Lahat ng Kabanata ng SHATTERED BY CHOICE: Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 28

 Anthony's POVI spent three days working with a lawyer to draft the agreement. It had to be airtight, clear, and legally binding enough that if Mirabel or Samuel or my father tried to back out, we would have grounds to take action.Reuben helped me fine-tune the language, and even though he didn't agree with my decision to keep things private, he respected it."You're being more generous than I would be," he said as we sat in his office reviewing the final draft."I'm not being generous. I'm being practical. A court battle would take years and cost a fortune, and at the end of it, all we'd have is a legal victory that doesn't actually change anything.""And you think this will change things?""I think it gives people a chance to prove they can do better. If they don't take it, then we still have the evidence."He slid the document across the desk to me. "It's ready. All you need now is their signatures."I picked it up and

 Anthony's POVLuca asked me a question I wasn't ready for on a Saturday morning three weeks after the agreement was signed.We were making pancakes in my kitchen, flour everywhere, and he looked up at me with those big serious eyes and said, "Dad, do you still love Mom?"I stopped mid-flip. "What?""Mom. Do you still love her?""Where is this coming from?"He shrugged and poured more batter onto the griddle. "You've been talking to her a lot. And you don't look angry when you say her name anymore. So I was just wondering."I set the spatula down and leaned against the counter. "It's complicated, buddy.""That's what grown-ups always say when they don't want to answer.""Okay. Fair point." I thought about how to explain it in a way an eight-year-old would understand. "Your mom and I have been working through some things. Big things. And in the process, I've realized she's not the person I thought she was.""Is that

 Anthony's POVI couldn't stop thinking about that conversation with Evelyn. For days, it played on repeat in my head. The way she had looked at me. The way her voice had softened when I told her I saw her.Reuben noticed."You're distracted," he said one afternoon when I was supposed to be reviewing contracts with him."I'm fine.""You've read the same paragraph four times. You're not fine." He closed the folder in front of me. "What's going on?""I think I might have feelings for Evelyn."He blinked. "Your ex-wife Evelyn?""Yes.""The woman you spent eight years blaming for ruining your life?""Yes."He leaned back in his chair and laughed. "Well, that's unexpected.""Tell me about it.""How did this happen?""I don't know. We've been spending more time together. Talking. Working through everything with Mirabel and the evidence. And somewhere in the middle of all that, I started seeing her dif

 Anthony's POVI was in a good mood for the first time in years. Work was going well. Luca was happy. And Evelyn and I were figuring out how to be something more than just two people who shared a child.Then my father called."Anthony, we need to talk. Can you come by the house?"His voice was serious, which meant whatever this was, it wasn't good.I drove over that afternoon. My mother answered the door and led me to the study where my father was waiting."Close the door," he said.I did. "What's going on?"He handed me a piece of paper. It was a letter from Samuel's lawyer."Samuel is threatening to sue me for breach of contract. He says I had no legal right to dissolve our partnership without his consent."I read through the letter. It was full of legal jargon, but the message was clear. Samuel was fighting back."He signed the agreement," I said. "He agreed to let you walk away.""I know. But apparent