LOGIN*Alexander's POV*---I don't remember the drive home.I remember the bar. I remember the burn of the third drink, and the fourth, and somewhere after that the numbers stopped mattering. I remember Elena's voice in the parking lot — "she's going to grow up with a name that wasn't given by the man who denied her existence" circling my skull on a loop that the whiskey was supposed to drown out and instead just made louder.It hadn't worked.I was aware of that, even now. Aware enough to know I was drunk. Aware enough to feel every sharp edge of what she'd said cutting through the haze instead of being softened by it."I'm going to have a daughter" I kept repeating it.The front door was heavier than I remembered."Alex..!"Eliza's voice cut through my deep thoughts as she hurried down the stairs and I heard her footsteps. She placed her hand at my arm, steadying me before I went down completely."I'm fine," I said. The words came out slower than I intended."You are not fine." Her grip
*Elena's POV*---I saw him before he saw me.That gave me exactly two seconds to decide whether to turn and walk the other way.I didn't though."Elena."His voice stopped me at the edge of the parking lot, with my bag in hand, sun in my eyes. I turned slowly.Alexander was standing a few feet away, dressed like he had come from a meeting, his tie was loosened, and his jacket was over one arm. He looked at me the way he always looked at me now ....like something he had lost and couldn't stop reaching for."I don't have time for this," I said."Make time.""What do you want?"He closed the distance before I could finish. Not aggressively, but he was too close."I keep thinking about it," he said. "You and our baby. All of it. I cannot stop thinking about it, Elena."I scoffed. Is this man out of his fucking mind? Who and what gave him the mind to speak to me about this?. He has to be high on some shit, I'm sure..."That's not my problem.""But it is my child."The words landed flat a
*Liam's POV*The pill cup was still sitting on the bedside table untouched. Exactly where Angela had left it an hour ago when she came in for the afternoon round. Three small tablets; white, orange, and yellow sitting in a tiny plastic cup like they had all the time in the world and were not in any particular hurry to be swallowed.Dad was looking at the window."Dad.""The sky looks different from here," he said, without turning. "I never noticed that before. Hospital windows show you a different sky than regular windows.""Dad.""More blue, I think. Or maybe it just looks more blue because you're not supposed to be looking at it from a bed—""Take your medication."He turned then slowly. And looked at me with the expression he had been perfecting since I was seven years old ... the one that communicated a very patient, very complete indifference to being told what to do."I'll take it later," he said."You said that at noon.""And it is now..." He glanced at the clock on the wall
*Elena's POV*The pizza was still warm.That was the thing I focused on when Andrea walked in — the warmth of the box on my lap, the comfortable weight of Liam beside me, the easy quiet of a room that had been perfectly fine approximately three seconds ago.And then the door opened.Andrea stood in the frame in a silk co-ord that probably cost more than most people's rent, one of her hand rested on the doorknob, her eyes moving across the room with the slow, deliberate sweep of someone taking inventory of something that bothered them.She looked at the pizza.She looked at the television.She looked at Liam.And then she looked at me."Elena." My name in her mouth was pleasant and light and completely loaded. "Could you give us a moment? I need to speak with Liam privately."I took a bite of my pizza.Chewed quietly and slowly. Then I swallowed.Liam said nothing beside me. I could feel him watching, still and quiet, waiting.A few weeks ago — maybe even a few days ago I would have
*Richard's POV*The sterile hospital room felt heavier today, the beeping monitors were a constant reminder of my fragile hold on life. I lay on the bed, my body was weak from the treatments that drained me daily, yet my spirit refused to dim. Life still burned in me—a stubborn flame fueled by love for my family and the quiet hope of seeing my son happy. Sunlight filtered weakly through the blinds, casting long shadows across the white sheets. I closed my eyes for a moment, breathing through the fatigue, when the door opened softly.Angela stepped in, my favorite nurse, her uniform crisp and her movements practiced. She had become more than just medical staff over these long weeks; her bright energy usually lifted the gloom of this place. But today, something was different. Her smile didn’t reach her eyes.“Good morning, Mr. Richard,” she said formally, checking the chart at the foot of my bed. “How are you feeling today? Any pain or dizziness?”I managed a warm smile despite the tub
*Elena's POV*My eyes widened in absolute shock, my heart was slamming against my ribs like it was trying to escape. Liam had just leaned in so close, his warm breath brushing my skin, and used his tongue to lick that bit of pizza sauce right off my cheek. Not his fingers. Not a napkin. His friggin cold tongue. The sensation sent a jolt through me—maybe surprise mixing with something warmer, deeper, that made my cheeks burn hotter than the pizza we’d been eating. I stared at him, questioningly, my mind spinning with a thousand emotions, confusion and embarrassment. And underneath it all, a flutter of something that felt dangerously like longing. After everything— this playful intimacy hit me straight in the heart.“It tastes better from your cheek than from the box,” Liam said with that charming, boyish grin, his eyes sparkling with mischief.I lost control completely. A burst of laughter exploded out of me, loud and genuine, cutting through the tension like sunlight breaking clouds







