Ex-Wife To The Billionaire

Chapter5

The moment Janet crossed the road, she regretted it.

Not because Damon King had done anything. Because reality suddenly felt far more terrifying than imagination.

Up close, he was taller than she remembered.

The kind of man who naturally occupied space without trying.

His black suit looked expensive.

His watch probably cost more than everything she owned.

And standing this close to him made Janet painfully aware of how different their worlds were.

Damon stepped aside and opened the passenger door.

The gesture surprised her.

She had expected him to simply get in and wait.

Instead he stood there silently.

Waiting.

Janet hesitated.

Then slowly climbed inside.

The door closed behind her.

A soft click.

A very final sound.

For some reason it made her stomach tighten.

The interior of the car looked nothing like anything she had ever seen before.

Everything was spotless.

Dark leather.

Soft lighting.

The faint scent of expensive cologne lingering in the air.

It didn't feel like a car.

It felt like an entirely different world.

Damon rounded the front and entered from the driver's side.

Janet blinked.

"Where... is the d-driver?"

The question slipped out before she could stop it.

Damon paused.

Then looked at her.

"I can drive Ms.Rosefield. "

Janet immediately regretted asking.

That wasn't even an answer.

Damon started the engine.

The car pulled away from the curb.

And silence settled between them.

An awkward silence.

The kind that seemed to grow heavier every second.

Janet folded her hands in her lap.

Unfolded them.

Then folded them again.

She hated silence, especially this kind because it left too much room for thinking. And lately all her thoughts led back to one thing.

Chance.

Or Jack.

Whichever name he truly belonged to.

The thought hurt.

"You really named him Chance?"

Damon's voice suddenly cut through the silence.

Janet looked up.

The question caught her off guard.

"Y-Yes."

Damon kept his eyes on the road.

"Why?"

Janet stared at him.

Of all the questions she expected, that wasn't one of them.

She looked out the window.

The city rolled past.

"When I found him..."

Her voice softened.

"I thought it was chance."

Damon's fingers tightened slightly on the steering wheel.

Janet didn't notice.

"I was alone."

She smiled faintly.

"A little lost too."

Her gaze dropped.

"Then suddenly there was this little boy."

A small laugh escaped her.

"He wouldn't stop crying."

For the first time since entering the car, Damon glanced at her.

A real glance.

Not a passing one.

Janet continued.

"I..I didn't know what to do."

"He cried all night."

"He hated milk."

"He hated vegetables."

"And he bit me twice."

Damon blinked.

Janet laughed despite herself.

"He was awful."

The words were affectionate.

Warm.

The kind only a mother could say.

Something unfamiliar twisted inside Damon's chest. Because he had never heard anyone talk about his Jack that way before.

Not teachers.

Not nannies.

Not relatives.

Not even Clarissa

No one.

Their son, to Clarissa was a mistake. One of her biggest mistake. She had wanted to abort him.

Yet, Janet talked about him as if he was the greatest thing that had ever happened to her.

Silence returned, but it felt different now. Less pressured and more thoughtful.

Janet eventually looked at him.

"Why now?"

Damon's grip tightened.

"What?"

"You said Chance is your son."

She swallowed.

"So... why are you here now?"

The question landed heavily inside the car. For several seconds Damon didn't answer. The city lights reflected across the windshield.

Then finally—

The vehicle slowed.

The restaurant in front of them looked like somewhere she had only ever seen in magazines.

Damon switched off the engine.

Then finally looked at her.

Directly.

His green eyes met hers.

"We can talk now."

The warmth that had briefly appeared vanished.

Reality returned.

Janet's stomach tightened.

Because she knew exactly what came next.

And she wasn't sure she was ready for it.

***

The restaurant was quiet.

Too quiet.

Janet felt out of place the second she stepped inside.

The floor gleamed.

The chandeliers sparkled overhead.

Everyone looked expensive.

Including the waiter who greeted Damon with a slight bow the moment they entered.

"Good evening, Mr. King."

Damon merely nodded.

As though he was used to people treating him this way. Janet wasn't. She followed behind him awkwardly, trying not to stare, trying not to look impressed, but failing miserably.

They were eventually led to a private dining area near the back. The moment they sat down, Janet's stomach tightened.

Here it comes.

The real discussion.

The waiter handed them menus.

Janet stared at hers.

Then stared harder.

Then slowly closed it.

Damon noticed.

"You don't like anything?"

Janet looked embarrassed.

"I don't understand anything."

A brief silence followed.

Then Damon took the menu from her hands. Without a word, he ordered several dishes.

Janet frowned.

"What if I don't like them?"

The waiter looked horrified.

Damon looked amused.

A very small expression.

Gone almost instantly.

"You'll survive."

Janet stared.

Was that a joke?

From Damon King?

Apparently not.

Because his face remained completely serious.

The waiter left and silence settled between them again.

Janet decided she hated silence.

Especially when Damon was involved.

"So."

She folded her arms.

"You wanted to talk."

Damon's gaze met hers.

Direct.

Steady.

Uncomfortable.

For a second neither spoke.

Then Damon finally said,

"Jack."

Janet immediately corrected him.

"Chance."

His jaw tightened.

"Jack."

"Chance."

"Jack."

"Chance."

They stared at each other.

Neither willing to back down.

Finally Damon sighed.

For the first time.

Actually sighed.

"Fine."

Janet blinked.

She hadn't expected to win.

"Chance."

The word sounded strange coming from him.

Almost unfamiliar.

Damon leaned back slightly.

"How is he?"

The question surprised her.

"What?"

"How is he?"

Janet stared.

Of all the things she expected him to ask...

That wasn't one of them.

Slowly her shoulders relaxed.

"He's happy."

Something shifted behind Damon's eyes.

Small.

But noticeable.

Janet continued.

"He likes cartoons."

"He hates vegetables."

"He pretends to be asleep whenever it's time to clean his room."

A tiny smile appeared on her lips.

"And he lies terribly."

Damon listened quietly.

"He talks in his sleep."

She laughed softly.

"Last week he spent twenty minutes arguing with a dinosaur."

For a brief moment—

Damon almost smiled.

Almost.

Then the expression disappeared.

Janet noticed.

And somehow the discovery fascinated her.

Because she had genuinely started believing this man couldn't smile.

Damon looked down at the table.

Thinking.

Then he asked quietly,

"Does he ever ask about his parents?"

The question hurt.

Janet's smile faded.

"Sometimes."

Damon's fingers tightened.

"What do you tell him?"

Janet swallowed.

"The truth."

Damon looked up.

"I tell him I don't know."

The answer seemed to catch him off guard.

Janet stared at the table.

"I never wanted to lie to him."

Her voice softened.

"I always hoped one day we'd find them."

Damon froze.

We.

Not I.

We.

As though finding his family had always mattered to her.

As though she had never intended to keep him forever.

The realization hit him harder than expected.

Because if their positions were reversed...

Clarissa would have hidden the child.

Without hesitation.

Without guilt.

Yet Janet was different.

Completely different.

The more he sat across from her, the harder it became to connect her to the woman he once knew.

Same face.

Different soul.

The food arrived.

Neither touched it immediately.

Janet was too nervous.

Damon was too distracted.

Eventually Janet broke first.

"Mr. King."

His gaze lifted.

She inhaled slowly.

Then forced herself to ask the question that had been haunting her since the supermarket.

"Are you going to take him away from me?"

The restaurant suddenly felt very quiet.

Damon stared at her.

Really stared.

And for the first time he noticed something he hadn't before.

Fear.

Not greed.

Not calculation.

Not manipulation.

Fear.

She genuinely believed she was about to lose the child she loved.

The realization settled heavily in his chest.

Janet lowered her eyes.

"If that's what you came to tell me..."

Her voice trembled slightly.

"Please just say it."

Damon was silent.

For several seconds.

Then he asked,

"Do you love him?"

Janet looked offended.

The question itself felt insulting.

"Of course I do."

Damon held her gaze.

There wasn't a single second of hesitation.

Not one.

The answer had been immediate.

Instinctive.

Certain.

And somehow that answered more questions than words ever could.

Slowly, Damon leaned back in his chair.

Then he made a decision.

A decision he hadn't planned on making when he woke up this morning.

"No."

Janet froze.

"No?"

"No."

His voice remained calm.

"I'm not taking him away from you."

The breath Janet had been holding escaped her lungs.

Relief hit so hard it almost hurt.

But Damon wasn't finished.

"You're the person who raised him."

His gaze remained fixed on hers.

"The person he knows."

"The person he trusts."

Janet stared.

Unable to believe what she was hearing.

Damon folded his hands together.

For the first time since this began, his tone softened.

Barely.

"But he's still my son."

The relief disappeared.

Tension returned.

Damon continued.

"And I want to be part of his life."

Silence.

Janet's heartbeat accelerated.

Then Damon said the words that would change everything.

"I think we should share custody."

Janet froze.

The world seemed to stop moving.

Share custody?

Co-parent?

With Damon King?

Neither of them knew it yet.

But that single decision was about to change both of their lives forever.