"I was hoping, however, we could start discussing the matter of Ray custody." At the sound of the words Ashly dreads most, a cold shiver runs through her body as a wave of dizziness washes over her. "What?" Ashly manages to choke out. "Look, I don't want to fight or make it ugly," Alex goes on quickly, gesturing with his hands. "I just want a chance to get to know my son, and I want to talk about shared custody." "No." Ashly quickly blurts out in a panic, shaking her head frantically, "No, you can't have him." "Ashly, I don't want to take him away from you." Alex tells him, but it does nothing to calm Alex. "I just want..." "I don't care what you want." Ashly snaps angrily, slamming her hand down on the table, causing it and everything on it to rattle, and earning some strange looks from the people around them. Alex jolts slightly at the sound and outburst, and Ashly can't help but get a bit of satisfaction out of that. As the people around them seem to settle back into their own

Alex just frowns in confusion, "what do you mean?" He asks, sounding a bit hurt, "Of course it matters." Ashly finally looks up at him with a vulnerable gaze. "I mean, you and May, while no longer married, you still have a family; you have two boys together, and I have hidden the truth from you and Ray for so long," Ashly explains sadly. "There's just so much, too much between us." "Ashly, May, and I... we've never actually been a real family, at least not in the way you think." Alex says slowly, then seeming to make a realization, his eyes grow wide as he goes on, "Shit, Ashly, we never actually wanted to get married, and the boys... they're not biologically ours." For a long moment, Ashly just stares dumbstruck before finally choking out, "What?" "Our parents forced us to marry; otherwise, they would, um, you know my story with May; it's also somehow the same." Alex begins to explain, nerves evident in his shaky voice, "And we went along with it because we were idiots, stupid, an

When they get back to Alex's penthouse, Ashly hovers awkwardly by the entrance as Alex disposes of his keys on the mantle. After he removes his jacket and hangs it on the coat rack, he turns back to Ashly and smiles bashfully at her. They just stand there dumbly staring at each other, both trying to figure out 'what now'. Then Alex finally clears his throat and breaks the silence. "So, umm, would you like to take a bath? Or shower?" he questions nervously. "While a bath sounds divine, I fear I may fall asleep in it." Ashly tells him, chuckling lightly, "So I think I will settle for a shower for now." "Okay." Alex nods, then leads her into his master bathroom, because it has the best shower, and leaves her to it after providing her with a nice fluffy towel, a bathrobe, and pajamas. Once Alex steps out and closes the door behind him, Ashly takes another moment to look around the luxurious bathroom, which fits very well with the rest of the apartment. It's perfect; it's everything Ash

"Mum!" Ray finally calls out after her; he probably sounds overly dramatic, but he can't bring himself to care. When Ashly turns to him with a questioning frown, he feels like he's 8 again as he pleads in a small voice, "Please don't leave me." "What?" Ashly utters in confusion, "Ray, I'm not..." "I know that you probably don't even want me back after what I did, but please don't leave me." Ray quickly rambles, forcing the words out despite the huge lump in his throat. "I'm the one that should be sorry; I was so shit to you, and I won't blame you if you don't love me anymore, but..." "Ray." Ashly reprimands as she stomps back to her son, determined to set him straight: "You are my son, and I love every single ounce of you, and there's nothing you can say or do to make me love you any less." Ray whimpers softly as a few tears streak down his cheeks, and his mom is quick to cup his cheeks and wipe them away with his thumbs. "Mum," Ray whispers as he closes his eyes, "please don't lea

The next day, Ashly was confused about whether she should reach out to Alex or not. Now that things have slightly calmed, she not only feels bad for the man but also wants to see him again. She means he is the father of her child and her first love, and he still has an impact on her. As last as it may be, Ashly can't deny it. Especially knowing that Alex is sad and lonely, and now that Ashly knows the whole story, she does feel bad. Of course she's a long way away from being okay with Alex and forgiving him, but she can't help it; she just hurts when people she cares about are hurt. And Ashly hates more than anything being bitter and holding on to grudges against someone. At the end, Alex is the one who contacts her. The alpha texts her, asking about Ray's things and whether he can drop them off later, but Ashly has a suspicious inkling that it's more than just that. Her heart skips a beat of its own accord as soon as she sees the Alex name flashing on the screen, and even more so