My Convicted Wife is My Mate (Bella and Kane) novel Chapter 24

chapter 21
BELLA’S POV

I stood by the window. My hands still shook a bit as I stared out into the fading light. My father, Yolanda and Kathy hadn’t left yet.

They were standing by the car, whispering among themselves.

My father’s face was red with anger. He lifted his hand as if to pound on the door again, but Yolanda caught his wrist.

“Let it go,” she said firmly.

I could hear them even through the thin glass.

“Come, let us leave,” she added.

But my father didn’t move. He was too proud. He looked back at the door, clenching his jaw

“Let’s wait,” he said finally. “If Assistant Director Henry holds Kathy accountable in the future, then we’ll think of other ways to deal with it..”

Typical. He always had to sound like he was in control. But I knew the truth. He didn’t have the guts to come back in and challenge Kane.

“Convicts are not to be trusted,” Yolanda said next.

She wasn’t just talking about Kane. She meant me, too.

I bit the inside of my cheek. It shouldn’t hurt anymore, not after all these years. But it still did.

Behind me, I heard Kane’s calm, deep voice. “Enough.”

I turned to see him leaning against the counter. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes, those deep eyes of his, were watching me closely.

“Come away from the window,” he said. “They don’t deserve your attention. Don’t let them think they have any power over you.”

I hesitated, then sighed and stepped back.

“Sorry,” I murmured. “I didn’t mean for any of that to happen. I just-”

“You don’t need to apologize.”

“I still feel embarrassed,” I sighed. “If you hadn’t shown up, he would have…”

My throat tightened as I thought about it. If not for Kane, my dad would have beat me up. It was so easy for him to hit me or hurt me. I never mattered to them anyway.

He shrugged, almost casually. “He tried.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly. My voice cracked. “If you hadn’t been there, I-”

“Don’t thank me,” he interrupted.

He looked at my ankle. Then before I could ask what he was doing, he walked toward me and suddenly scooped me into his arms as if I weighed nothing.

“Kane!” I gasped, gripping his shirt.

He chuckled. “You’re too stubborn to rest on your own.”

He took me inside then set me gently down on the bed. His smile faded as he looked at my ankle. “It hasn’t healed yet,” he murmured. “I’ll apply the arnica for you.”

The same man who was ready to tear my father apart a few minutes ago was now kneeling beside my bed, rubbing my foot with careful hands.

For a moment, I just watched him. The sight of him made my heart ache in the strangest way.

“I feel like I’m in some kind of fairytale,” I said softly.

He snorted “This?”

I laughed quietly. “Alright, maybe not a fairytale. But you know what I mean. My very own knight in shining armor.”

He didn’t laugh. He just kept his focus on my ankle. When he finally looked up, his eyes were darker than before.

“I’m no hero, Bella,” he said quietly. “Don’t ask me to be.”

I bit my lip. That one sentence cut deeper than I expected. I hated that he saw himself that way, as something less, something broken.

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