HIS REGRET (Ex-Husband wants Me Back) novel Chapter 267

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Kate moved toward the sofa, still clutching the photo. Her voice trembled as if she were speaking only to herself.

“You asked my son to take responsibility… to marry the daughter of the man Daven had harmed. I was the one who opposed it the most. For what? A marriage born of guilt, of obligation?” She let out a bitter laugh. “I never realized you had something else in mind, Mother.”

She paused, swallowing hard before continuing.

“I should have looked deeper, paid closer attention. I should have known that beneath that duty lay a chance for real love to grow. And if I had supported it… oh God… right now I would be playing with my grandchild, raising him alongside Althea.”

Her hands trembled. “I… I regret it, Mother. So deeply. Why didn’t I ever listen to your counsel? Why did I let myself be blinded by social class?”

Her eyes sharpened on the photograph of her mother.

“If I hadn’t been so selfish, I could have been a lucky grandmother. But I was blind. I turned away from Althea’s goodness and welcomed Vanessa instead—the one who left wounds this deep on my son, your grandson.”

Kate’s body shook with sobs. She whispered softly, as though someone stood right before her. “I don’t know if you could ever forgive me, Althea. I know how much pain I caused you.” A long sigh escaped her lips. “If I ever get the chance to see you again, I’ll tell you everything I’ve kept inside. Not because of Josh.” A faint, sorrowful smile curved her lips. “Felicia was right. If you had come back with Josh then, I would have been the first to mock you. My cruel words would have cut the deepest.”

She shut her eyes tight. “Oh God! I truly was a cruel woman. How could a mother treat someone else so heartlessly?”

“Althea… forgive me.” Her voice cracked as sobs overtook her, her arms clutching the portrait of her mother as though it could hold her back. Again and again, she whispered her apologies—most of all, to Althea.