“How can you be at peace knowing she carried your daughter?”“That’s why I initially looked for her, but when I realized she was with Marcus, and that he was my best friend, I couldn’t do anything but let her go.”“But was she your daughter?”“Correction, that girl is yours, and you know it!”“But a
After the inevitable reunion with his brother, Maximus went home with his children. As strange as it seemed, he was still in shock. His children spoke excitedly, telling him all the details of their first day, but he, unfortunately, was still in a daze. He couldn’t believe that the brother he owed m
“It was good, Grandpa! But I miss my friend John. He’s going to be away for at least a month. He’s nicer to me, the other kids are good, but I talk a lot with John. I really miss him!”“Ethan, you just saw him on Saturday…”“But I miss him! He likes talking about castles and things. The other kids j
“He was your friend, but you’re not to blame either. The whole blame is on that damn woman. If she hadn’t interfered in your life, you would’ve probably ended up marrying Mary.”“There’s no point in talking about it,” Peter said, downing the contents of his glass in one gulp.“You’re fooling yoursel
The next day, Peter had everything planned. He would take Ethan to school and then pick him up in the afternoon to take him to his friend's house. Lately, he had been swamped with work to the point of not investigating who his friend's family was. He knew Camille, and that gave him a sense of reassu
“Excuse me, one question—what’s his grandfather’s name?”“Ms. Valerie, Ethan’s grandfather’s name is Theodore. He’s the one we have registered at our institution. Would you like me to call him?”“No, don’t worry, let’s go inside. Ethan’s going with us today, and I went out to pick him up.”Valerie w
“Now, I promise you something. There will not be a day or night that you don’t think about me. You are now tied to me forever, at least until I decide I don’t want you by my side anymore. Think of it as a kindness, my dear Alexia. Maximus was going to kill you. He already found out you killed me, or
Valerie had just finished the meeting with John's teacher. As she walked with the kids, her mind wandered. The face of that man she’d seen earlier was identical to Peter’s. Shaking her head, she tried to dismiss the absurd idea. Holding Ethan’s hand, she strolled slowly beside John, who already look
[A few months earlier ]It was nighttime. Alden was out of town, and Serenity couldn't sleep. Her belly was still round with pregnancy when she noticed Peter sitting alone in the garden. She decided to join him—as long as he was okay with her company.He had recently woken up, and to him, nearly eve
Valerie approached, one last time, one of the most important women in her life in Valeria.Emma Fiore—the woman who had taken her in almost like a daughter. While they had grown close during the three years Valerie was married to Maximus, their bond went far beyond that. They were family.Emma had c
After that hug, Valerie walked over to Laura, Serenity's sister, with whom she'd developed a bit of a bond."Laura and beautiful Adele—I wish you both all the success in the world… You must finish your studies and use your degree. You're living proof that it's possible—and that's exactly what your l
The day had finally come—the Bartz family and the newly formed Palmer-Bartz family were leaving for Hesperia.Without meaning to, the three families found themselves gathered once again at the airport.Marcus was saying goodbye to Peter, who, due to his memory loss, only held onto the memories of th
While Valerie packed up their things for the move back to Hesperia, Peter was driving with Celeste and their little girls toward Willowcombe.He was taking her to see how the renovations on the house—where they'd soon be living—were coming along.Celeste was in the back seat with the girls, tending
Valerie was packing clothes into the suitcases, though she kept drifting off, thinking about the reason they'd come here in the first place.At first, everything had seemed simple—quick even. Within a few months, they'd be back in Hesperia. But it had already been over a year.Things hadn't gone as
After Maximus said goodbye to Pierre, he went back into the mansion and headed straight to his son's room. Paul was lying on his bed, facing away from the door."Paul, can I come in?" Maximus asked gently."You're already in, Dad… Are you here to scold me for something that happened years ago?" Paul
"That's right. I'd like to speak with him alone, if you don't mind, Mr. Evans.""I think you're misunderstanding something. Letting you into my home doesn't mean you get to decide whether I'm in the conversation or not. Still, I'm trying to be reasonable—and if Paul wants to speak with you alone, on
Not too thrilled about it, Paul left his room and headed toward the garden, where a man was already waiting for him—one who didn't look his age. And to be honest, the resemblance between young Paul and the man was unmistakable.As soon as he heard footsteps approaching, the man—already sipping a cup