The Officer's Runaway Wife and Secret Son novel Chapter 334

Felix lowered his head. "I do like Daddy Noah."

"Well, so why did you bring him home? Aren't you worried about hurting Daddy Noah's feelings?"

Felix pursed his lips and was quiet for a long moment before saying, "But Daddy Noah is too nice."

Simon didn't understand. "What's wrong with being nice?"

"He's like a guest."

Out of the mouths of babes. The playful smile on Simon's face faded, and he slowly sat up straight.

Felix sat back down and pressed two Lego pieces firmly together.

"Every time Daddy Noah comes home, he always rings the doorbell or calls Mommy first. He never just opens the door himself."

"He speaks softly in the house and walks lightly, so he doesn't disturb Mommy and me."

"My teacher says you have to be polite when you're a guest in someone's house. You can't touch things without asking or be loud. Daddy Noah is very polite."

Simon was silent.

Too polite, too proper. So even though they lived under the same roof, there was always a distance.

Noah gave Clara the utmost respect and space, but that very same sense of propriety made him seem more like the perfect tenant than a member of the family.

He suddenly asked, "Felix, you know who he is, don't you?"

It was just the two of them in the room. This time, Felix didn't play dumb.

"Yeah, I know."

"So what do you think?" Simon asked tentatively. "Do you want to accept him? I mean, do you want him to be your dad again?"

Felix's eyes dropped, his little face scrunching up.

"No."

"Really?"

"Mommy doesn't like him," Felix said. "He's really strong and he can scare away the bad kids, but he made Mommy cry, and not just once."

A child's worldview was simple. Right and wrong were determined entirely by whether his mother was happy.

"So I can only let him in secretly for now," Felix sighed, sounding wise beyond his years. "I want to know what's harder: finishing this Lego set, or making him a better person."

Rhys gave a slight nod.

"Don't come back next time," Simon added. "You know Clara's temper. I don't care if you get yelled at or hit, but don't drag me into it."

"We'll see about next time."

He neither agreed nor refused.

The Jensens hadn't returned yet, so Eloise politely saw him to the gate.

He got into his car, his mind replaying Felix's words.

The door, left slightly ajar, had carried every innocent word to his ears.

He had originally intended to wait outside until their conversation was over to avoid any awkwardness.

But the words were like daggers to the heart, stirring up old wounds, large and small, that now began to ache anew.

In Felix's eyes, he was an option to be evaluated, one who could be discarded. Meanwhile, Noah, the man described as a "guest," had earned the right to stay simply because he could make Clara smile.

Make Clara smile? It used to be such a simple thing for him.