Chapter 146. Remember

"Please, I mean no harm! Please!" he pleaded, and there it was this look of fear in his eyes, completely different from the cold man I had known.

"Daddy!" Max cried out, reaching toward him with chubby little fingers.

Daddy?

I glanced down at Max in shock.

How? How was he already calling him Daddy?

How is he already attached to him?

The officers were dragging him toward the door, and something inside me cracked.

"Wait!" I shouted.

Mrs. Courtney turned to me, her eyes wide with concern.

"What's wrong?"

I swallowed hard, my throat burning with unshed tears.

"Can I have a word with him? Alone,please? It's... it's complicated."

A sob escaped my lips before I could stop it, and I pressed my hand to my mouth, trying to hold back the flood.

The officer glanced at Mrs. Courtney, seeking approval.

She studied me for a long moment,.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked quietly.

I nodded, my lips pressed i