His innocent wife is a dangerous hacker.-Chapter 597 Reasons

Jace’s fingers tightened against his knees, the tension in his body so obvious it seemed to fill the entire room. His knuckles were white, his jaw clenched, and his shoulders rigid as if he were bracing for impact. He stared down at the carpet for a long moment, as though the words he needed were written somewhere between the threads but refused to appear clearly enough for him to read.

Jay sat beside him, equally tense, though his gaze kept shifting toward Bella as if he were trying to measure how much truth she could handle at once. His usual easy grin was nowhere to be found. The joking, carefree man she knew had been replaced by someone serious.

"The problem," Jace said slowly, his voice rough with nerves, "is not us."

Bella frowned slightly, confusion knitting her brows together. Her arms were still crossed, but the firmness in her posture had softened.

"Then what is it?"

Jay let out a quiet breath and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. For someone who normally carried a joke on the tip of his tongue, the silence around him felt strangely heavy. He stared at the floor for a moment, then looked up at her.

"It’s Bro," he said.

Bella blinked.

"Leo?" she asked carefully.

Jace nodded once, though he still did not lift his eyes from the carpet.

"Yes."

Bella waited.

The quiet stretched again, thick and uncomfortable, pressing against the walls of the room like something alive.

"Okay," she said finally, trying to keep her tone calm despite the unease curling in her stomach. "You two being together doesn’t have anything to do with Leo. Unless you’re about to tell me he suddenly became the world’s strictest relationship police."

Jay almost smiled at that. It was a brief flicker that vanished almost instantly.

"No," he said quietly. "It’s not that."

Bella’s patience began to thin. She uncrossed her arms and planted her hands on her hips, the white fabric of her dress rustling with the movement.

"Then someone start explaining," she said firmly, her voice carrying an edge now. "Because right now you’re both acting like you accidentally burned down a cathedral."

Jace finally looked up.

His eyes were red, not from crying, not yet, but from the strain of holding something inside for too long. From nights spent staring at ceilings and days pretending everything was fine when it wasn’t.

"Bella," he said softly, "how much do you know about Leo’s family enemies?"

The question caught her off guard.

She tilted her head slightly, processing the sudden shift. "Enough to know there are many. Rival families, business wars, mafia politics." She shrugged faintly, trying to sound more confident than she felt. "But Leo handles it perfectly. He always does."

Jay rubbed his face slowly, like a man exhausted from carrying bad news for too long. His hands dragged down his cheeks as if he could physically wipe away the weight pressing on him.

"Do you really want to know?" he asked, his voice muffled behind his palms. "There are two reasons. Both very bad."

Bella looked between them, confusion deepening into concern.

"Tell me the first," she said.

Jay dropped his hands and met her eyes.

"Okay," he said quietly. "I don’t think Leo would like his brother being gay."

Bella stared at him for a moment. Then she let out a short, disbelieving laugh.

"He will not mind," she said firmly. "He is very supportive. You know him, Jay. You have seen how he is with Dom and Jason, with everyone. He doesn’t care about that."

Jay shook his head slowly.

"That’s not the problem."

"Then what is?"

Jay’s gaze shifted to Jace. He reached out and took his hand.

"The problem," Jay said quietly, "is that he wouldn’t like it if I was dating his enemy’s son."

Bella’s eyes widened. Her gaze snapped to Jace, her mind racing through possibilities, through every conversation she had ever had with him, every moment of trust, every shared laugh.

"Don’t tell me," she breathed, her voice barely above a whisper. "Don’t tell me you’re Pablo’s son."

Jace fell silent.

The quiet was answer enough.

Bella stared at him in shock, her hand pressing against her chest as if she could physically slow her racing heart.

"You’re good at guessing," Jay murmured, a weak attempt at his usual humor.

Bella did not laugh. She couldn’t.

Jace’s hands clenched into fists on his knees. His whole body was trembling now, small vibrations running through him like a live wire.

"I’m not his legitimate son," he said, his voice cracking. "He... he actually raped my mother."

Bella’s breath caught.

Jace kept speaking, the words tumbling out like water breaking through a dam.

"And then he killed her. My uncle filed a police complaint, but the government didn’t help because Pablo had connections inside. Deep connections." His voice hardened with bitterness. "I couldn’t do anything. I was only ten years old."

Bella’s eyes burned as she listened.

"That’s why I hate politics," Jace continued, his voice rising slightly. "That’s why I hate corruption. That’s why I expose them whenever I can. Every dirty official, every crooked deal, every person who uses power to hurt the helpless." His hands trembled harder. "Because of him, I couldn’t have a proper home. Because of him, I grew up running, hiding, never staying in one place too long. He almost got me killed multiple times. He blew up houses I was staying in, sent men after me, made my life a living hell."

Bella was already crying.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she listened to him.

"Oh my God, Jace," she whispered.

She crossed the distance between them in two quick steps and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug.

Jace broke.

His arms wrapped around her waist, and he buried his face against her shoulder, his body shaking with silent sobs. Years of pain, years of hiding, years of pretending to be fine poured out in the quiet room.

"I’m sorry," he choked out against her dress. "I hid it. I hid all of it. I came to the Morettis because I needed protection. Only Leo could give me this kind of safety, this kind of power. And then..."

He pulled back just enough to look at Jay, tears streaming down his face.

"And then I fell in love with Jay on the way."

Jay let out a soft, wet laugh, his own eyes red.

"Stupid," he said gently, reaching out to wipe Jace’s tears. "Not ’fell in love.’ We’re standing in love. Present tense. Always."