The Abandoned Wife's Second Chance (Scarlett and Jasper) novel Chapter 68

Chapter 68

(Jasper’s POV)

The call with Mark Winston leaves me drained.

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When I landed in that orphanage fifteen years ago, I vowed to forget all and everyone related to me from the past.

Because unlike the other orphans who didn’t have names or parents, I had both a name. And

a mother.

Only my mother died early, leaving that man to dump me in an orphanage so he wouldn’t have to deal with raising me.

So Scarlett and Lily are my real family. My only family.

And if I’m to have any chance at getting them back, I must own up to my past mistakes, and uncover the person trying to tear me away from them.

I drive back to Scarlett’s apartment with my heart hammering against my ribs. It’s evening now, the sky painted in shades of orange and pink. The kind of sunset she used to love watching from our bedroom window.

Three years of marriage, and only now do I realize I never got to watch the sunset with her.

I knock on her door, knowing she won’t want to see me. Knowing I don’t deserve her time or

attention. But I have to try.

“Jasper?” She opens the door just a c***k, her face guarded. “What are you doing here?”

“I want to see Lily.” It’s not a complete lie–I do want to see our daughter. But it’s also not the whole truth. I need to see Scarlett too. Need to start fixing what I broke. “Please.”

She hesitates, and for a moment I think she’ll slam the door in my face. Instead, she steps back with a sigh. “She’s in her room. But once you see her, I want you to leave.”

“Understood.”

The apartment feels different tonight. Warmer somehow. Maybe it’s the way the lamps cast soft light across the walls, or the way children’s books are scattered on the coffee table. It feels like a home.

A home I should have been a part of.

I find Lily in her bedroom, surrounded by coloring books and crayons. She looks up when I

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walk in, her face lighting up with joy.

“Daddy!” She scrambles to her feet, throwing herself at me.

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I catch her, lifting her into my arms and breathing in her sweet scent. Thank God. Thank God she’s here, safe and healthy and mine. If I never have another chance with Scarlett, if I’ve lost her forever, at least I’ll always have this little girl.

My flesh and blood. A living, breathing symbol of our love.

“Did you have fun at the park today?” I ask, settling into the chair beside her bed.

“Uh–huh! Uncle Dorian pushed me on the swings really high.” She shows me a crayon drawing of stick figures. “Look, this is me and Mama and Uncle Dorian at the park.”

My chest tightens. Three stick figures holding hands under a crooked sun. A family. But I’m not in the picture.

“It’s beautiful, sweetheart.” I smooth her dark hair. “Sounds like you had a good time.”

“It was the best day ever.” She climbs into my lap, her small hands touching my face. “Daddy, when will we go to the park together? Just you and me and Mama?”

The innocent question hits me like a punch to the gut. Me, Lily, and Scarlett? How do I tell my four–year–old daughter that her mother doesn’t want to be around me anymore? That I ruined everything we could’ve had before she was even born?

My voice comes out hoarse. “That’s… that’s up to Mama to decide.”

Lily frowns. “Did you make Mama sad?”

“Yes. Daddy made Mama very sad.” I admit.

“Then you should say sorry.”

If only it were that simple. If only sorry could fix the years of neglect, the broken promises, the way I chose Virginia over the woman I should have protected.

“I’m trying, sweetheart. But sometimes grown–ups make mistakes that take a long time to fix.”

She nods solemnly, like she understands. Then she kisses my cheek with her sticky lips. “I love you, Daddy.”

“I love you too, Lily. More than you’ll ever know.”

I tuck her into bed, reading her a princess story. When she finally falls asleep, I stand in her

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doorway for a long moment, just watching her breathe.

She’s beautiful. Absolutely perfect. And she’s my daughter.

Whatever it takes, I won’t lose her. I won’t lose either of them.

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When I return to the living room, Scarlett is standing by the window with her arms crossed. She doesn’t turn around when she hears my footsteps.

“Now that you’ve seen Lily, can you leave?”

The dismissal stings, but I deserve it. Her coldness, her walls, her complete lack of trust in

1. me.

But I can’t leave. Not yet.

“Scarlett.” I take a deep breath, knowing this might be my only chance to come clean. “I need to apologize to you for everything I did in the past.”

“Apologies don’t fix anything, Jasper.” She finally turns to face me, and the pain in her eyes nearly brings me to my knees. “They’re just empty words to rub salt in the wounds.”

“You’re right. They are just words.” I step closer, careful not to invade her space. “But I need you to understand why I was always so harsh with you. Why I… why I treated you the way I

did.”

She shakes her head. “I don’t want to-”

“I didn’t believe you loved me.”

The words slip out of my mouth in a rush, stopping her cold. She stares at me, confusion flickering across her features.

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