four

Jason’ POV:

Four years.

Four years since I thought my life would fall perfectly into place, I was goddamn sure the universe was waiting for that moment to hand me my happiness.

I thought that by now, I would be the happiest man alive. Lilly , the woman I’d once loved beyond reason, had finally woken up from her coma. It felt like everything was going to be as it was or even better. I thought fate was finally smiling upon me. But as the days turned into months, and months into years, I realized how wrong I’d been.

I gripped the steering wheel tighter as I drove through the quiet streets, the hum of the engine was the only sound in the car. I could see the tall structure of the hotel I’ve been staying for weeks ahead but my mind was somewhere else. Everywhere else, really.

It was impossible not to think about her.

Isabel.

The woman I had pushed away.

The woman I had let go.

Back then, I thought it was what I wanted. I thought the right thing to do was to end things, to walk away, to reclaim what I believed had been stolen from me when Lilly slipped into that coma all those years ago. Isabel had been a part of my life only because of the contract. I mean that was the excuse I told myself. It made it easier to act as if she didn’t matter.

But she had. She did.

Isabel wasn’t just any woman playing a role in my life. She was the one who had breathed life into my cold, empty world without even doing much.

I remembered the way she would look at me with those soft, understanding eyes. She always knew when something was bothering me, even when I hadn’t said a word. She’d sit quietly beside me, listening to my worries and frustrations, offering nothing but her presence until I was ready to talk. And when I finally spoke, she always knew the right things to say. Words that were calm, clear, like the answer I hadn’t even known I needed.

She pampered me in ways no one else ever had—little things I never noticed until she was gone. She’d leave handwritten notes on my desk to encourage me before important meetings. She’d make me my favorite meals after long days, even when she was exhausted herself. And those nights when the weight of my world seemed unbearable, she would wrap her arms around me, whispering that I wasn’t alone.

And her mind—God, her mind.

Isabel was brilliant, with ideas that rivaled the brightest minds I knew. During one particularly tense business quarter, I had mentioned a block I was hitting with a pitch for a major investor. Isabel, in her subtle way, had made a suggestion over dinner that seemed so simple at the time. I had even ignored it, amused. But I used it anyway, and it was a game-changer.

She had always been my quiet partner, my sounding board, my anchor.

And I let her slip away.

Because I was chasing a ghost. A faded love that hadn’t been real for the longest of time.

Lilly .

The woman I’d once dreamed of marrying, the woman whose absence had left me shattered. When she woke up, I thought she would complete me again. But the truth was far uglier.

Lilly was no longer the woman I had loved.

Or maybe I was no longer the man who loved her.

She was demanding, manipulative, and unpredictable. For four years, I had walked on eggshells, trying to salvage what I thought I owed her, what I thought I owed myself. I’d convinced myself I had no choice. After all, everyone saw us as the perfect couple. A story of tragedy and reunion. I couldn’t let the illusion crumble, no matter how suffocating it felt.

A sudden ringing cut through my thoughts. I glanced at the dashboard.

It was Lilly .

A sigh escaped my lips, and what did she want again?

I let it ring. Once. Twice. But I knew better than to ignore her for long. The last time I did that, she caused a scene that took days to fix. I clenched my jaw and picked up the call.

“What is it, Lilly ?” I said, my voice flat and lacked emotions..

“Don’t ‘what is it’ me,” she snapped. “You know what’s happening tomorrow.”

I frowned. “Tomorrow?”

“The Grey Gala, Jason. Did you forget?”

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. “No, I didn’t forget.”

“Well, good. Because we’re going. Together. I’ve already arranged everything. You’ll come home tomorrow, and we’ll leave for the event.”

There was no room for negotiation in her voice. Lilly had become a master at dictating how my life would play out, and I had allowed it.

I sighed. “Fine. I’ll come home tomorrow.”

“Better.” She hung up without saying another word. Gone was the sweet Lilly . The woman that was soft and tender. The woman who cared so much about. Maybe she changed. Or maybe this is who she truly is and had just been pretending.

I dropped the phone onto the passenger seat and sighed again. My fingers tapped impatiently against the wheel as I pulled into the hotel’s valet parking area.

“Sir,” the valet greeted as I gave him the keys, giving him a tight nod in return.

As I walked into the lobby, my phone buzzed again. Another call. This time, from my private investigator.

My heart skipped a beat.

I had hired him months ago. To find her. To find Isabel.

I knew it was selfish—after all, I was the one who’d let her go. But for years, I’d carried the weight of what I’d done, unable to shake the thought of her face as she walked away that day. I had to know where she was, to know that she was okay. I was filled with many regrets and this was my only solution.

I answered quickly. “What have you got?”

“Mr. Lancaster,” the PI said. “I found her—”

Before he could finish, something small and solid collided with my leg.

“Oof!”

I looked down sharply, startled. A little girl sat on the marble floor, blinking up at me with wide brown eyes. She couldn’t have been older than three or four. Her tiny mouth quivered, clearly surprised by the fall.

“Are you okay?” I asked, crouching down to her level.

She nodded, though tears glistened on her lashes. I offered my hand, and she took it, allowing me to help her to her feet. Her curls bounced as she steadied herself, brushing off her little blue dress.

“Where’s your mummy?” I asked gently.

She pointed across the room, and my gaze followed the direction of her finger.

That’s when I saw her.

Isabel.

She was standing near the far entrance, her back partially turned as she spoke to someone. But there was no mistaking her. The air punched out of my lungs, leaving me momentarily frozen inside and out..

I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.

She turned then, as if sensing my eyes on her.

And our gazes locked.

It was as if time had stopped.

Four years. Four long years without seeing her. And yet, here she was—just as I remembered, but somehow more radiant. Her hair was longer, falling in soft waves past her shoulders. There was a strength in her posture now, a confidence that hadn’t been there before.

But it was her eyes that hit me hardest.

They weren’t soft anymore. They were guarded, distant—almost as if she were looking straight through me.

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think.

And standing beside me, holding onto my hand, was a little girl with her eyes.

Isabel’s eyes.

Before I could say a word, before I could even begin to process what was even happening, the little girl tugged on my arm.

“That’s my mummy,” she said softly.

Isabel’s expression froze.

My heart pounded violently in my chest as the truth hit me like a towing train.

The little girl beside me wasn’t just anyone.

She was Isabel’s daughter.