She wasn't entirely wrong.

Around ten o'clock, the house had gone quiet.

Most people were asleep.

Judith walked downstairs searching for water.

Instead, she found Liam sitting alone in the library.

A lamp illuminated the room.

Rain tapped softly against the windows.

Liam looked up when she entered.

"Couldn't sleep?"

She smiled.

"Apparently not."

He moved slightly.

Making space beside him.

Judith hesitated.

Then sat down.

For several moments, neither spoke.

The silence felt comfortable.

A dangerous observation.

Because comfortable had become their thing lately

"What are you reading?"

Liam showed her the cover.

A parenting book.

Judith burst out laughing.

"Oh my God."

"What?"

"You're actually reading those."

Liam looked offended.

"They're educational."

"They're terrifying."

"They're useful."

"They're written by people who think babies are tiny dictators."

A smile appeared on Liam's face.

"They are tiny dictators."

Judith laughed harder.

The sound echoed softly through the room.

For a moment, Liam simply watched her

Watched her smile.

Watched her laugh.

Watched the happiness on her face.

And suddenly he realized something.

This was his favorite version of Judith.

Not the billionaire heiress.

Not the businesswoman.

Not the future mother.

Just this Judith.

Comfortable.

Happy.

Safe and relaxed Judith

The woman he'd somehow fallen in love with without realizing it.

The laughter eventually faded.

Neither looked away.

Neither moved.

The atmosphere shifted subtly.

Something unspoken settling between them.

Judith felt it too.

The awareness.

The closeness.

Months ago, moments like this would've felt impossible.

Now they felt inevitable.

"Liam."

Her voice came out softer than intended.

"Hm?"

For a second, she almost asked the question.

The one she'd been carrying for weeks.

Why now?

Why did it take losing me?

But when she looked into his eyes, she already knew the answer.

Because life wasn't always fair.

People didn't always realize what mattered when they had it.

Sometimes they only understood after it was gone.

The tragedy was that many people never got a second chance.

The terrifying part was that Liam had one.

And she didn't know what to do with it.

A loud crack of thunder interrupted the moment.

Judith jumped slightly.

Instinctively, Liam reached for her hand.

Neither noticed at first.

Not until several seconds passed.

Not until their fingers remained intertwined.

Not until the silence became impossible to ignore.

Slowly, Judith looked down.

Then back up.

Liam hadn't let go.

Neither had she.

The realization made her heart race.

Because this wasn't friendship.

It wasn't co-parenting.

It wasn't familiarity.

It was something else.

Something much more dangerous.

Something that still existed despite everything.

For the first time since the divorce, neither of them looked away.

And for the first time since the divorce, the distance between them felt very, very small.