Free Lover's Betrayal: Misfits of the Lore Series by J.E. Hopkins Page B

is a soulless monster and despite the fact that you like to pretend that you’re one, you’re not. Remember, mio angelo, I carried you inside me, gave you life, and watched you transform into the man you are. You’re no monster -- you seem to want everyone to think you are, but you’ll never fool me. This is the mother thing where you accept your child, both the good and the bad sides, and you love him regardless.”
    Kaden could not accept this unconditional parental love for a child. “You really are blind. I don’t have a heart and I sold my soul years ago. I’ve killed many and none of these girls meant a damn thing to me other than a moment’s pleasure. I discarded them like trash when I got my fill of them. Now they’re all dead. Don’t try to turn me into some hero. You’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Julian is the hero type that would save the damsel in distress. He’s the one who would stop and take care of the bleeding victim on the side of the road. I would walk right by her or kill her myself if she got in my way.”
    Olivia knew that the crassness behind Kaden’s words was guilt. He might like to think he was a mystery to her, but she knew her son. He had been living with so much guilt for so long—guilt that she blamed herself for by failing him when he needed her the most. She had to help him find peace before it was too late. “You saved me when I was a damsel in distress. You didn’t sit back and let me suffer. You risked everything to save me despite the pain it would cause you. You’re certainly my hero.”
    Kaden stood up and began to pace by the riverbank. Olivia sat there quietly, letting her son deal with his emotional turmoil. After several moments, Olivia continued. “Is that why you feel like you sold your soul?”
    Kaden stopped pacing and faced her again. “What do you mean?”
    “By saving me, do you feel like you sold your soul?”
    “I have no regrets about what I did. It had to be done. I would have done it sooner had I known what was happening to you. I wish you would have told me sooner. Things could have been different.” Kaden sat beside Olivia again and reached for her hand. “I can’t undo how I came to be, but I would if it would make you happy. If I could take that pain from you, I would gladly sacrifice my life to free you of it. I’m so sorry that my life ruined yours. There’s no way I can make that up to you.”
    Olivia’s heart ached to hear those words from Kaden. How long had he been living with this kind of guilt? The fault lay with her for failing to do more when he found out the truth years ago. “Kaden, I adored you the moment I held you in my arms. I lived for you. You were the one light that helped me see my way through all of the darkness. I would have been lost without you. Please believe me when I say that you were my greatest blessing and never a regret. I would never want to go back in time and change having you.”
    “You can’t possibly feel that way. You never wanted him. You never loved him, but he made sure he would have you -- if not willingly, then by force. He was so proud of how he forced you to his bed. He boasted about it like you were his most successful conquest. He used to tell me how he raped you and planted his seed in you so that you would never escape him and no one else would ever have you. Because of me, you would never be free of him. How could you possibly love me when I was the product of your greatest pain and the cause of your eternal suffering? How can you stand the sight of me, knowing I cost you everything?”
    Olivia tried to hold back the tears, as she needed to be strong for Kaden. He needed her more than ever and she was determined to keep it together for him. She owed him that much. “I wish that I could tell you that you were conceived in love and not the violence of that night, but we know it’s not true. Even though you were not conceived in love, you were born to love. I hated your father