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Home / Romance / Breaking Up With The Hottest Man On Ice / Kabanata 91 - Kabanata 100

Lahat ng Kabanata ng Breaking Up With The Hottest Man On Ice : Kabanata 91 - Kabanata 100

200 Kabanata

The Breaking Point

Emma's POVI couldn't stop shaking.Even after we picked Alex up from school. Even after we saw the security footage. Even after the police took our statement.Liam had tried to take my son.Had walked into his school with a lie.Had tried to kidnap Alex."Emma, breathe," Jake said in the car. "Alex is safe.""He tried to take him. He stood right there and tried to take our son.""But he didn't. The school did their job.""What if they hadn't? What if they'd believed him?""They didn't.""But what if—""Emma." Jake's voice was firm. "He didn't get Alex. Alex is safe. We're all safe."But I didn't feel safe.I felt hunted.At the police station, they finally took us seriously."This is clear violation of the restraining order," Detective Almeida said. "Attempting to remove a minor from school using false pretenses. We're issuing a warrant for his arrest.""Finally," Jake muttered."Can you find him?" I asked."We've already sent officers to his last known location. The hotel where he w

The Confrontation

Jake's POVI stood at the door listening to Liam's voice on the other side.My phone was in my hand. Already dialing 911."This is Jake Sullivan. There's a man violating a restraining order outside my apartment. Armed police response needed. He's wanted for attempted kidnapping."Emma and Alex were locked in the bedroom. I could hear Emma's voice through the door talking to another dispatcher.Good. Multiple calls meant faster response."Emma," Liam's voice came through the door. Calm. Too calm. "I know you can hear me. I just want to talk. That's all. You owe me that.""You need to leave," I said. "The police are coming.""I'm not here for you. I'm here for Emma. She needs to understand.""Understand what?""That we're meant to be together. I loved her when you didn't even know she existed. I was there. I watched her struggle. I helped her. I protected her.""You stalked her for eight years on my mother's orders.""I did more than that. I cared about her. I watched her raise your son

Processing the Trauma

Emma's POVThe detective's words kept echoing in my mind.*Letters dated from before you even met him in Portugal.*Before I met him.Years before.I sat in the hotel room staring at nothing while Jake talked to police on the phone."How long?" he was asking. "Since childhood? Are you sure?"Childhood.Liam had been obsessed with me since childhood.When Jake hung up, his face was grim."What did they say?" I asked."They found more. Journals. Going back to when Liam was sixteen. He'd seen you at a hockey game. You were there watching me play.""I don't remember him.""He remembered you. He wrote about you. About how you looked at me. How he wished someone would look at him that way."My stomach turned. "That was over ten years ago.""He'd been tracking you since then. Following your social media. Learning about you. When my mother hired him to watch you in Portugal, it wasn't the beginning. It was permission to feed an existing obsession.""So Margaret didn't create this. She just en

Walls Coming Down

Jake's POV Something changed after that night. Emma stopped trying to be strong all the time. Stopped forcing smiles when she was scared. Stopped pretending she was fine when she wasn't. The walls she'd built for eight years started coming down. And I got to see the real Emma. Not the survivor she'd forced herself to be. Just Emma. One morning, I woke up to find her still asleep. Head on my shoulder. Arm across my chest. She used to sleep on her side of the bed. Careful not to touch. Maintaining space. Now she curled into me. Seeking comfort even in sleep. I didn't move. Didn't want to wake her. She'd slept through the whole night. No nightmares. No waking up terrified. Progress. "Dad?" Alex whispered from the doorway. "Yeah, buddy?" "Is Mom okay?" "She's sleeping. That's good." "She looks peaceful." "She does." Alex climbed onto the bed. Careful not to wake Emma. Curled up on my other side. Both of them. My whole world. Right here. This was what family felt like.

The Future Conversation

Emma's POV After we closed Alex's door, Jake and I stood in the hallway. Neither of us speaking. Marriage. The word hung between us like something fragile. "We should talk," I finally said. "Yeah." We went to the living room. Sat on opposite ends of the couch. Too much space between us suddenly. "So," Jake started. "So." "Alex asked a big question." "He did." More silence. "Emma, I don't want to pressure you," Jake said. "We said we'd take it slow. I meant that." "But?" "But I need you to know something. I see forever with you. Not someday. Not maybe. I see it. Clear as day." My heart started racing. "Jake—" "You don't have to say it back. I'm just being honest. After everything. After eight years apart. After finding you again. After building this family. I know what I want." "I see it too," I whispered. He looked up. "You do?" "Yes. But I'm scared. What if we're moving too fast? What if this is just trauma bonding? What if—" "Emma, I loved you eight years ago.

The Warning

Jake's POV My father's voice came through the speaker. Tired. Strained. "Dad, what's going on?" I asked. "Your mother. She hasn't given up, Jacob." Emma tensed beside me. I took her hand. "Given up on what?" "On getting Alex. On breaking you two apart. She's been quiet. Too quiet. I should have known she was planning something." "What is she planning?" "She's been consulting lawyers. Top family law attorneys. Talking about grandparents' rights." My stomach dropped. "Grandparents' rights?" "She's planning to file a major lawsuit. Claim that Emma is an unfit mother. Use the Liam situation as evidence. Stalker. Danger. Unstable home environment." "That's insane. None of that was Emma's fault." "I know. But your mother is building a case. She's collecting evidence. Witness statements. Documentation. She's serious about this." "Why are you telling me?" A long pause. "Because you're my son. I don't agree with what she's doing. But she's my wife. This is the only warning I can

The First Real Fight

Emma's POV The words hung in the air between us. *Maybe your mother is right. Maybe we're not good together.* I wanted to take them back immediately. Swallow them. Pretend I'd never said them. But they were out there now. "I didn't mean that," I said. "You said it." "Jake, I was angry. I'm stressed. I shouldn't have—" "But you did. You threw the worst thing you could think of at me. My mother's opinion." "I know. I'm sorry." "Are you? Or are you just sorry you said it out loud?" "That's not fair." "Isn't it? Emma, do you actually think we're not good together?" "No. But sometimes I wonder if I'm cursed. If I bring disaster to everyone around me." Jake stared at me. "That's what you really think?" "Look at the evidence. Your mother hates me. Liam became obsessed with me. You lost eight years with your son because of me." "None of that is your fault." "Isn't it? Maybe I'm the common denominator. Maybe everyone would be better off without me." "Don't say that." "Why no

The First Kiss (Reunion)

Jake's POV We sat on the couch. Close but not touching. The fight was over. The words were said. The apologies given. But something had shifted. Emma had said she was tired of being scared. Tired of holding back. And I realized I was tired too. Tired of being careful. Tired of waiting for the perfect moment. Tired of treating us like something fragile that might break. "Emma," I said. "Yeah?" "Can I kiss you?" She looked at me. Those eyes I had loved for eight years. Even when I hated what she had done. Even when I thought I would never see her again. "Yes," she whispered. I moved closer. Slowly. Giving her time to change her mind. She did not move away. I cupped her face in my hands. Her skin was warm. Soft. Real. "Tell me if you want me to stop," I said. "Do not stop. Do not ever stop." I kissed her. Eight years. Eight years since I had last kissed this woman. Eight years of longing. Of hurt. Of wondering if I would ever feel this again. The kiss was gentle at fi

New Normal

Emma's POVThings changed after that kiss.Not dramatically. Not with grand gestures or declarations.Just small shifts. Natural progressions.Jake held my hand at breakfast. Kissed me goodbye before work. Pulled me close on the couch while we watched movies with Alex.Public affection. Nothing inappropriate. But present. Real.Alex noticed immediately."You guys are like actual boyfriend and girlfriend now," he said one morning."We were before," Jake replied."Yeah, but now you are not weird about it."He was right. We had been weird about it. Careful. Tentative.Now we were just us.Sarah came over for coffee and saw Jake kiss me before leaving for work."About time," she said when he left."What does that mean?""You two have been dancing around each other for months. Finally acting like people in love.""We were acting like people in love before.""You were acting like people afraid to be in love. There is a difference."She was right too.Jake suggested we do an interview. Contr

The Declaration

Jake's POV The lawsuit papers arrived by courier the next morning. Thick envelope. Official seals. Legal language designed to intimidate. I opened it while Emma watched. Alex was at school. Just us. I read the first page. Then the second. Then the third. My hands started shaking. Not from fear. From rage. "Jake?" Emma's voice was small. "How bad is it?" "It is vicious." I kept reading. Every page worse than the last. My mother had built a case designed to destroy Emma. Used the Liam situation. Called Emma's home environment "dangerous and unstable." Cited the break-in four years ago in the bad neighborhood. The assault. The stalking. All things that were not Emma's fault. All things that happened TO her. Not because of her. But Margaret twisted them. Made them sound like Emma's choices. Emma's failures. "Respondent Emma Reed has demonstrated a pattern of attracting dangerous individuals and placing the minor child in harm's way." "She has no stable employment history, r

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