He Said He Loved Me in Front of My Ex

"Tyler, we found the kid and identified the driver. His name is Zach Dempsy, the new C.E.O. of the S&D," the voice on the other end said. "The surveillance also showed that he drove the car to the East Road where his house is located."

Tyler's face darkened as he listened to Allen. I couldn't help but shake my head and grit my teeth at the information at hand.

How could Zach do this? Was he planning on taking my child away from me? Just because I refused to be his mistress?

"Send a team to Mr. Dempsy's house. I'll meet you there," Tyler said before he hung up the phone.

"I'm coming with you," I uttered, my voice strained as I imagined smacking Zach on his face.

*

Allen and a couple of people were already there when we arrived. Two security guards stood by the door of Zach's house, their faces alert.

"Lieutenant Demand isn't here yet. Those two guards won't let us in unless we have a warrant," Allen said the moment Tyler and I stepped out of the car. "How do you want to deal with them?"

"What do you want us to do?" Tyler asked, turning to face me. "One word from you, and we'll rush in."

"No. Don't do that," I said quickly while shaking my head. "I just need to know that Caleb is safe. Zach isn't a criminal, so I know he won't hurt my son. Caleb will just get scared if you guys rush in like a bunch of robbers."

With a deep sigh, I continued. "Let's just wait for the cops."

Tyler nodded. "You heard her," he said to Allen, and the latter gave a short nod and left.

On the other hand, Tyler lit another cigarette as he leaned against the car door. We were engulfed in silence as we waited for the cops to arrive. It was a couple of minutes before a car arrived, and several cops in uniform got out.

The oldest-looking policeman came toward us. However, his voice was polite when he spoke, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Sir."

“No problem, Lieutenant. Thanks for dropping in here."

The lieutenant called several of his men and marched towards the two security guards. They were a bit hesitant to let the police in, and when they refused, the lieutenant arrested them without a blink.

The people inside already knew we were coming because when we went in, no hint of surprise could be seen on their faces.

I found Caleb by the living room, sitting comfortably as he watched television. I immediately ran, grabbed, and hugged him. Caleb was surprised for a bit before hugging me back.

"Mommy! You're here! And Uncle Tyler, too!"

"Hey there, buddy. Are you alright?" Tyler asked as he shuffled Caleb's hair.

"I'm fine," he answered and turned to me, his eyes wide with fear. "Mommy, please don't be angry. I went with Zach because I missed him."

A sea of sadness and anger washed over me as I stared at Caleb. I couldn't believe that he willingly went with Zach. It never occurred to me that he would. All I thought about was Zach kidnapping my son.

Tyler squatted and held Caleb's chin softly. "Your mom was worried about you, kiddo, so if you want to go with him next time, let your mom know ahead of time. You can't just leave on your own, okay?"

"Okay," Caleb answered, his voice sad, then he turned to me again. "I'm sorry. I promise it won't happen again."

Despite Caleb's softness and clinginess towards Tyler over the last two years, I didn't expect him to be gentle with Caleb. In my mind, he was this tough guy who always loved fun and pleasure, not responsibility.

But here, standing in front of them, I could see Tyler's genuine concern and care for Caleb. It melted my heart.

"It's my fault, Ivy," a voice said.

Zach entered the living room with a newspaper in his hand. "Caleb is my son, and I have the right to see him. I just became desperate because you were trying to keep him away from me," he said calmly.

I glared at him. I know what I did was wrong, but taking Caleb away from me like that was not good. He could've at least reached out to me first to discuss our arrangement.

"Who is he?" Zach asked, and when I followed his line of sight, I found that he was talking about Tyler.

Tyler raised his left brow as he stared straight at Zach. "Tyler Rivers," he simply answered as he slowly snaked his right arm around my waist.

"I'm Ivy's fiance," he added.

Zach frowned slightly. He looked at me and asked, "When did you get engaged?"

"I..."

Tyler was the one who answered for me. "I don't think she has to answer your question. That's a personal matter between my fiance and me. Isn't that right, sweetie?"

I rolled my eyes. I wanted to break Tyler's lies, but I couldn't. Still, saying that he was my fiance when he wasn't was not good. I'm directly lying in front of my son, and even if Zach and I could no longer be together, I knew that I still cared for him in a way.

That was why a frown spread on my face when I noticed a girl emerging behind him. It worsened, even more when the house owner, Mrs. Dempsy, also came. The woman's eyes immediately found mine. She looked at me up and down, disgust clearly shown in her expression.

"Miss Dikkens," she greeted. "I thought we would never see each other again. And you also had the audacity to break into my house. What do you want?"

At the sight of Monica Dempsy, painful memories resurfaced in my mind. I saw the cold operating table, the shadowless lamp, and the image of me trying desperately to flee the hospital. I remember how I felt scared as I ran away from her and the nurses. I could still feel the damp ground as I ran barefoot, trying to save my unborn child's life.

That agonizing and helpless feeling lingered in my mind. Even now, when I think about it, it bothers me so much that I can't stop shaking.

Tyler tightened his grip on me as if he sensed my unease. His strong arm made me feel extremely secure, and I couldn't thank him enough.

"Gabby, call the cops. Someone just broke into our house," Monica said as she sat down with that girl's help.

"We discovered you kidnapped Miss Dikken's son against her will," Allen said in a thick, annoying voice.

"If you want to call the cops, just talk to me," Lieutenant Demand said, holding up his badge. "My name is Lieutenant Conner Demand."

"Yes, my Zach did bring the kid home, but this is not our kid; Miss Dikkens can just take him as she wishes," Monica said as she sipped coffee like nothing important was happening.

"Mom!" Zach exclaimed. "Caleb shares my blood. He is my kid, and he's not leaving until I settle everything with Ivy!"

"With Gabby, you can have however many children you desire," Monica uttered in nonchalance. "You don't have to settle anything with that woman."

"What are you talking about, mom?" Zach refuted, "Caleb is not some street urchin. He is indeed my son. I have done a paternity test."

I looked at Caleb, whose head was down. He may be a kid, but he was a smart kid. I knew that he understood what was happening, including his grandmother's clear disgust of him.

The look on Caleb's face felt like someone had just stabbed me, and of a sudden, I had the urge to punch Monica in the face - including Zach's face.

I didn't care what they did to me, but they tested Caleb for paternity behind my back. He was only five years old and had no knowledge. Did they think about how a child would react?

"I don't care about the paternity test. The only child who will be my grandson will be from you and Gabby. A gold digger like her will never stand a chance to be a part of this family. Don't even think about it," Monica sneered.

I saw how Tyler's jaw clenched. He was about to open his mouth when I interfered.

"You overthink things, Mrs. Dempsy. Trust me, I don't want any money from you or your son," I said in controlled rage.

If Caleb wasn't here, I would definitely punch this woman in the face.

"Caleb is my son. He had nothing to do with you in the past and won't play in the future. You may think your Dempsy name is precious, but I'll tell you what? I'm not even interested in Zach," I continued.

With that, I took Caleb's hand and walked to the door. "By the way, if my memory serves me correctly, wasn't it you who began as a gold digger mistress back then?"