The Abandoned Wife's Second Chance (Scarlett and Jasper) novel Chapter 55

(Jasper’s POV)

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She’s just angry.

That’s what I tell myself as I watch Scarlett’s walls go up, brick by brick, shutting me out. The way she holds herself–arms crossed, shoulders tense, eyes avoiding mine–it’s all defense. Protection against the pain I caused.

But underneath that armor, I know she still loves me. She has to.

“You should go,” she says, not looking at me. “Lily’s fever broke. She’ll be fine now.”

I don’t move from my spot beside the couch. Lily’s still sleeping, her small hand wrapped around my finger like she’s afraid I’ll disappear if she lets go.

“I want to stay. Make sure she’s really okay.”

“No.” Her voice is sharp, final. “Lily will be fine. I’ve been taking care of her without you for years.”

The words sting. Does she mean she plans to take care of Lily without me in the future? No way. No way in hell will I let that happen. Still, I keep my mouth shut. Saying that to Scarlett now will only get me kicked out of here faster.

And I don’t want to leave. Not now. Not when my daughter is right here, trusting me to keep

her safe.

I choose a different tactic. “You’re an amazing mother, Scarlett. But Lily’s my daughter too.”

“Biology doesn’t make you a father.”

“Then give me the chance to earn the right to be her father.” I say, staring her down, refusing to bow at the anger shimmering in her eyes. “Let me prove to you I can be the father she deserves. The husband you deserved.”

“Husband?” She laughs, cold, dark, humorless. “It’s too late for you to be a better husband now. I don’t need you anymore.”

“No.” I shake my head, refusing to believe it. “It’s not too late. We can start over. We have Lily now. We can finally be the family we’ve always dreamed of.”

“The family we always dreamed of?” Her eyes snap to mine, blazing with fury. “When exactly

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did we dream of that, Jasper? Because as far as I remember, it has always been me dreaming of building a family with you.”

She’s right. Again. I never spoke about wanting a family, never shared those dreams with her. But the truth is, I did want it.

I looked forward to the birth of our child, to becoming a father, to having a family I could call my own. I wanted it just as bad as she did.

I was just too scared to express it. Too scared that if I got too close, she would realize she could’ve done better than choosing someone like me.

“I made mistakes-”

“Mistakes?” She stands up so fast it makes me dizzy. “You didn’t make mistakes, Jasper. You trampled on my heart, on my dignity. You destroyed my self–esteem so bad that I lost myself. When you make a person begin questioning their self–worth, Jasper, your actions are no longer just mere mistakes. They become a crime.”

Lily stirs at our raised voices, and we both freeze. I stroke her hair gently until she settles back into sleep.

“I was wrong,” I mumble with a heavy heart. “I was wrong in the past. But people change, Scarlett. I’ve changed.”

She stares at me for a long moment, and I see something shift in her expression. Hope blooms in my chest until she speaks.

“Maybe you have. But it doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Why not?”

“Because I have changed.” Her voice is steady now, calm. “I’m not the same woman who begged for your love. I’m not the same woman who would have done anything to get your attention, to save our marriage. That woman is long gone, Jasper. You killed her the night you left her on that highway.”

The words tear through me like a shrapnel, and I lower my head, clenching my fist to suppress the pain. “I…I don’t believe that. You loved me so much. How can you just…” stop loving me out of the blue? I want to ask, but I am unable to bring myself to complete the

sentence.

It’s not a day or two. I’m realizing now that the gap between us has opened long before her departure, and after she left, it only widened.

“Nothing happens all of a sudden. It’s the piling of multiples that shake the foundation.” She

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moves toward the door. “It’s time for you to leave.”

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I look down at Lily one more time, memorizing her face. Then I carefully extract my finger from her grip and stand.

“This isn’t over.”

“But it is for me.”

I look into her eyes–the cold certainty, resolve. The way she doesn’t shy from my gaze as she used… my heart sinks.

Does she really not feel anything for me anymore?

No, she must feel something. She has to. She’s just too angry, too hurt to show it right now.

I shake my head, brushing past her as if by walking fast enough, I can outrun the truth I saw in her eyes.

A truth I refuse to think about, let alone believe.

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