The Hockey Star’s Remorse

Chapter 135

hapter 135 TIMOTHY POV

Aweek had passed since Timothy had reluctantly agreed to take the paternity test, and the anticipation had gnawed at his every waking moment. He had spent countless hours tossing and turning in his small, dimly lit apartment, dreading the outcome of that test. He had never imagined that he would find himself in this situation, tied to Stella in a way that left him conflicted and resentful.

As he paced back and forth in his living room, the phone rang, breaking the oppressive silence. He snatched it up, his heart racing as he answered, “Hello?”

Stella’s voice on the other end of the line was monotone. “Timothy, | have the results. Can you come over?”

He hesitated for a moment, the weight of the impending revelation pressing down on him. He had hoped that the test would absolve him of any responsibility, that he could cut ties with Stella once and for all. But now, as he contemplated the gravity of what she could potentially tell him, he knew there was no turning back.

“Okay, I'll be there,” he finally replied, his voice tinged with resignation.

Minutes later, he found himself standing outside Stella’s door, his heart pounding in his chest. He knocked, and she opened it with a solemn expression. In her hand, she held an envelope that bore the weight of their uncertain future.

“Come in,” she said quietly.

He followed her into the apartment, his eyes avoiding the gaze of the woman who had brought him so much turmoil. They settled on the velvety sofa, and Stella gestured for him to sit. She hesitated for a moment, as if gathering her thoughts, before finally handing him the envelope.

“The results are in there,” she said.

Timothy tore open the envelope with trembling hands, his heart pounding in his chest. He unfolded the document, his eyes scanning the words that would either release him from this entanglement or bind him to it forever.

“Probability of paternity is 99 percent.”

The words hung in the air, heavy and irrefutable. Timothy’s mind reeled as he 4/4

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Chapter 13S.

tried to process the implications of what he had just read. A mix of emotions. surged within him—anger, frustration, and a sense of betrayal.

Stella watched him, her eyes filled with a mixture of hope and fear. “Timothy. | know this is difficult for you, but we need to talk about what comes next.”

He clenched his jaw, struggling to contain the anger that threatened to spill over. “What comes next?” he asked breathlessly. Stella’s eyes welled up with tears, but she didn’t back down. “We have a child on the way, and that child deserves a father.”

Timothy could barely catch his breath. It was as if someone dropped a barbell on his chest, crushing his insides on impact. He placed a hand on the wall and began counting his breaths.

Stella’s shoulders slumped. and she looked down at her hands. “I know you hate me, Timothy. | can’t change that right now, but we have to put our differences aside for the sake of our child.”

He couldn't bear to look at her any longer, so he turned away, his gaze fixed on the wall in front of him. “What do you need me to do?”

She hesitated for a moment before responding, “I want you to accept the responsibilities of being a father.

Timothy's heart sank. He had thought about this moment many times over the past week, and he had always imagined that he would walk away. But now, as the reality of the situation settled in, he found himself torn.

The child was his flesh and blood, and while he had yet to see it born, he couldn’t abandon it. However, thinking of Evie, the woman who was his everything, made it feel like a tragedy. If he wanted to care for any child. it would've been hers without question.

He tried to think about what Evie would have wanted in the moment. She believed in doing what was right, even if it hurt her. She had even helped him with his case, despite all he’d put her through.

Abandoning this baby would’ve been an injustice to her.Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org

With a heavy sigh, Timothy finally nodded, the pain didn’t subside in his heart. “Fine.” 24

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Stella’s eyes brightened with a glimmer of hope, and she reached out to touch his arm. “Thank you, Timothy. That means more to me than you'll ever know.”

“I'm doing it for the kid. Not you,” he stressed, moving his arm away from her grasp.

She brushed this off, already shedding her hesitant demeanor for the usual self- involved smirk. “You know, Timothy, I’m going to need your support soon. | can’t afford to be stressed out during the pregnancy.”

Timothy raised an eyebrow, puzzled by her statement. “Why would you get stressed?”

Stella hesitated, as if debating whether to share her troubles. Finally, she spoke, her voice tinged with faux sincerity. “I’m being sued by my sister, Scarlett, and Evie is the lawyer representing her.”

The revelation hit Timothy like a thunderbolt. He had heard about the tensions. between Stella and her sister, but the fact that it had escalated to a lawsuit was beyond his comprehension. And the fact that Evie was representing Scarlett in the legal battle left him feeling conflicted and torn.

“Why is Evie involved?” Timothy asked, his voice laced with disbelief.

Stella shrugged. “Family feuds can get ugly, Timothy. | don’t know all the details, but Scarlett claims that I’m not entitled to my share of our grandfather's inheritance, and she’s determined to take it away from me.”

Timothy struggled to wrap his head around the magnitude of the situation. It was a bitter twist of fate that had brought him back into Evie’s orbit, only to find. himself on opposite sides of a legal battle.

“What do you even expect me to do?” he asked, his voice filled with genuine concern. His concern, however, wasn’t for the woman in front of him.

Stella looked up at him, her eyes searching his for reassurance. “I need you to be there for me, Timothy. | need your support and strength to get through this. Evie can be ruthless, and | can’t let her take everything away from me.”

Timothy hesitated, torn between his reluctance to confront Evie and his desire to do right by their child. He hadn’t personally met Stella’s sister, so perhaps she was more vicious. Of course, now a child was involved, so leaving Stella to deal with it

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all could've led to complications.

“I'll look into it, if that's what you really need,” he finally said, his voice firm. “I need to hear a little bit more about the lawsuit though.”

Stella’s gratitude was palpable, and she reached out to take his hand. “Thank you, Timothy. | knew | could count on you.”

Timothy cringed as her cold fingers interlaced with his own. He felt her take his other hand and press it against her belly. They sat quietly for a few moments, and in that time, Timothy wondered if he could feel the life that was blossoming within her.

He didn’t want to be like his father. He didn’t want the kid to come into this world already not having someone to rely on, and he doubted Stella would provide much care herself.

Stella squeezed his hand, her voice filled with a steely determination. “It’s time to put Evie in her place, Timothy. She can’t just walk all over us. We'll fight this lawsuit with everything we've got.”

Timothy went still, her words passing through his ears with hardly any sense to them. He didn’t want to think about what “putting Evie in her place” entailed, especially when he’d wanted her to find some peace.

But he would be forced to find out.

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