“For now.” Jenna slid out of her side of the booth and moved to sit beside me on my side, closing the distance I’d tried to maintain. “Sam, be realistic.”
I shifted away from her, pressing against the wall of the booth. Definitely should have chosen The Garden Café.
“Leo needs stability,” Jenna continued, her voice soft. “I need security. And you, whether you want to admit it or not, need a family that’s actually yours.”
“What are you saying?”
“We should get married.”
The words hung in the air between us like a grenade with the pin pulled. “Married,” I repeated, wondering if I’d heard her correctly.
“Think about it logically, Sam. Leo gets his father, I get security, you get your son without having to navigate the complications of an unwilling stepmother or a custody battle.” She reached out to touch my arm, and I pulled back; nowhere left to go in the booth. “We were good together once. We could be good together again.”
“We were a summer fling, Jenna. Five years ago.”
“We were compatible. Physically. And we have a child together.” Her voice dropped to something that was probably meant to be seductive but wasn’t. “Leo asks about you constantly. He wants a new daddy so badly, Sam. And he wants you.”
The mention of Leo was a direct hit, exactly where she’d intended it to land. My son wanted me. Or did he? Was this another of Jenna’s lies, carefully crafted to manipulate me? Had she been coaching a four-year-old boy to say those things, weaponizing his innocent words for her own agenda?
“This isn’t about Leo,” I said carefully. “This is about you wanting a lifestyle upgrade.”
Jenna’s mask slipped for just a moment, revealing something cold and calculating underneath. “I want what’s best for my son. Our son. And what’s best for him is having his real parents together.”
“Where? Here above the bar?”
“No, the house you live in now.”
“That’s Chloe’s house. She bought it when she moved to Willowbrook to take over the clinic.” I kept my voice matter-of-fact. “I moved in with her.”
Jenna’s smile faltered slightly. “But you said you own a house.”
“I do. It’s been rented to long-term tenants for years. Before I moved in with Chloe, I lived in the apartment above the bar.” I gestured upward. “And even if my house was available, I’m not playing happy families with you, Jenna.”
“Why not?” Jenna’s smile returned, sharp and confident. “You have a successful business, a perfect little life in a perfect little town. Leo would thrive here. I would thrive here.”
“And Chloe?”
“Would probably be relieved not to have to deal with the complications you’re bringing to her nice, simple life.” Jenna’s proximity in the booth felt suffocating.
“Leo’s already attached to you,” she continued. “We already have history. I’m willing to relocate. It makes sense, Sam. Much more sense than trying to force a woman who doesn’t want children into a ready-made family.”
That was a step too far. “Chloe has never said she doesn’t want children.”
“She didn’t have to. Actions speak louder than words.”
Jenna’s hand found my arm again, and this time I was trapped between her and the wall.
“She’s what, thirty? If she wanted children, she would have brought it up by now.”
“Stop.” The truth had finally dawned on me. This wasn’t about Leo’s needs or family stability. This was about Jenna realizing she’d hit the jackpot and wanting to cash in. “Get away from me,” I said quietly. “Move. Now.”
“Sam.” Her voice turned pleading, but her eyes remained calculating. “I’m not asking you to love me. I’m asking you tobe practical. We have a son together. We could have a good life together. Leo deserves–”
“Move,” I said firmly, and something in my tone finally made her move back to her side of the booth.
I stood up immediately, putting several feet between us. “Leo deserves a father who loves him, not one who settled for convenience. And he deserves a mother who loves him for himself, not for what he can get her.”
Jenna’s composure cracked completely, revealing the desperation underneath. “You think Chloe is going to love him? You think she’s going to welcome your bastard child with open arms and play happy family?”
