Chapter 172

Ramon POV

I sat in the dark of my office, staring at my phone.

Rhodes had called twenty minutes ago with an update that should have made me feel better but somehow only made everything worse.

“They’re safe,” he’d said. “Lake and Ollie are at our house with Troy. Lake needs time, but Ramon—Ollie doesn’t hate you. He’s actually excited about being your biological son. He wants to come home.”

Excited. My son was excited to learn I was his biological father while I was sitting here drowning in self-loathing and guilt.

“And Lake?” I’d asked, my voice hoarse from hours of crying.

Rhodes had hesitated. “Lake needs space. He’s hurt and confused and processing a lot. But Ramon—he doesn’t hate you either. He’s just overwhelmed.”

Overwhelmed. What a gentle way to describe the devastation I’d seen on Lake’s face when he’d overheard the truth. The horror, the betrayal, the absolute destruction of everything he’d thought he knew about our relations