ログインMom claps. “See? Good sense.”Dad groans, drops into a chair, and rubs his forehead. “Fine. Sparklers. But I get to choose the color.”“Deal,” I say, leaning over to kiss his temple. He pretends not to smile but I see it anyway.I never thought I would have this again—a father who tries, really trie
Maya’s POVFrance changed me. I did not expect it to. I thought all I wanted was revenge, a reckoning, a balancing of the scales that would make everything feel right again. But standing at the kitchen window of our townhouse with the late-morning sun warming the old stone, watching Oscar toddle aft
After a few minutes, Emma sits beside me, nudging my shoulder. “How are you really,” she asks, her voice softening.I smile. “Good. Really good. For the first time, everything feels... quiet.”“You deserve quiet.”I nod, my eyes warming. “He is different now. Softer. Present. You should see him read
Emily’s POVSix Months LaterI wake before the alarm, before the morning light even filters through the curtains, to a soft flutter beneath my ribs. A tiny kick, gentle but unmistakably there. I smile into the pillow, pressing my palm over the swell of my stomach. The baby is awake, stretching, gree
Damian’s POVI do not think I exhaled until the plane door shut behind us.No reporters.No blinking notifications.No family emergencies.No corporate disasters waiting like open jaws behind every email.Just Emily beside me, fingers loosely threaded with mine, her head resting on my shoulder as if
Emily’s POVThe morning light over the farm looks unreal, soft as milk, drifting across the grass in wide strokes that make everything glow. It is the kind of light you only see on days you remember forever. A gentle breeze carries the smell of lilac and fresh earth, the decorations swaying slightly
Damian’s POVThe day after our dinner felt like a strange shift in tempo, like the universe had momentarily allowed me a glimpse of peace only to speed up again with a vengeance. I sat at my desk, coffee in one hand, pen in the other, scribbling across a notepad that had long since surrendered to ch
Maya smiled, shaking her head. “No. But Louis and the doctor do. He swore he wouldn’t tell me.”“You trust him with that kind of power?” I asked, and the table laughed. Even Charles let out a low chuckle, sipping from his water glass like the air hadn’t been thick with resentment just days ago.I no
“A break?” I gasped, spinning to face him fully. “Is that what you think I want? A break from the life I’ve built? From everything I’ve clawed my way into? Do you think I spent years fighting to know my father, building trust with the Augustus name, just so I could go sip tea by the Seine like some
Emily’s POVThe club pulsed with life as I stepped out of the cab and spotted Emma and Jayden standing just outside the velvet ropes, both dazzling in the golden glow of the marquee lights. Emma wore a shimmering black mini dress that hugged her curves and sparkled with every movement, her dark curl