MARRIED TO MY EX FATHER IN LAW

WILLOW'S POV

I'm having coffee at a café near Ocean's office when I see him walking down the street.

Perfect timing.

I wave to get his attention. He sees me and for a second I think he might keep walking. But his manners are too ingrained. He comes over.

"Willow. What are you doing here?"

"Just having coffee. Join me?" I gesture to the empty chair across from me.

"I'm on my way to a meeting."

"Five minutes. Please. I promise I won't keep you long."

He hesitates, then sits down. But he doesn't order anything. Just sits there looking at me with those gray eyes that give nothing away.

"What is it, Willow?"

Straight to the point. That's Ocean. No time for small talk when he's in business mode.

"I wanted to apologize," I say. "I know I've been coming around a lot since I got back to London. And I think maybe I've been making things uncomfortable for you and Lola."

"You have been around a lot," he agrees carefully.

"I'm sorry. I just..." I look down at my coffee. "I missed you, Ocean. And when I heard you got married, I panicked. I thought I'd lost my chance to tell you how I felt. To apologize for leaving the way I did."

"You did lose your chance. Five years ago when you left without a word."

The words are harsh but his tone is gentle. Almost sad.

"I know. And I regret it every day." I look up at him. "But Ocean, I have to ask. Are you really happy? With this marriage?"

"That's not your concern."

"Maybe not. But I care about you. And from what I can see, you don't seem happy. You seem stressed. Tired. Like you're carrying the weight of the world."

"I always carry the weight of the world. That's the job."

"It's more than that though." I lean forward. "Ocean, Lola is a sweet girl. I mean that genuinely. But she's so young. She's what, twenty-three? Twenty-four?"

"Twenty-three."

"That's barely an adult. She hasn't lived enough life to know who she is yet. And you've put yourself in a position where you're not just her husband, you're her protector. Her savior. Her whole world." I pause. "That's a lot of pressure. On both of you."

"What's your point?"

"My point is that I wonder if you've thought about what happens when she grows up. When she figures out who she is and realizes that who she is doesn't fit with your world. With your life."

Ocean's jaw tightens. "Lola is stronger than you think."

"I'm sure she is. But strong doesn't mean compatible." I take a sip of my coffee. "Ocean, you're forty-nine years old. You've built an empire. You know exactly who you are and what you want. Lola is still figuring out basic things like what she wants to do with her life, who she wants to be. You're in completely different life stages."

"Age is just a number."

"Is it though? Because from where I'm sitting, it looks like you're spending all your time worrying about her. Protecting her. Shielding her from the reality of your world. That's not a partnership. That's you playing father figure to a girl who needs guidance more than she needs a husband."

I can see I've struck a nerve. His expression doesn't change but there's a tension in his shoulders that wasn't there before.

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't I? Ocean, I was with you for three years. I know you. I know how you think. I know that protective instinct you have." I reach across the table and touch his hand. He doesn't pull away. "And I know the difference between love and obligation. What you're doing for Lola is noble. It's admirable. But is it love? Or is it just you being unable to stand by and watch someone suffer?"

"I love my wife."

The words are firm. Final. But there's something in the way he says them that makes me think he's trying to convince himself as much as me.

"I believe you care about her. Deeply. But Ocean, be honest. If you'd met Lola under normal circumstances, would you have pursued her? Would you have looked at a twenty-three-year-old girl fresh out of an abusive marriage and thought, yes, that's who I want to spend my life with?"

He doesn't answer. Which is answer enough.

"You married her to save her," I continue gently. "That's what you do. You save people. It's one of the things I've always loved about you. But saving someone isn't the same as choosing them. And I think maybe you've conflated the two."

"I need to go." He stands up.

"Wait. Just one more thing." I stand too. "I'm not trying to make you feel bad. I'm really not. I just think you deserve to be happy. Really happy. Not just going through the motions of a marriage because you made a promise."

"I'm perfectly happy."

"Are you? Because the Ocean I remember smiled more. Laughed more. Didn't look quite so exhausted all the time."

"People change, Willow. I'm not the man you remember."

"Maybe. Or maybe you're just overwhelmed by trying to be everything for someone who needs more than any one person can give." I pick up my purse. "Think about it, Ocean. Really think about it. You're in the prime of your life. You've earned the right to be with someone who's your equal. Someone who can stand beside you, not behind you. Someone who understands your world because they've lived in it, not someone you have to constantly protect from it."

"Someone like you, you mean."

"I'm not going to pretend I don't want another chance with you. I do. But more than that, I want you to be happy. And I don't think you are. Not really."

Ocean looks at me for a long moment. Then he says, "I'm late for my meeting."

He walks away without another word.

I sit back down and finish my coffee, feeling satisfied despite his cold reception.

I saw his face when I talked about Lola being too young. About him playing protector instead of husband. About the age gap and the different life stages.

I saw the doubt flicker in his eyes.

That's all I need. Just a seed of doubt. Just enough to make him question what he's doing.

Because the truth is, everything I said is valid. Ocean is forty-nine and Lola is twenty-three. That's a massive gap. Not just in years but in life experience, maturity, understanding of the world.

Ocean needs a partner who can challenge him intellectually. Who can hold her own in his world. Who doesn't need constant protection and guidance.

Lola might be sweet and pretty, but she's not that person. She can't be. She's too young, too damaged, too dependent on him.

Eventually Ocean will realize that. Especially if I keep pointing it out. Gently. Subtly. With concern and care instead of malice.

I'm not trying to be cruel to the girl. I actually do think she's nice. But she's wrong for Ocean.

And I'm right for him.

I know his world. I understand the pressures he faces. I can be the partner he needs, not another responsibility he has to carry.

All I have to do is make him see that.

And based on the look on his face when he walked away, I'm making progress.

He's starting to question things. Starting to wonder if maybe I'm right about the age gap, about Lola being too young, about him confusing obligation with love.

That's enough for now.

I'll give him a few days to sit with those thoughts. Let them marinate. Let the doubt grow.

And then I'll reach out again. Remind him of what we had. Show him what we could have again.

Patient. Strategic. Subtle.

That's how I'll win.

By making Ocean realize on his own that Lola isn't right for him.

And that I am.

I leave money on the table for the coffee and walk out into the London afternoon feeling confident.

This is going to work.

It has to.

Because I'm not losing Ocean again.

Not to anyone.

And especially not to a girl who's playing house with a man she can't possibly understand.