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Author: bebeeizrael
last update publish date: 2026-05-01 15:53:31

**MATEO'S POV**

Everything happened too fast and too slow at the same time.

One moment Isabella was in my arms, whispering my name with terror in her eyes. The next, she went limp.

"Isabella!" I roared, catching her before her head could hit the headboard. Her body was completely slack, face pale, lips slightly parted. "Baby, wake up! Isabella!"

My heart slammed against my ribs like it wanted to break out. I scooped her up, her blood staining my white shirt and the sheets. The metallic smell hi
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  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    164

    EpilogueThe mirror in the bridal suite of the Mateo's mansion didn’t reflect a ghost anymore. The woman who stared back at me was no longer the lost and broken girl who had arrived more than a year ago, burdened by secrets and haunted by the past. Eight months had passed since the chaos of childbirth, the harrowing experience that had brought my precious twins into the world, and as I stood in my silk-and-lace gown, the exquisite fabric shimmering in the soft light, I saw a woman who finally knew where she stood, a woman who had found her strength, her purpose, her place in the world. "I look amazing" I almost giggled.My hair was swept up in an elegant updo, held in place by a delicate diamond comb, its sparkling brilliance mirroring the joy in my eyes, and the pear-cut sapphire on my finger, casting a dazzling array of blue hues across the room. "Girlll," Olga whispered, stepping up behind me, her voice filled with emotion, her eyes sparkling with tears. Her strawberry-blonde bob

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    163

    The drive home was quiet, the hum of the SUV's engine a soothing contrast to the chaotic roar of the Gala. I leaned my head against the cool glass, watching the London rain start to smear the streetlights into streaks of gold."You're very quiet," Mateo murmured, his hand finding mine in the dark."Just processing," I whispered. "Isabella Cortez... business owner... mother of twins. It's a lot to happen in one night.""It's only the beginning," he promised.When the car pulled up to the estate, the house was ablaze with light. I expected the quiet stillness of a late night, but as the front doors opened, music and laughter spilled out onto the gravel.I stepped into the foyer and froze."SURPRISE!"The room was filled with the people who had kept me sane when my life was a wreckage in Berlin. My heart skipped a beat as a blur of energy slammed into me."GIRLLLL!" Olga shrieked, tapping my backside with a playful grin before pulling me into a bone-crushing hug. "Look at you! A whole ic

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    162

    The London Gala was a sea of black ties, shimmering diamonds, and the low, expensive hum of the elite. Tonight wasn't just a foundation event; it was my twenty-fifth birthday-the day I was supposed to be a "mistake" in an alleyway. Instead, I stood in front of a mirror in the vanity room, draped in a gown that felt more like armor than silk.Lucian was right about the light hitting differently on the metallic teal dress."You look ready," Mateo whispered, appearing behind me. He looked lethal in his dark teal and black tuxedo, his hand sliding firmly onto the small of my back."I feel like an imposter," I admitted, my heart racing."You aren't," he said, his voice dropping to that low, possessive rumble. "You're the guest of honor."The moment we stepped into the ballroom, the atmosphere shifted. The whispers didn't feel like thorns anymore. They felt like curiosity. I was no longer the "disgrace" Isabella Hartley. I was being introduced as **Isabella Cortez**.The spotlight hit the s

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    161

    **ISABELLA'S POV**The London sun was surprisingly warm, spilling across the duvet as I sat propped up against the headboard. For the first time in days, my chest didn't feel tight. The "ghost" of the Hartley name was fading, replaced by the weight of the envelope on my nightstand containing my real birth certificate.I was on the phone with Olga, the familiar rasp of her Berlin accent grounded me."I'm telling you, Izzy, you're a legend," Olga laughed on the other end. "A British citizen by blood? That's some movie-level plot twist. I'm just happy the 'creeps' didn't win." She paused for a few seconds "They got bars too. Does that make you the heir of your family because or?" She asked what I have been thinking "Is this real?" The heir? Well, they are old and unless they got Valentina, I don't get it but it wasn't my problem.I smiled, leaning back. "It feels real now, Olga. Like I'm finally standing on solid ground.""Good. You deserve every bit of it," she said, though I heard a b

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    160

    The bedroom was a whirlwind of metallic teal silk. I leaned against the doorframe, watching Isabella spin, the fabric catching the afternoon light and shimmering like the surface of the Thames. She looked radiant, her movements light, almost ethereal.I couldn't wrap my head around it. Four days ago, she was a broken mess in the back of my SUV, her world leveled by the filth Nathan and Valentina had spat out. Today, she was humming a pop song and debating necklines."Too much?" she asked, stopping mid-spin. She frowned at her reflection, smoothing the silk over her stomach. "I don't like this one. It makes me look fat.""It makes you look like a goddess," I countered, pulling out my phone. Before she could protest, I snapped a photo. She was mid-laugh, her hair caught in the motion, her eyes finally bright again."Hey!" She pointed a finger at me, a playful scowl on her face. "You're under arrest. Taking unauthorized photos of a pregnant woman in a dress she hates is a federal offens

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    159

    The morning air at my parents' estate was crisp, a sharp contrast to the suffocating stench of the hotel room I’d left hours ago. I was in my father’s study, the scent of old leather and expensive bourbon grounding me as we looked over the files Ayisha had compiled on the Cortez family."The parents are old-school, Mateo," my father said, his eyes scanning the map of the Cortez estate in the countryside. "They live for their reputation. Finding out Valentina has been playing house with her high school mistake in a hotel you paid for? It’ll crush them again after her " supposedly visit to a family" when they sent her away.""That’s the point," I muttered, my fingers tapping rhythmically on the mahogany desk. "I want the original birth records. I want the hospital files. I want every piece of leverage they have over Isabella."The door swung open, and the sharp click of heels announced my mother’s arrival before she even spoke. She stood in the doorway, an amused smirk playing on he

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    CH 26

    I still went to work. He was my boas but I was already doing nothing to take another off days.I had to fix this. Had to apologize. Had to see him. Maybe I was too harsh this morning. Seem like yesterday he wanted to tell me something but I was too crazy enough not to listen.What does he even rem

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    CH 24

    I gave her a lot of space. She said she was busy and I let her rest. She said she had 'work' and I let her be. She said she needed to breathe and I let her. At this point she was avoiding me and I knew it.Apology would have gone a lone way but I needed to see her face in and tell her everything.I

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    ch 23

    Those words from Lucian kept circling back no matter how hard I tried to push them away. "When does she even die?"My own son - twelve years old - already sounding like he'd swallowed every bitter thing his mother ever said about women who got close to me. I sat in the driver's seat with the engi

  • Falling For My Father's Best Friend    CH 21

    I think I finally grew some damn balls with Mateo tonight. But shit - I should've grown more. I should've just asked him about Valentina. Straight up. No bullshit. How the hell did I just swallow her story without even giving him a chance to speak? Without proof? Without anything? Stupid. Stup

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