Rejected By My Mate; Claimed By Lycan Quadruplets Chapter 257

Ryan sat in his office, staring at his phone screen for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

Serena still wasn’t answering his calls. It had been two days since the incident at the park, and no matter how many times he tried, she wouldn’t pick up.

With a frustrated sigh, he tossed the phone onto his desk and leaned back in his chair.

His head was pounding, and his chest felt tight. He couldn’t sit here anymore. He needed to clear his head.

Grabbing his phone again, he scrolled through his contacts and pressed a familiar name.

The phone rang twice before a cheerful voice answered.

“Ryan! Man, it’s been a while!”

Ryan managed a small smile.

“Yeah, it has. Listen, I need to get out of my head for a bit. How about some ice hockey?”

There was a brief pause before his friend laughed. “Ice hockey? Are you serious? It’s been years!”

“Come on, Ethan,” Ryan urged.

“After all, I was the best back in school, remember?”

Ethan chuckled. “Oh, I remember. You were unbeatable. Alright, let’s do it. Meet you there in an hour?”

“Sounds good,” Ryan replied, feeling a bit of relief wash over him.

An hour later, Ryan arrived at the ice rink.

He walked inside and spotted Ethan already waiting, dressed in his hockey gear.

Ethan grinned when he saw him.

“Look who decided to come back to the ice,” Ethan teased, tossing Ryan his hockey gear.

Ryan smirked. “Let’s see if you can still keep up.”

They got suited up, lacing their skates tightly. Ryan stepped onto the ice, feeling the familiar chill beneath him.

It felt good.

For a brief moment, he could forget everything—Serena, Amy, and the guilt that gnawed at him.

As they started moving across the ice, Ethan watched Ryan closely.

From the way he was skating, aggressively hitting the puck, Ethan could tell something was off.

“You alright, man?” Ethan asked after a few minutes.

Ryan didn’t respond right away.

Instead, he hit the puck hard, sending it flying across the rink.

“Ryan,” Ethan pressed, skating up beside him. “Something’s up with you. What’s going on?”

Ryan let out a long sigh and leaned on his hockey stick.

“It’s… complicated,” he finally said.

Ethan raised an eyebrow. “I’m listening.”

Ryan hesitated for a moment, then decided to tell him everything.

“I got divorced, Ethan,” he began, staring down at the ice.

“Turns out, Serena was pregnant when we split up… and I didn’t know. Now, I have a daughter, Amy. I only just found out about her.”

Ethan’s eyes widened. “Wait… what?”

Ryan nodded.

“Yeah. And things were going fine at first, but I screwed up. I lost her at the park the other day. Serena’s furious, and she won’t even talk to me now.”

Ethan whistled under his breath.

“Wow. That’s… that’s huge, man. I had no idea you were going through all this.”

Ryan let out a bitter laugh.

“Neither did I. One day I was living my life, and the next, I’m a father with no clue how to handle it.”

Ethan patted Ryan on the back.

“Hey, man. You’ll figure it out. You just gotta prove to Serena that she can trust you again. You love your kid, right?”

“Of course,” Ryan said without hesitation. “Amy means everything to me now.”

“Then don’t give up,” Ethan said firmly. “Go see Serena again. It’s been two days. Maybe things have calmed down.”

Ryan looked hesitant. “You think I should?”

Ethan grinned. “What’s the worst that can happen? She slams the door in your face again?”

Ryan chuckled despite himself. “Yeah… maybe.”

“Go see her,” Ethan urged.

“Talk to her. And this time, don’t mess it up.”

Ryan nodded slowly. “Alright. I’ll try again.”

Later that evening, Ryan pulled up outside Serena’s house once more.

His heart pounded in his chest as he stepped out of the car and walked to the front door.

Taking a deep breath, he rang the bell.

From inside, he could hear little footsteps followed by a small voice.

“Mommy, is it Daddy?”

Ryan felt a pang in his chest. He missed Amy so much.

The door opened, and Serena stood there, her expression unreadable.

She looked at him for a moment before sighing heavily. “Come in.”

Ryan stepped inside, and the moment Amy saw him, she jumped up from the dining table and ran to him.

“Daddy!” she squealed, wrapping her tiny arms around his legs.

Ryan bent down and hugged her tightly. “Hey, princess. I missed you.”

Amy giggled. “I missed you too, Daddy!”

Serena stood watching them with her arms crossed. After a moment, she cleared her throat.

“Amy, sweetheart, go to your room. Mommy needs to talk to Daddy.”

Amy pouted. “But I want to stay with Daddy.”

“You can see him later, okay?” Serena said gently.

Amy nodded slowly and skipped off to her room.

Once she was gone, Serena turned to Ryan with a serious expression.

“Ryan, we need to talk.”

Ryan nodded. “I know. I—”

Serena held up a hand, stopping him. “Ryan, I can’t take the risk of losing my child because of you.”

Ryan’s heart sank. “Serena, I—”

“You don’t understand how scared I was,” Serena cut him off.

“I trusted you, and you let her out of your sight. I can’t let that happen again.”

Ryan sighed. “I know I messed up, Serena. I was careless. But I swear to you, I’ll never let anything happen to Amy again.”

Serena shook her head. “I don’t know if I can trust you anymore.”

Ryan stepped closer.

“Please, Serena. Give me another chance. I want to be in Amy’s life. She needs her father.”

Serena stared at him for a long time, her expression softening just a little. “Ryan… I don’t know.”

“I love her, Serena,” Ryan said quietly. “And I love you too.”

Serena’s eyes widened in surprise. “Ryan, this isn’t about us.”

“I know,” Ryan said quickly. “But I want to be better—for Amy and for you.”

Serena sighed and looked away. “You need to prove that, Ryan. Actions speak louder than words.”

“I will,” Ryan promised. “Just give me the chance.”

Serena hesitated, then nodded slowly. “We’ll see, Ryan. We’ll see. For now, just be a good father to your child.”

Ryan let out a breath of relief.

“Thank you, Serena. That’s all I ask.”