Chapter 25:

"From your past?" Abigail wondered as she and Henry were still standing in the cafe's kitchen. "You mean, from the old company you worked at before they sent you here because they suspected you of fraud?"

Henry grimaced.

"No, I wanted to tell you about my personal life. From my true past."

"When you didn't have much when you were a kid." Abigail questioned again.

"No."

The owner of the cafe grew anxious. What could Henry tell her that she did not already know?

"I'm listening to you."

There was a short silence during which Henry had opened his mouth as if to try to say something, but no sound came out. Finally, he closed his mouth, swallowed hard, and began to say what he wanted to tell Abigail.

"I was married…before I came to Coal Valley. »

Henry watched as the information slowly entered his partner's brain and he saw her open her mouth in surprise. When she said nothing, he continued.

"I lived with this woman for a long time, and we had a son…"

Henry started to get slightly worried when he saw no reaction from Abigail but decided to continue.

"I worked a lot. All I cared about was the money. I knew I couldn't buy a woman's love with gifts and money, but since I wasn't in love with her, I didn't think it was a big deal to be home rarely. But my son, I believed that I could buy his love with gifts. So, I came home every day with something more. But of course, that wasn't what he wanted. When I found the divorce papers on my nightstand one morning, I wasn't even surprised. But my ex got custody of our son. And when I left, he didn't even know who I was... He couldn't have been more than 10 at the time." Henry explained with undisguised bitterness towards his own actions.

"At the time? You mean you haven't seen him since?" Abigail asked with a bewildered look.

"No… I was too ashamed of myself, and I thought he was certainly better off without his father." Henry said sadly. "But… you made me want to reconnect with him. Your love… you are changing me, Abigail. I sent him a letter this morning."

Abigail nodded, still looking dumbfounded.

"What's your son's name?"

"Christopher." he smiled. He felt like it had been years since he had said his son's name.

"How old is he?" Abigail could not help but smile back at Henry's cheerful expression.

"He's 22 now." Henry sighed softly. "I missed everything with him…"

Abigail took Henry in her arms, and he rested his head on her shoulder.

"Things will surely work out if you persist in reconnecting with him."

Henry nodded, hoping things would turn out the way his mate had predicted.

The cafe door opened, and a family walked in and sat down at a table for dinner.

"I'm going to have to get back to work, customers are starting to arrive for dinner." the cafe owner shook her head as she looked at the now occupied table.

"Sure." Henry nodded in understanding. "I'm going to dine here, too. I'm going to sit at a small table in the corner. He smiled and gently kissed Abigail's cheek. He gave her a wink before crossing the room and sitting down at a table.

Abigail looked at him, her eyes shining, a smile on her lips. She loved this man. And she loved him even more now that he had fully confided in her about his past. He had been married and had a son. She who had always believed that they did not have much in common, she had been seriously mistaken. Henry and she had, in many ways, life paths a little similar in some points. But all there was to remember was that they had both come to Coal Valley hoping to change their lives and found in Hope Valley a new evolution in their values and behaviors.

She smiled, shook her head in amusement, and got to work. As more and more customers entered the cafe for dinner, Cody came home to eat, and Clara and Bill entered through the kitchen door to help her with evening service.

Note: Henry confided in Abigail about his past! A big step forward in their relationship. Now that we know a lot about Abigail, it's Henry's turn!