Chapter 4: Never again

I should have hung up right then and there. It was the logical thing to do, to shut this down before it spiraled. But there was something about the way Lia said his name that made my heart race—a flutter I couldn’t ignore. Ford. The man who once meant everything to me—the man who tore our world apart.

“I told you, Lia,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady, though it shook despite my best efforts. “I don’t want anything to do with him. He made his choice three years ago.”

“I know, Ali. But… he’s been calling me non-stop. He’s… he’s different now. Not the way he used to be.”

Different?

The word echoed in my mind, but I couldn’t bring myself to believe it. Ford was the man who had walked out without a word, who had abandoned Caleb and me when we needed him most. He couldn’t just reappear and claim to be someone new. He didn’t get to do that. I tried to push the thought away, but it lingered like a storm cloud hanging above me.

“Tell him no,” I snapped, frustration bubbling over. “Tell him to leave me alone.”

Lia hesitated, her voice softer this time. “Ali, I think you should at least hear him out. For your own peace of mind. He—”

“No, Lia. I’m done hearing him out.”

My heart pounded in my chest, my words leaving my mouth with a finality I didn’t fully feel, but it was what I had to say. “I won’t let him back in. Not after everything he did.”

Silence fell between us, thick and heavy. I could almost hear Lia grappling with what I’d just said, trying to find some way to fix the unfixable.

“Ali, he’s Caleb’s father—”

“I know who he is,” I cut her off, the anger flaring up inside me like wildfire. “But he already abandoned us!"

The words stung even as I said them, but they were true. Caleb didn’t deserve to be dragged through the wreckage of my past. He deserved better than Ford. He deserved a life with stability, a life without the man who had broken mine so completely.

“I won’t let Ford be a part of Caleb’s life,” I continued, my voice steady and firm. “He doesn’t get to show up now, pretending like he can fix everything. It’s too late for that. It’s been too late.”

Lia’s sigh echoed through the phone. I could hear the resignation in her tone, but I knew she wouldn’t argue anymore.

“I’ll tell him you’re not interested, Ali. I just thought… maybe hearing him out would give you some closure.”

“I don’t need closure from him.” The words left me with a cold finality.

“I’m the one who had to pick up the pieces, Lia. I’m the one who built our life without him.”

With that, I hung up, my hand trembling as I placed the phone down on my desk. The tension in my chest didn’t ease—it only grew. Ford’s name, his voice, still haunted my mind. The part of me that had once loved him, trusted him, still struggled to make sense of it all. But I wouldn’t let it. I couldn’t.

I glanced at the framed photo of Caleb on my desk. His smile, bright and innocent, anchored me. He was the reason I had fought so hard. He was my everything. And no one—not Ford, not anyone—was going to jeopardize that.

The following morning, the unease from last night still twisted in my stomach. Ford. The idea of him trying to reinsert himself into my life after all this time made me sick. But I couldn’t afford to dwell on it. I had too much to do, too much at stake. I wasn’t going to let Ford distract me from the life I had built.

I glanced at the message from my secretary confirming today’s meeting schedule. First on the list: Mr. Valentine, a potential investor. There was no time for distractions. No space for the past to creep back in.

“Beth,” I called as I walked out of my bedroom, still in my robe.

“I’m heading out for work. Can you look after Caleb while I’m gone?”

Beth nodded without saying a word. “Of course, Ms. Jameson.”

I quickly changed into my work attire, grabbed my things, and left for the restaurant where the meeting was scheduled. I focused on the deal ahead, pushing thoughts of Ford to the farthest corner of my mind. But the tension in my chest remained, like a storm that wouldn’t pass.

The drive was quick, and I arrived at the restaurant right on time. I scanned the room, looking for Mr. Valentine. My gaze faltered when I saw a familiar face smiling at me from the table.

Ford.

I froze, my heart skipping a beat as a flood of emotions rushed through me. Anger, confusion, disbelief.

“Ford? What the hell are you doing here?” I asked, my voice sharp as I approached the table, already boiling with frustration.

Ford’s smile widened, seemingly unaffected by my tone. “I’m glad you came, Alicia.”

“I’m not here for you,” I snapped, my blood already starting to boil. “I’m here for my client.”

Ford didn’t flinch. He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest casually. “I am your client. I’m Mr. Valentine.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut. I stood frozen, unable to fully process what I’d just heard. “What? You? You’re Mr. Valentine?”

He nodded, still smiling. "Yes. I’ve been going by Mr. Valentine for the last few months. I knew you would never meet with me if I revealed who I really was. But I wanted to talk, Ali. We need to talk.”

I wanted to walk away. I should have walked away. But my legs wouldn’t move. Ford—sitting there with that smug smile, like nothing had ever happened. Like he hadn’t torn everything apart.

I clenched my fists, forcing myself to breathe.

“You have some nerve, Ford,” I said, my voice low, but sharp, each word a little harder than the last.

"You think you can just show up here, after all this time, pretending everything’s fine?"

He leaned forward, his eyes never leaving mine. “I don’t expect you to forgive me, Ali. But I want to make things right. I want to start over.”

I scoffed, shaking my head in disbelief. “Start over? How? After everything you did? You walked away without a second thought. And now you think you can come back, like nothing happened?”

Ford’s expression softened, but I wasn’t fooled. It was just a mask. “I was an idiot. I don’t expect you to believe me, but I’ve changed. I’ve spent every day regretting how I treated you and Caleb.”

Caleb. The name sliced through me like a knife. He didn’t deserve any of this. He didn’t deserve Ford, not after what he’d done.

“I’m not here to listen to your apologies, Ford,” I said, my voice flat and unwavering. “I’ve done just fine without you. Caleb and I have a life now. A life without you.”

Ford’s expression hardened, and for a moment, I saw the man I used to know.

“I know,” he said, his voice thick with emotion.

“I don’t deserve to be a part of your life, but I want to be there for Caleb. I want to be his father again.”

His words hit me like a punch to the gut. His father again? He had no right to claim that. Ford wasn’t Caleb’s father anymore. He had lost that title the moment he walked away.

“No,” I said, my voice cold and final. “You’re not Caleb’s father anymore."

The words stung as they left my mouth, but they were the truth. I had fought to raise Caleb on my own, and I wasn’t about to let Ford rewrite our story now.

Ford flinched, his face clouded with pain, but he didn’t back down. “I know I don’t have the right to ask for forgiveness, but I want to make it right. I’ll do whatever it takes to prove I can be the man you need, the father Caleb needs.”

I stood there, my emotions a whirlpool of confusion and rage. I couldn’t let him destroy what I had worked so hard to build. Caleb and I were fine without him.

“Do you really think you can just fix everything?” I asked, my voice tight with emotion.

“You can’t just show up after three years and expect everything to be okay. You’re not the same man I knew. And frankly, I don’t know if I even want to know who you are now.”

Ford looked as if I had slapped him, but he didn’t look away. His voice was barely a whisper.

“I’m sorry, Alicia. I can’t change the past, but I’ll do whatever it takes to make things right. Please, just give me a chance. I don’t care how long it takes. I’ll fight for you, for Caleb, for us.”

A tear slipped down my cheek, and I quickly wiped it away, furious at myself for letting him affect me. No. I couldn’t let him in. Not again.

“You can’t win me back with promises,” I said, my voice cutting through the air like a blade.

“You lost that right a long time ago. And you’ve lost your chance to be Caleb’s father. You don’t get to come back into our lives just because you’ve had a change of heart. You made your choice.”

Ford’s face fell, his smile replaced by an expression I hadn’t seen in years. A broken man. And yet, I still couldn’t let him back in.

“I’ll do whatever it takes, Alicia. I’ll fight for you. I’ll fight for Caleb. I swear I will.”