SWNOVELS Chapter My CEO 250
250 Home and Haunted (Jayden)
After the incredible time with Henry earlier at the hospital, I'm back at home. But I struggle with not being there with Henry. Winona is in the kitchen talking with Anne and Abby. Bobby and Sarah are doing their homework.
The doctors said Henry might be able to come home in four to six weeks if things continue the way they're going. I can't even begin to describe how that makes me feel. The excitement, the relief, the overwhelming sense of possibility.
After everything, we're finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. And this time, hopefully, it's not the oncoming train.
Winona comes into the living room. She sits beside me. "So, I spoke with Gus last week. He came to the
office."
I tense up immediately at the mention of his name. "What's going on with him now?"
She sighs, her fingers tracing small circles on my leg. "He asked if we wanted to have dinner with him and Maria."
I shake my head, knowing exactly where this is going. I'm not interested, Winona."
"I told him you wouldn't want to talk about Greg," she continues, her voice soft. "But Maria apparently has questions. About who Greg really was."
1 let out a slow breath, staring at the ceiling. "I don't care what she wants to know. Greg was a bastard. He treated me and my mother like dirt."
"Apparently, Greg was a completely different person with her and the kids. Kind, loving. She wants to understand how, I suppose."
"The fact that he was kind and loving to them only makes me hate him more. It means he knew exactly what he was doing when he was an asshole to us."
Winona sighs, crossing her arms. "I get it, Jayden. I really do. But maybe talking to Maria would help her understand. Maybe it'll help you too, to close that chapter once and for all."
I shake my head. "I don't need closure from that. I've made my peace with the fact that Greg was a piece of shit. That's all there is to it."
Winona nods. "I'm not pushing you to talk about him. I just wanted to let you know what's going on."
"Why does Gus have to keep coming and talking to you about this crap?"
"You won't talk to him, but that's not all we talk about."
I lean back, running a hand through my hair. "I appreciate you telling Gus I'm not interested. I don't care how perfect Greg was with them; he was nothing but a nightmare to me." 1 told Gus maybe he needs to tell Maria about Greg, not you.
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250 Home and Haunted
+25 BONUS
"Yes! One hundred percent! He forced Mom to keep me in that hell with Greg. He used that as some kind of twisted revenge because she wouldn't go with him to Europe. I'll never forgive him for that."
"Look, I know Gus did a lot of wrong and I'm not asking you to change your feelings, but Gus and I do have a good relationship. I trust him more than most people. That's not a problem, is it?"
"I'm not about to tell you who your friends should be. I'm not saying he can't be trusted or that he isn't loyal to me and my family, but that's just not enough for me to let go of what I went through while he turned a blind eye." "He's going to go to Cancun when Cass is there. That makes me feel better."
"I'm glad, then maybe you can focus more on your upcoming bridal week and less on Cass and Gabriel."
"That's exactly what I'm hoping for."
I turn to look at Winona, already fast asleep beside me. She looks so peaceful, so... right. This is what I've
...ays wanted. A family. Stability. A future.
But something dark has been creeping into my dreams lately, and I don't know how to stop it.
I close my eyes, hoping sleep will come quickly. But instead, I find myself drifting into that familiar place- the place where Ashlyn haunts me.
We're back in the place we shared when we were married. Ashlyn's looking like she did in the early days- beautiful, radiant, everything I thought I wanted at the time. It's nice, I'm happy. She's laughing. But then things take a turn.
The air shifts, and suddenly, it's not just a memory. It's something more primal, more intense. My body responds to her in ways I don't understand, ways I don't want to feel anymore.
It's dark. Controlling something deep inside me.
Her laugh echoes in my head, soft and seductive but also it scares me. She's pulling me under, suffocating me. I try to pull away, but I can't.
I'm tangled up in Ashlyn's arms, the heat of her body pressed against mine. It's vivid, too vivid. Her touch, her smell, everything feels so real. Too real. I can't stop it.
I want to stop it
The dream turns dark, twisted. My heart is racing, my head bursting. I try to pull away, b she's holding on tighter, her nails dig deep into my skin, whispering things I don't want to hear. There's only one way to stop this. To wake up. I know I'm dreaming, it's lucid. But I cannot drag myself out of the horror. There's only one word that can make her stop. Make me wake up.
I bolt upright in bed, my heart pounding, sweat dripping down my face. "Ashlyn, no!" I gasp, my voice raw. Torpedo, torpedo, torpedo!" I breathe out raggedly.
My head snaps to make sure Winona is still asleep like she has been every other time I've woken from this nightmare. But this is the most shook I've ever been.
7/3
250 Home and Haunted
+25 BONUS
Winona is sitting up beside me, shaking, her eyes wide,
We lock our gaze and neither of us says a word. I can see the confusi
her gaze.
I am the biggest asshole on the planet.
the hurt, the fear all swirling