Rebirth: The New Bride Wants A Divorce-Chapter 553: Mom and Collin

Back at the Helmsworth Mansion, Kathrine gathered her documents neatly and slipped them into her folder.

"I will keep in touch regarding the production schedule for the project," she said professionally, rising from her seat. "You will have the revised projections by the end of the week."

Marcus gave a slight nod, his expression unreadable.

Kathrine was about to take her leave when his voice stopped her.

"Why do you love Ethan?"

The question landed without warning.

She turned slowly, her brows drawing together in confusion.

For a moment, she wondered if she had misheard him. This was the same man who had once implied she was manipulating his son. The same man who had looked at her as though she were an opportunist hiding behind affection.

And now he was asking her why she loved Ethan.

"You refuse to leave him," Marcus continued, his tone calmer than before. "So tell me. What do you like about him?"

There was no accusation in his voice this time. No sharp edge. It almost sounded like genuine curiosity.

Kathrine studied him carefully before responding.

"Are you asking as his father," she said slowly, "or as a businessman evaluating risk?"

Marcus did not react to the subtle challenge. "Answer the question."

Kathrine hesitated, not because she lacked an answer, but because she wanted to choose the right words.

She set her folder back down on the table and remained standing.

"I do not love Ethan for what he owns," she began quietly. "Nor for the name he carries."

Marcus watched her without interruption.

"I love him because he is not what people expect him to be."

A faint crease appeared between Marcus’s brows.

"He was raised in a house of power," Kathrine continued, her eyes briefly scanning the room around her. "In a world where strength is measured by control and silence. Yet he still feels deeply. He still questions himself. He still cares."

She paused, her voice softening.

"He listens."

Marcus’s expression shifted almost imperceptibly.

"Do you know how rare that is?" she asked. "For someone raised with authority to still value another person’s thoughts? To admit when he is unsure?"

She met Marcus’s gaze directly.

"Ethan is not perfect. He can be stubborn. He can be impulsive. But he does not hide behind pride when it matters. He chooses honesty, even when it makes him uncomfortable."

Silence settled between them.

Kathrine drew in a steady breath.

"He makes me feel seen," she added. "Not as a partner in business. Not as a strategic advantage. Just... as myself."

Marcus leaned back slightly in his chair, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully.

"And that is enough?" he asked.

"It is more than enough," Kathrine replied.

Her tone held no hesitation now.

"You believe I influenced him," she continued. "But the truth is, Ethan makes his own choices. If he stands beside me, it is because he wants to. Not because I persuaded him."

Marcus’s fingers tapped lightly against the armrest as he absorbed her words.

"You speak as though you understand him completely," he said.

"No," Kathrine corrected gently. "I understand that he is still becoming who he wants to be."

That answer lingered.

Marcus looked away for a brief moment, his gaze drifting toward the large window.

Still becoming.

The phrase echoed in his mind.

He had spent years shaping Ethan. Preparing him for responsibility. Teaching him resilience, caution, discipline. He had believed that shielding him from vulnerability was protection.

Yet standing here, listening to Kathrine, he wondered whether in building strength he had also built distance.

"You think I do not see my son clearly," Marcus said quietly. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Kathrine did not rush to respond.

"I think," she said carefully, "that you see him through expectation."

Marcus’s jaw tightened slightly, but he did not interrupt.

"You want him strong," she continued. "Capable. Untouchable. But Ethan does not want to be untouchable. He wants to be understood."

The room fell silent again.

Marcus had expected defensiveness. He had expected romantic exaggeration. Instead, she spoke with clarity.

"You asked why I love him," Kathrine said softly. "It is because when he looks at me, he is not Marcus Helmsworth’s son. He is simply Ethan."

The simplicity of the statement struck him harder than he anticipated.

Marcus exhaled slowly, his gaze lowering for a brief second before lifting again.

"You are confident," he observed.

"I am certain," she replied.

Another silence followed, but this one felt different.

Less adversarial.

More reflective.

Marcus considered his own words from earlier, the caution, the control, the instinct to measure everything in terms of consequence.

For years, he had believed love was a liability in a world that thrived on weakness.

Yet here stood a woman who spoke of it as strength.

"You may leave," he said finally.

Kathrine picked up her folder once more.

As she reached the doorway, Marcus spoke again, though more to himself than to her.

"Still becoming," he murmured.

Kathrine paused briefly but did not turn back. She left without another word.

Marcus remained seated long after she had gone, staring at the quiet room.

For the first time in a long while, he was not thinking about competitors or shareholders.

He was thinking about his son.

And whether, in trying to make him invincible, he had forgotten to let him simply be human.

Kathrine stepped out of the Helmsworth mansion, the heavy doors closing behind her with a muted thud. The cool air brushed against her face as she walked down the stone pathway toward her car.

Her expression remained composed, but her mind was still replaying the conversation with Marcus. His question. His reflection. The weight behind his silence.

She slipped into the driver’s seat and closed the door, the world outside instantly muffled. For a moment, she allowed herself to exhale. The meeting had gone differently than she expected.

Just as she reached for the ignition, her phone vibrated.

Her brows drew together slightly.

She glanced at the screen.

Anna.

Kathrine frowned faintly. They had not spoken since the last update regarding the anonymous recordings.

She unlocked her phone and saw a file attached to the message.

"A file?" she muttered under her breath.

There was no explanation. No text. Just the attachment.

A quiet unease settled in her chest.

She tapped on it.

The audio began playing.

At first, there was nothing but faint background noise. A subtle echo. The indistinct hum of a closed room.

Then voices.

Clear.

"Mom and Collin"