Claim Me Captain! I'm Addicted to You!-Chapter 400: Let’s Talk (2)

Ella’s POV

"Sure... what do you want to talk about?" Liam asked.

His voice was calm, gentle even, but something about the way his shoulders stiffened made my stomach twist.

I hesitated. I didn’t want to see the answer in his eyes, not if it confirmed every fear I’d been trying to bury. But before I could look away, Liam cupped my face with both hands, forcing me to meet his gaze.

"What’s troubling you?" he whispered.

And God... he looked so worried. So tender. Like the Liam that I knew.

I inhaled deeply, steadying myself. My heart was racing so violently it almost hurt, but I had to say it. I had to finally face whatever truth was waiting on the other side.

Even if it would break me.

Here goes nothing...

"Do you have another woman?" I blurted out the words, trembling but unmistakably direct. "Are you... cheating on me?"

Silence.

A heartbeat.

Then another.

His brows shot together, confusion, disbelief, something unreadable shadowing his expression. And before I could pull back, he wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight against his chest.

"Ella..." he breathed out, almost pained. "Why would you even think that?"

His hand slid up my spine, warm and protective.

"I don’t have another woman," Liam murmured against my hair. "You’re the only one. The only woman in my life."

He pulled back just enough to search my face, his thumb brushing my cheek.

"What made you feel that way?" he asked—soft, steady... but there was a flicker in his eyes.

A flicker that made me wonder if he was worried about my doubts... or about what he’s hiding.

I swallowed, forcing myself to look him in the eye even as my courage wavered. "You just... feel different, Liam," I whispered. "You’re not the same anymore. You seem distant. Distracted. Like your mind is always somewhere else."

His lips parted, but I kept going, before fear could silence me again.

"And that woman who called while we were in the car..." I hesitated, watching the way his jaw tightened, the way his eyelids dropped for just half a second. "You sounded stressed. Secretive. You didn’t even let me hear what she was saying."

Liam let out a slow breath and gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, his expression softening.

"She’s an employee, Ella," he said quietly. "Something urgent came up that day at work. I promise you, it wasn’t what you think."

I wanted to believe him. God, I wanted to.

"And I’m not distant, sweetheart," he added. "Just busy. The expansion has been brutal. And I’m stressed about Mom and Reagan. You know how things have been lately."

He cupped my cheek again... and this time, he looked genuinely apologetic.

"I’m sorry," Liam murmured. "I didn’t realize I was making you feel that way."

A few tears slipped down my cheeks before I could stop them. I wiped them away quickly, forcing a smile so I wouldn’t completely crumble in front of him.

"It’s okay," I said, even though a quiet ache lingered in my gut. "Maybe I’m just overthinking."

But I wasn’t. That instinct, that cold, prickling warning, was still there.

Liam leaned down and kissed me. Not long enough to melt the doubt, not short enough to dismiss it. Just enough to make my chest tighten with the memory of how things used to feel.

"Get the cold compress now, okay?" he whispered against my lips.

Before I could move, his phone vibrated loudly in his pocket.

I heard it. Of course I did.

But I pretended I didn’t.

Liam cleared his throat, stepped back slightly. "Go ahead first, Ella. I’ll follow. Just need to get the books out of these boxes since Wendy needs them for storage."

"Alright..." I murmured and turned toward the door.

The moment I stepped out, he thought I had already gone. But I stayed, just one step past the doorway, hidden behind the wall.

His phone vibrated again, and this time, Liam answered immediately.

"Darla, I can’t meet you right now," he said in a low, rushed voice. "I’m helping Nick and Georgia. Ella is with me, too. Are you free tonight? We can meet later if you are."

My heart dropped.

No.

No. No. No.

I didn’t wait for more. I didn’t want to hear anything else.

I bolted down the stairs, vision blurring as fresh tears burned my eyes. And because fate hated me, I collided straight into Georgia and Vicky.

"Ella? Hey, what happened?" Vicky asked, grabbing my arm.

But before I could answer, footsteps echoed from the attic stairs.

Liam.

My breath hitched, panic, humiliation, heartbreak mixing in my throat.

Georgia glanced over my shoulder... then her eyes sharpened with immediate understanding.

Without asking another question, she grabbed both me and Vicky by the wrist.

"Come on," Georgia whispered urgently. And she led us straight into her and Nick’s master bedroom, hiding us just as Liam’s shadow appeared at the top of the stairs.

The moment Georgia shut the door behind us, I stumbled forward and twisted the lock with shaking fingers. My chest tightened, breath hitching as I rushed straight into their en suite bathroom like I was running out of air.

The moment the door closed, everything inside me shattered.

I covered my mouth as a sob tore out of me, my knees almost giving out. Georgia and Vicky burst in right after, their faces pale with worry.

"Ella!" Vicky grabbed my shoulders. "What happened? Talk to us—"

But the moment I met her eyes, the dam broke completely.

"H-He’s talking to that woman again," I choked out, tears spilling uncontrollably.

Georgia exchanged a sharp glance with Vicky, both of them stepping closer.

"What woman?" Georgia asked carefully.

I wiped at my face uselessly, my hands trembling.

"That woman who called him in the car," I whispered, voice breaking. "He said she was just an employee, just work stuff, nothing else. But it’s the weekend, Georgia. The weekend."

Vicky’s jaw dropped. "Wait... what?"

I nodded, breath unsteady. "He waited... he waited for me to step out of the room just so he could answer her call."

They went completely still.

"And I heard everything," I whispered. "He said, ’Darla, I can’t meet you right now... Are you free tonight? We can meet later if you are.’"

The words tasted like poison in my mouth.

Vicky’s hands flew to her face. "Oh my God..."

Georgia reached for me, pulling me into her arms, and I broke down all over again—shaking, breathless, humiliated.

"Weekends were supposed to be our time together, because of how busy we both are. But instead, he is meeting with that woman. I trusted him," I whispered against her shoulder. "I trusted him, and he lied straight to my face..."