تسجيل الدخولDante,I stood in the office room, watching the world move on without caring about anyone else. Although I had prioritized my daughter over the last few days, my heart still ached every time the thought crossed my mind that I might have to give up loving Pearl because of her behavior. The idea terrified me. It hurt more than I was willing to admit, wondering how I could live the rest of my life without her.Even the thought of never falling in love again, of living solely for my daughter and quietly carrying the memories of the relationship I had shared with Pearl for the last decade, felt like a slow suffocation. I had thought that far ahead, knowing I could never knowingly endanger my daughter’s upbringing.However, my mother’s words shattered the fragile strength I had used to hold onto that resolve. To love her. To see a future with her. To understand how to build a life with her while still protecting my daughter.“Boss.”Zayn, my assistant, walked in holding a stack of files. I
Yvonne,Aurora stopped playing with her toys, the faint clatter of plastic against the floor dying down, and my hands paused mid-air while serving breakfast when Dante opened the door for the person who had just rung the bell.I was sure it would be Pearl, since she was too unhinged to let him go that easily. However, my eyebrows knitted together and my fingers tightened slightly around the plate when I saw her instead. Mrs. Blackwell followed Dante inside, her posture straight and rigid, a serious expression set firmly on her face.“Please sit down,” Dante said.Mrs. Blackwell scanned him first, her eyes lingering briefly, noting that he wore nothing on top except sweatpants. Her expression did not change, only a slight tightening around her lips as she observed him. Then her gaze shifted to Aurora, sharp and assessing before softening just a fraction.“Aurora!” she said, smiling tightly, her restraint obvious.Aurora, however, did not respond. Instead, she dropped the toy from her h
Dante,It felt like a smooth invasion of my life, something that slipped in quietly without warning. Although I couldn’t fully wrap my thoughts around Veronica’s changes, I couldn’t hold that much grudge against her anymore. The irritation that should have been there dulled, settling somewhere deep in my chest, heavy but quiet.Lying on the bed, watching her hold Aurora as if her entire world revolved around her, my gaze lingered longer than I expected. My jaw loosened slightly, and my breathing slowed. She didn’t feel like the old Veronica I knew. There was a softness in the way her fingers curved around Aurora’s small frame, a careful patience that made my chest tighten for reasons I couldn’t name.However, I was happy at this point. Life had always thrown curveballs in my way whenever I reached for what I wanted. From the beginning of my life, everything I achieved came in exchange for something equally valuable. I had learned to accept that balance, even when it hurt.Right now, m
Yvonne,I sat there, across from him. He kept slowly swaying the glass of champagne, the liquid catching the dim light, while his gaze never left my face. Those eyes felt like X-rays, scanning me, stripping layers off as if he needed to know everything about me without asking a single question.I rubbed my forehead, my fingers pressing harder than necessary, trying not to look at him directly. My temples throbbed faintly. Ever since the conversation with Veronica, I felt like Dante had been pulled into a mess he didn’t deserve, a mess that kept tightening around my chest.“Why did you lie?” he asked directly, his voice dripping with a dangerous coldness. The words landed heavily. A sharp shiver ran down my spine, and my shoulders stiffened before I could stop myself.“About what?” I asked, my voice trembling despite my attempt to sound composed.“That you didn’t get kidnapped. Was it someone you know?”I rubbed my wrist again, the skin still itching, my thumb circling the same spot un
Yvonne,Although at that time her words passed through my mind like a simple conversation, the moment I watched her walking out of the back door of the hotel, everything started settling into a cold realization. My chest tightened, breath hitching slightly as the truth slowly sank in.Veronica stole sperm just to get pregnant so that he would leave his lover to marry her. No wonder Dante kept telling me that he had no idea how I got pregnant with his child. The thought made my stomach churn, a faint nausea crawling up my throat.I was too shocked by her childhood upbringing to process the information at first. It was far more devastating than I had expected. My fingers curled unconsciously at my side. However, the question was who helped her get those in the first place.Judging by Orion’s behavior and how he got defensive, he wouldn’t dare to mess with Dante. That meant someone who had direct access to obtain them from the hospital. A dull pressure built behind my temples as my thoug
Yvonne,Veronica stared at me as I laughed bitterly, the sound scraping my own throat. Her eyes flickered, uncertain, as if she couldn’t decide whether to be offended or confused. She didn’t know that our fates were so similar. But we both chose different ways to handle it. She destroyed herself, and I built mine.The tightness in my chest eased slightly as the laughter faded. I realized I couldn’t stay angry about the situation we were in. Coping mechanisms worked differently. Especially since she lived in a world where money was nothing. She found an escape through drugs, and in my world, where money was everything, I found myself working to death to escape it.“I am sorry,” she replied quietly, her shoulders slumping. “I didn’t know.”I exhaled sharply, my breath trembling as my gaze dropped to the rope biting into my wrists. “It’s alright. Compared to your life, I don’t think I had a bad life. Well, I shouldn’t compare, since it’s a struggle. However—”She didn’t let me complete i







