MasukFernando's POVNick was looking at me as though I were a loaded gun that could go off at any second. Perhaps he wasn't entirely wrong.I held his gaze for another few moments before turning away.There was no point continuing the conversation. Nick had already made up his mind about me, just as I had made up mine.Nothing either of us said now would change that.I had barely taken two steps when I heard another voice."What's going on here?"I looked up to see Ashley walking into the hallway with her arms folded, her eyes moving suspiciously between Nick and me.She had clearly sensed the tension before either of us had spoken.Nick straightened immediately."It's nothing" he replied. Ashley raised an eyebrow."Really?"Neither of us answered then she looked from me to Nick again."You two looked like you were about to kill each other" she pointed out.I chuckled lightly."That's a bit dramatic" I said.She gave me an unimpressed look."With you? It really isn't" she shot at me.She
Michael's POVTheo's voice still echoed through the room."Sit down!"I stood there for several long seconds, unable to believe what had just happened. He had never spoken to me like that before, not once.We have definitely had moments where we were angry at each other and had shouted at the other, but there was something about the way he spoke this time that was very different from those other times.The silence between us grew heavier with every passing moment. Theo stared at me, and I could tell from the regret in his eyes that he hadn't meant to lose his temper but that didn't erase what had happened.I slowly straightened my posture."Theo, I don't appreciate being spoken to like that" I said, my voice was calm.He swallowed hard. He absolutely knew how much I hated being yelled at and for him to do the same thing was disheartening. "Michael..."I lifted a hand, stopping him before he could continue."I came here because I was worried" I said. He attempted to sah something, pos
Fernando's POVThe moment I stepped out of Henry's room, I quietly closed the door behind me and rested my hand against the wooden surface for a second.A smile tugged at the corner of my lips.It wasn't a complete victory, not yet but it was progress.For the first time since I'd returned to this town, my son hadn't looked at me with nothing but resentment. He had let me into his room, he had spoken to me and he had even admitted that he wanted us to be a family again.That alone was enough to make my chest feel lighter.I walked slowly down the hallway, replaying every word of our conversation.For years, I had convinced myself that Henry hated me.How could he not? I had disappeared from his life. Michael had been the one who raised him.Michael had been there for birthdays, scraped knees, school events, sleepless nights and every milestone I had missed. I had no right to expect Henry to welcome me with open arms.And yet, something had shifted. I could feel it.There was finally a
Theo's POVI didn't want to see Michael, not after what I'd watched. Not after those cursed hidden cameras had shown me exactly what I never wanted to witness.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw them together.Fernando's hands on Michael, Michael kissing him back, not resisting, not pulling away. Kissing him as though years of separation had never existed.Hearing Michael's moans as Fernando drove his dick inside him.It replayed over and over in my mind like a punishment and I clenched my jaw."No..he manipulated you" I muttered to myself.That had to be the truth.Fernando had always known how to get inside Michael's head. How to make him doubt himself, how to make him forget the pain he had caused.Michael wouldn't willingly betray me, he couldn't.The Fernando I knew was calculating, manipulative, patient. He had probably waited for the perfect moment when Michael felt vulnerable.That was the only explanation I was willing to accept because the alternative meant Michael had chose
Michael's POVI stood in the kitchen for several moments after Fernando disappeared upstairs.The frying pan hissed quietly on the stove, filling the room with the comforting smell of bacon and eggs, yet my attention wasn't on breakfast anymore.It was on Henry. I couldn't shake the image of his face when he had walked through the front door.His eyes had looked tired, not physically, emotionally. I would know because I saw that same expression on mine whenever I looked in the mirror recently. Something had happened last night. Something he wasn't ready to tell me.Ashley noticed me staring absent-mindedly at the stove and gently nudged my shoulder."You're burning the bacon" she said."What?"I blinked before quickly looking down. Sure enough, the edges were beginning to darken.I sighed and turned the heat down and Ashley folded her arms."Are you're worried about Henry?" She asked calmly. I nodded."He wasn't himself and he snapped at me" I answered, my eyes moving from the bacon
Fernando's POVI watched Henry disappear upstairs, and something about the way he carried himself unsettled me.He hadn't looked angry, not exactly. He had looked... burdened, like someone carrying a weight far too heavy for his shoulders.I glanced toward the kitchen.Michael was still standing there with Ashley, worry written all over his face. I knew that expression better than anyone. He wanted to follow Henry, but he also knew pushing him would only make things worse.Which left me.Maybe I wasn't the best person for the job, actually, I was probably the worst. Still, he was my son.Whether he accepted me or not, I couldn't ignore the look on his face.I climbed the stairs slowly, each step echoed through the quiet house. When I reached Henry's door, I knocked gently but silence answered me.I waited a few seconds before knocking again."Henry? It's me" I called.Still nothing.I rested one hand against the door."I just want to talk" I said.His voice finally came from the other
Michael's POV The early morning sunlight streamed through the kitchen windows, warming the wooden floor beneath my feet as I stepped into Ashley’s cozy kitchen with a mug of coffee in hand. The scent of cinnamon and burnt sugar lingered faintly in the air—Ashley’s failed cookie experiment. She w
Fernando’s POV I watched from the porch, the morning sun casting long, golden shadows across the gravel driveway. Ashley stood by her modest gray car, a reusable bag of cookies in one hand and a water bottle tucked under her arm. She was meticulously arranging things in the trunk, making room be
Michael’s POV The sun was still high up in the sky, pouring it's golden streeks outside Ashley’s apartment window. The street was still, save for the two stone-faced bodyguards loitering outside the building entrance like shadows glued to the sidewalk. Their presence was a constant reminder th
Archer’s POV I sat behind my desk, staring blankly at the documents that had been piling up like bricks of guilt. Contracts, acquisition reports, and memos that required my signature. Important things, by any definition. But in the grand scheme of things, they meant nothing. Not when the one per







