Page 77 of Your Second Chance
From: Austin Hart.
At the very bottom, the balance stared back at me.
$1,400,000.
My stomach flipped. This wasn’t just a transfer. He’d opened the accountforme.
My mouth dropped, as my stomach seemed to leap into my throat. Tears pricked the corners of my eyes, my hands trembling as I passed the paper to Luna.
Her eyes widened, and she scrambled to sit up, nearly dropping the document in her haste. “Holy shit,” she gasped, her voice rising with disbelief. “We’re millionaires.”
She stared at me, her expression wild and incredulous, while I sat frozen.
“I can’t accept this.”
“You absolutely can and will.” Luna threw the paper back at me and stood up. “He fucked you over. Not only do you deservethis amount, but you’re out here, raising a baby, and he’s over there doing...”
“Ugh,” I groaned.
“You haven’t called him, have you?”
I shook my head. “No. I’ve chickened out, but I guess...”
I looked down at the paper in my hand. We could afford this apartment. I’d be able to afford childcare for the baby when I had to go back to work.
Luna plopped back on the sofa, swirling her wine glass and giving me a pointed look. “You need to call him. Now.”
I hesitated, clutching the paper in my hands like it might slip away. “Why?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Let me make this crystal clear—I’m not on his side. Not even a little. If you’re going to accept this amount—and you absolutelyshould—you need to take it without guilt. No second-guessing yourself.” She pointed at the paper. “Nova, this isn’t some grand gesture. It’s not him being kind or thoughtful. This is what’sowedto you. He sent this because he knows. He knows he fucked up. He knows he hurt you—physically, emotionally, in every way possible.”
Her eyes softened as she leaned closer. “This money isn’t a gift. It’s a divorce settlement, plain and simple. And yeah, maybe it’s his way of trying to patch the holes he ripped open in your life. But it’sowedto you, Nova. For everything he put you through. For the baby you’re raising without him.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but she cut me off.
“I know you,” she added, her voice dropping lower. “I know you won’t take it, not fully, until you’ve told him. Until you’ve had your say. You’ll keep carrying this guilt around, acting like you’re taking something you don’t deserve. But you do. Youmorethan deserve this.”
She picked up the envelope and pressed it against my chest, her eyes locking onto mine.
“Once you accept this, it’ll be better for you. For your head, for your heart. No guilt, no shame. Use it to build the life you and that little girl deserve.”
I swallowed hard as her words sank in. She wasn’t wrong.
Luna pressed me for the name, and without hesitation, I said, “Cross Haven.” I’d memorized that detail—his words at the press conference burned into my mind.
Not because I wanted to be there with him, but because I was terrified of what it would mean if he got out and wasn’t better.
“I don’t even know if he’s still there,” I whispered. “It’s been months.”
Luna didn’t hesitate, pulling her phone out and dialing the number. She stood there, her face calm and composed as she waited for someone to pick up.
“Hi,” she said brightly, “I’m calling to ask about a patient—Austin Hart.”
The voice on the other end must have said something about confidentiality because Luna didn’t miss a beat. “Right, I get that. Hold on. Here’s his wife.” She shoved the phone at me without warning, her expression daring me to argue.
I mouthed at her, “We’re divorced.”
“They don’t know that,” she whispered.
