Chapter 6 - THE WEIGHT OF CONSEQUENCESWeston’s hands were stuffed deep into his pockets, trembling slightly as he stared past me toward the bright, sunlit interior of the loft.
"You shouldn't be here, Weston," I said calmly, my arm securely wrapped around Marlo. "The restraining order prohibits you from coming within five hundred feet of this building."
"I know. I know," he muttered, dropping his gaze to the polished wooden floorboards. "The police already served me the papers this morning. I just... I couldn't stay away. My parents cut me off completely. They blame me for losing everything. Adele won't even take my calls. And Camille... Camille blocked my number the second the corporate cards bounced."
A bitter, humorless smile touched the corner of my mouth. "So the people you traded us for turned out to be less reliable than you expected. How surprising."
Weston flinched, stepping closer, though he kept a respectful distance. "I was a coward, Sable. I was terrified of disappointing my father. I thought I could have both—I thought I could keep my family's approval and keep you on the side. I didn't know... I had no idea your uncle’s trust had that clause built in."
"That’s your problem, Weston," I said, my voice cutting through his excuses like glass. "You only evaluate people by what you think they can do for you, or what you can take from them. You didn't care about the trust clauses because you never imagined a quiet girl from an ordinary background could hold a card higher than yours."
He swallowed hard, a tear finally spilling over his lower lash line and tracking down his hollow cheek. "Is there any way... any possible way we can fix this? I’ll sign whatever you want. I’ll sign over full parental rights, I’ll sign a NDA, I’ll leave the state... just... let me be in her life. Let me help support her."
I looked down at Marlo. She had drifted off to sleep, her chest rising and falling in a slow, peaceful rhythm.
"You already made your choice, Weston," I whispered. "Two hours after she was born, you looked at her and decided she was an inconvenience. You told me you weren't signing anything for her." I raised my eyes to meet his. "And I told you to remember that moment."
"Please, Sable..."
"You are legally recognized as her biological father on the records, which means child support will be automatically deducted from whatever minimum-wage job you manage to secure," I said flatly. "That is all you will ever have. You are a stranger passing by on the street. Now, turn around and walk down these stairs before I call the marshals."
May you like
Weston stood frozen for a long moment, the realization crashing over him with final, crushing weight. He realized there was no negotiation left, no charm to deploy, no corporate safety net to catch him.
He nodded slowly, his shoulders slumping entirely as he turned and walked down the stairwell without another word.
