NovelEnglishMy CEO 206
206 Jayden's Unyielding
206
Jayden's Unyielding Resolver
(Winona)
We sat in the ward waiting room. Jayden is beside me, his hand clasped around mine. We haven't said much
since Mom passed away, both of us caught up in our own thoughts.
Cass cback after ten minutes, tears streaming down her face, to say her final goodbyes to Mom. | couldn't
bring myself to intrude on that moment. She needs her space, and | need to respect that.
Jayden squeezes my hand, groundingin the moment. | look at him, seeing the exhaustion in his eyes. But
he's strong, certain, and that's what | need right now.
"I should head back to Ashlyn's room soon," Jayden says quietly, his voice steady. "Check on the baby before |
take you and Cass home."
I nod, standing up with him. The thought of seeing Cass now, of trying to convince her to chwith me,
feels like an insurmountable task, but | know it needs to be done. I'm not leaving her alone. | promised Mom. But
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtas we start along the ward corridors, past the nurses station to head off this floor, the hairs on back of my neck
prickle.
the
| turn, and there she is-Judy. She's standing at the entrance to the ward, her face drawn and desperate The sight
of her makesconfused. Why is she here? Why now?
"Jayden, please," Judy calls out, her voice cracking as she takes a step towards us. "Please, talk to me."
Jayden's face hardens, a wall of ice slipping into place.
He doesn't even hesitate as he turns to the security guard stationed nearby. "She's breaching a no- contact
order. Call the police. In fact, call Detective Harris, who's leading the investigation into Ashlyn's fall."
The guard nods and steps forward, already reaching for his radio. Before long two other security men step in to
block the way.
"Jayden, wait!" Judy's voice is frantic, her hands shaking as she reaches out, as if she could somehow pull him
back to her. "Please, don't do this. | just need to talk to you."
| see Gus cin the ward doors behind her. "Judy, this is a bad idea, I told you."
"Shut up, Gus," She snaps. "I just need Jayden to talk to my son...."
Jayden's jaw tightens, his eyes narrowing. "There's nothing to talk about, Mother. You've crossed every line.
There's no coming back from this. Now my baby is fighting for life." "Please, Jayden," Judy begs, her voice
breaking as tears spill down her cheeks. "I never wanted this with Ashlyn. | didn't do anything to her."
Jayden's expression doesn't change. "I don't believe you, and even if | did, it wouldn't matter. You've done
enough."
A security guard moves in, taking Judy by the arm to escort her out.
206 Jayden's Unyielding Resolv
#25 BONUS
But she resists, turning to me, desperate. "Winona, please. You're a mother. You understand. | love Abby. | would
never hurt her. Please, make him understand that. Please."
| know, deep down, that Judy does love Abby. For all her faults, all the damage she caused, that love is real. And |
can't ignore that Abby loves her as well. | have to tell her Grandma Lucy is gone. Tears well in my eyes. Do |
need to tell her she can't see Grandma Judy anymore either?
I look at Jayden, who's watchingwith a hard, unreadable expression. "Jayden, maybe... maybe we can talk
about this later. Abby... she misses her Grandma Judy."
Jayden's eyes flash with a mix of emotions-anger, hurt, betrayal-but he takes a deep breath, his jaw clenched.
"We'll talk about it later," he says, his voice clipped, but not unkind. "But not now."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
Judy's face crumples, but before she can say anything else, the security guard begins leading her away. She
goes, but not without a final, pleading look at both of us.
It's a look that says everything she's too broken to say out loud.
Gus lingers, his eyes following Judy as she's escorted out. "Jayden, please," he says, his voice low, almost
pleading, "Reconsider. She's... she's not herself anymore. She's broken."
Jayden turns to Gus, "Judy is your problem now," Jayden says, his voice cold, final. "You've enabled her all these
years, watching from afar while she tore our lives apart. You didn't step in when you should have. and now you
can deal with her fallout." Gus's face tightens, but he doesn't argue. He knows Jayden is right. We all do.
Jayden turns back to me, his eyes softening just a fraction as he looks at me: "Let's go see Ashlyn and we'll come
get your sister and go hto Abby. There's nothing more we can do here tonight."
I nod, slipping my hand into his as we walk away from the chaos Judy has once again brought into our lives. But
this time, it's different. Jayden is in control again like he was before we married in Vegas, and we're facing our
problems together. Finally, | can trust him again. We still have a lot to deal with and navigate. I'm not saying any
of it will be easy. It won't.
I'm still in therapy, still dealing with letting myself forget what he and Ashlyn shared. Being able to let him love
But | do feel like we are closer to that than we have been. I'm selling the townhouse. | can't live there after Steve
was killed inside.
| think it's twe moved into the penthouse with Jayden to be a family.
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