Chapter 4: Who Is The Father?

The morning sun hit the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Sterling Group's CEO office. The atmosphere inside, however, was colder than ice.

Jackson sat behind his massive mahogany desk, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the table.

One night.

It had been one whole night since the gala, and he hadn't slept a wink. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw that woman. Vera. Her cold eyes, her red dress, her smile at that male model.

"Knock, knock."

His assistant, Luke, entered the room nervously holding a thick file. Everyone in the company was walking on eggshells today. The boss was in a terrible mood.

"Speak," Jackson commanded, not even looking up.

"Sir, we investigated Miss Vera as you instructed," Luke said, placing the file on the desk. "But..."

"But what?" Jackson looked up, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

Luke swallowed hard. "It's strange. Her background is... blank. Before five years ago, there is no record of a 'Vera' in the design world. She appeared in Paris out of nowhere, became the apprentice of the top designer, and skyrocketed to fame."

Jackson sneered. "Blank? That just proves I am right. She changed her identity."

He opened the file. It was filled with photos of her in Paris—winning awards, attending fashion shows, drinking coffee by the Seine. She looked confident and happy. A life without him suited her well.

This realization irritated him.

"Did you check her flight records?" Jackson asked.

"Yes. She arrived yesterday. But sir... there is something else." Luke hesitated, afraid of the reaction.

"Out with it!"

"Miss Vera didn't return alone," Luke pointed to a photo at the back of the file. "She brought two children with her."

The air in the room instantly dropped to freezing point.

Jackson froze. His hand paused over the photo.

Children?

He snatched the photo. It was a blurry shot taken by paparazzi at the airport. It showed Serenity holding hands with two small figures. Because of the angle and the sunglasses, he couldn't see the kids' faces clearly.

"How old are they?" Jackson asked, his voice sounding dangerously calm.

"Around four or five years old," Luke replied.

Crash!

Jackson swept the files off his desk violently. Papers flew everywhere.

Five years ago, she left. Now she comes back with five-year-old kids?

"Who is the father?" Jackson roared, standing up. The veins on his forehead were popping.

An overwhelming rage consumed him. He thought she had left because she was hurt. He thought she hated him. But it turned out she had left to start a family with another man?

Did she cheat on him before they divorced? Or did she find a new lover immediately after leaving the villa?

"We... we don't know yet," Luke stammered, trembling. "The children's birth certificates are sealed. We couldn't find the father's name."

"Useless!" Jackson loosened his tie, feeling like he couldn't breathe.

The thought of Serenity smiling at another man, bearing another man's children, drove him insane. He had never touched her in their three years of marriage, yet someone else had claimed her?

"Find her," Jackson hissed through gritted teeth. "Find out where she is right now."

Luke tapped rapidly on his tablet. "Sir, Miss Vera is currently at the Starry Tower. She just leased the 30th floor as her new studio."

Jackson grabbed his suit jacket and stormed towards the door.

"Sir? You have a meeting with the board in ten minutes!" Luke called out.

"Cancel it," Jackson slammed the door shut.

He wasn't going to sit in a meeting. He was going to corner that woman and force the truth out of her.

If those children belonged to another man... he wanted to see which bastard had the guts to touch his ex-wife.

---

Meanwhile, at Starry Tower.

Serenity sneezed.

"Are you okay, boss?" Her assistant, a bubbly girl named Amy, asked concernedly.

"I'm fine. Just dusty," Serenity rubbed her nose. She looked around her new office. It was spacious, modern, and overlooked the entire city. It was perfect.

She wasn't just here to design jewelry. She had a goal. The Sterling Group dominated the market, but she was going to carve out her own empire.

"Amy, where are the kids?" Serenity asked.

"They are in the playroom, playing on their iPads," Amy smiled. "Alex is so smart! He was fixing the Wi-Fi earlier."

Serenity smiled fondly. Alex was indeed a genius with computers, while Mia was a social butterfly. They were her everything.

Suddenly, the glass doors of her office were pushed open with a bang.

"We have no appointment! You can't go in!" The receptionist's panicked voice rang out.

Serenity looked up from her sketches.

Jackson stormed in like a dark hurricane. The receptionists and security guards behind him didn't dare to stop him.

He slammed his hands on her desk, leaning in until his face was inches from hers. His eyes were red with fury.

"Where is he?" Jackson demanded.

Serenity didn't flinch. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms coolly. "Mr. Sterling. You have a habit of breaking into places uninvited. No wonder your wife left you."

"Shut up!" Jackson grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. "The children. Who is the father?"

Serenity's heart skipped a beat, but her face remained mask-like. He knew about the kids?

"It's none of your business," she replied coldly.

"Is it the man you smiled at last night? Or the one you ran away with five years ago?" Jackson mocked, his voice dripping with jealousy. "Tell me, Serenity. Who touched you?"

Serenity slapped his hand away. She stood up, her high heels clicking on the floor as she walked around the desk to face him.

She poked his chest with her finger.

"Listen to me clearly, Mr. Sterling. My children have no father. Their father is dead."

"Liar," Jackson grabbed her waist, pulling her flush against his hard body. The tension was electric. "I will find out. And if I find that man, I will ruin him."

Just then, the door to the playroom creaked open.

A small head poked out. It was Mia.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes and looked at the tall man holding her mommy.

"Mommy? Is that the bad uncle?"

Jackson froze. He slowly turned his head to look at the little

...girl standing in the doorway.

It was the little girl from the airport. Up close, her eyes were big and round, shining with innocence. They looked exactly like Serenity's eyes.

She was holding a teddy bear, glaring at Jackson with puffy cheeks.

"Let go of my Mommy!" Mia shouted. "You are a bad uncle!"

Jackson was stunned. Bad uncle?

For a split second, the rage in his chest vanished, replaced by a strange softness he couldn't explain. He looked at this tiny creature who was trying to protect her mother.

"Mia," Serenity gasped. She took advantage of Jackson's distraction and pushed him away violently.

She rushed over and scooped Mia into her arms, shielding her face from Jackson.

"Get out!" Serenity screamed, pointing at the door. "Get out of my office, Jackson! Don't make me call the police!"

Jackson straightened his suit, regaining his composure. He looked at the trembling woman and the child hiding in her neck.

His eyes narrowed. That child... looked like Serenity. But who was the father?

"I'm leaving," Jackson said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "But Serenity, you can't hide forever. I will uncover every single secret you are keeping from me."

He gave them one last deep look, turned around, and walked out.

But as he walked down the hallway, his heart was racing uncontrollably.

Why did that little girl's angry face remind him so much of himself?