The Heart Left Behind (Cole and Yvonne) novel Chapter 16

My rage flared at Xavier's words. His morals had become utterly twisted because of Yvonne and Jared.

I said coldly, "Xavier, remember this—no matter what happens to me and your mom, you two will always be brothers. If you hurt Jonas like this, you're hurting your family. Do you understand?"

Xavier huffed, then turned and walked away.

I shook my head and scooped Jonas up.

"Daddy, can we go home? I don't want to go to the amusement park anymore," he said quietly.

I kissed his forehead. "Alright. Let's go home."

After speaking with the teacher, I brought my son home.

Then, I shot Yvonne a message to briefly explain the situation and told her that I wouldn't bring Jonas over that night.

Her reply was swift, "Suit yourself."

Looking at the apathetic reply, I shook my head with a wry smile. There was a time when I thought we could build a happy family together. Now, the idea seemed so absurd.

At night, I spent some time playing building blocks with Jonas before telling him a bedtime story. After watching him fall asleep peacefully, I felt slightly relieved.

I left the room and gave my brother a call. "Hayden, are you free? I want to talk to you."

He seemed to notice the weariness in my voice. "What's wrong, Cole? Are you having some trouble?"

I let out a wry laugh. "The divorce is far more complicated than I had imagined."

"Told you so." Hayden sighed. "It's not a good idea to solve your problems with a divorce. For the children, it's particularly—"

Jonas nodded, greeted Yvonne timidly, and quickly walked into school.

I got up to leave, but Yvonne stopped me. She said, "Cole, I have something to tell you."

I turned around and looked at her with a stolid expression. "What is it?"

With a frown, she said, "Don't you think you're too cold to Xavier? In any case, he's still your son."

I scoffed. "Oh? He doesn't seem to think so."

Yvonne looked upset. "Cole, you've changed. You weren't like this before."

Looking at her, I felt a wave of exhaustion washed over me.