Mag-log inMom 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
Madelin looked more at ease than I’d seen her before. She helped Grandma with the salad, laughing quietly when Jack came in with straw in his hair and claimed he’d done all the hard work for the day.It was peaceful, almost too peaceful. The kind of stillness that lets your thoughts slip back in.I
Damian’s POVThe bar was dimly lit, the kind of place I liked for meetings like this. Not flashy, not loud, just a quiet hum of conversation and the occasional clink of glasses. I sat at the small corner table, nursing a bourbon while waiting for Jonathan to arrive. When he walked in, he looked bett
Damian’s POVI held her against me as if the world itself might try to pry her away. Her skin was warm, her heartbeat steady, and for a moment the walls I had built to keep my fears contained began to crumble. “Emily,” I murmured, my voice low, almost hoarse from the weight of everything unsaid, “I
Louis’ POVThe morning sunlight spilled into our house with a golden persistence, glinting off the glass of Oscar’s crib as if determined to remind me what I was leaving behind for the day. I bent over him, breathing in the delicate sweetness of his skin, pressing a kiss to his tiny forehead while h







