Returning To Destroy My Engagement

TIFFANY

"What?” I stared at her.

“You heard me,” Stephanie didn't even blink.

I looked down at Ocean. He was still asleep, completely unaware of the conversation happening above his head.

"He's my son,” I stated, as if she had forgotten for a moment.

“I know.” She shrugged her shoulders.

“Then how can you ask me to abandon him?” My brows creased.

It sounded absurd in every way.

Stephanie sighed and leaned back against the bench. “I'm not asking you to throw him into the street, Tiff. I'm asking you to think about what happens next.”

"What happens next?” I asked, my face completely distorted.

What exactly was she trying to say?

"You can't stay here forever. You can't hide a child from your grandfather forever. And you can't marry Ethan while carrying a baby that isn't his!” she snapped.

My stomach tightened.

That was true. Knowing Ethan, there was no way he would accept a stranger's child. He might even break up with me permanently.

"But I can't just abandon him, Steph. He's my blood…” Tears glazed my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

Stephanie looked into my eyes. Her gaze softened when she saw the tears in them.

“Leave him with me.”

I sniffled and swallowed. “What? But… how would you explain to your family? Where would you say you found the baby?”

She looked away from me and bit down on her lips. She parted them, but no words came out. After a moment, she turned to me again.

“I really don't want to do this…”

“Do what?” I asked after her voice trailed off.

It was unlike Steph to sound so reluctant.

“I don't want to sabotage my stepbrother,” she replied.

I stared at her in confusion. “What does Oscar have to do with this?”

She rubbed her palms together and looked toward the villa. "You know my family. You know how important the marriage between Oscar and your family is. If your Grandpa finds out that you secretly had a baby with another man, he'll never forgive you. He might even send you away from the family.”

I lowered my head. I knew she was right.

Grandpa had spent everyday, for the past nine months, trying to convince me to marry Oscar.

He would never accept that I had been gotten pregnant by a stranger, disappeared for months with a work excuse, given birth to a child, and hidden all of it from him.

"But what does that have to do with Oscar?” I asked again.

Stephanie hesitated before moving closer to me. "We can use him.”

"Use Oscar?" My head lifted.

“Yes.” She lowered her voice. “Think about it, your family already wants you to marry him. If we make it look like Oscar has been hiding a secret affair, your grandfather won't be able to force you into that marriage anymore.”

I stared at her. "What kind of affair?”

Stephanie's eyes moved to Ocean. "With a woman outside the family.”

I frowned.

She continued before I could interrupt her.

"We can say he got another woman pregnant. You don't have to accuse him of sleeping with you because that would raise questions. We'll say he has been hiding the woman and the baby from everyone.”

"And Ocean?” My eyes widened.

“We say the baby belongs to Oscar.”

I immediately shook my head. "But Ocean isn't his.”

“I know that,” Stephanie said quickly. “But nobody else has to know.”

I looked down at my sleeping son again. The idea felt wrong, but there was something about it that also made sense.

"If we leave Ocean with Oscar,” Stephanie continued, “your family will have a reason to cancel the engagement. Your Grandpa won't want his eldest granddaughter marrying a man who already has a child with another woman.”

I rubbed my fingers against the edge of the blanket covering Ocean. "But what happens to my baby?”

“He'll be safe.”

“With Oscar?”

“Yes.”

My heart squeezed at the thought of leaving him with a man I had never even known properly.

Stephanie noticed my hesitation and placed her hand over mine. "I won't leave him alone, Tiff. I'll be there.”

“What do you mean?” I looked at her.

"I'll tell my stepbrother that since the baby's mother left him. I'll make him believe the child is his responsibility. Since I'm his stepsister, I'll have a reason to be around. I can help him with Ocean. I can watch him. I can make sure he's okay.” She paused and squeezed my hand.

“And whenever you are ready, you can come back for him.”

I stared at her for a long moment. “You'll really do that?”

“Of course,” her answer came so quickly that some of the fear inside me eased.

“What if Oscar finds out?”

“He won't.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because I'll be the one helping you.”

She sounded confident.

I looked at Ocean again. His tiny lips moved slightly in his sleep, and his fingers curled against the blanket.

I wanted to hold him forever. I wanted to take him home.I wanted to introduce him to my family and tell everyone that he was my son.

But I also wanted Ethan. That was the part that made me feel guilty.

Ethan was the man I had chosen. The man I had planned to marry. The man I had promised I would run away with.

If keeping Ocean meant losing Ethan forever, I didn't know if I was strong enough to make that choice.

Stephanie seemed to understand the battle happening inside me.

“You're not abandoning him forever,” she said softly. “You're giving yourself time.”

I looked at her. "Time for what?”

“To fix your life.” She shifted closer.

“You can go back home, make things right with your grandfather, and elope with Ethan. Once everything settles down, you can come back for Ocean. Until then, I'll be here.”

My eyes burned. "And you'll tell everyone Oscar is the father until then?”

“There's no other choice.”

She nodded her head. "We'll say Oscar had a secret affair and the woman left the baby with him. I'll testify to it. I'll make sure your grandfather believes it.”

Stephanie continued.

“Your grandfather will be furious. He'll probably call off the marriage himself.”

I swallowed. “And then I can elope with Ethan.”

“Yes.”

The answer came so simply that my heart began beating faster.

For the first time since I had given birth, I could see a way back to the life I had planned.

I could go home.

I could marry Ethan.

And Ocean would still be alive, safe, and cared for.

I looked down at him again.

“What if Ethan asks if I knew anything about the baby? Mind you, he's very calculative more than he looks. He could piece the truth together somehow."

“We'll tell him you never knew Oscar had a child. You can act shocked just like everyone else.”

I almost laughed, but the sound died in my throat.

This was crazy. It was completely crazy.

Yet somehow, it was the first plan that didn't require me to choose between my son and the man I loved.

“Are you sure this will work?” I whispered.

Stephanie nodded. “I'll make sure it does.”

I looked at her face.

For years, Stephanie had been the person I trusted most. She had been beside me through everything. Even now, when my life had become a mess, she was the one sitting beside me, helping me find a way out.

I could never finish repaying her in this lifetime.

I leaned down and kissed Ocean's forehead. "I'm sorry, baby.”

His tiny face remained peaceful. My fingers trembled as I touched his cheek. "I'll come back for you.”

Stephanie watched silently as I cried.

That evening, she helped me prepare everything.

We placed Ocean inside a small basket lined with a soft blanket. I packed a few clothes, diapers, and the things he would need for the next few days. Before we left, Stephanie handed me a small necklace.

A simple name pendant hung from it.

** Ocean.**

I stared at it for a few seconds before fastening it around his tiny neck.

“So they'll know his name,” I whispered.

Stephanie nodded.

I picked him up one last time and pressed him against my chest.

He smelled like baby powder and the lotion Stephanie had bought for him. I closed my eyes, trying to memorize everything about him.

His warmth. His tiny breaths. The way his fingers held onto mine whenever I touched his palm.

My chest hurt so badly that I almost changed my mind.

Almost.

But then I remembered Ethan. I remembered his voice asking me to elope with him. I remembered the life I had dreamed about.

And I convinced myself that I wasn't leaving Ocean forever. I was only leaving him for a little while.

When the time came, I placed him carefully inside the basket. My hands refused to move away.

Stephanie stood beside me. "It's okay, Tiff.”

I nodded, even though I didn't believe myself.

I kissed Ocean's forehead one last time, then forced myself to step back.

Stephanie carried the basket away. I watched until she disappeared from sight.

Only then did I allow the tears to fall.

By the time I returned to the Perkins family home, I had changed my clothes and wiped my face clean.

Stephanie had also sent me the video we had prepared. I watched it once in the car.

It showed enough to make my grandfather believe something had happened behind his back. It showed Oscar, the baby, and the story Stephanie had carefully created around them.

I held my phone tightly. For months, I had been away from home. For months, Grandpa thought I was on a business trip with Stephanie.

The

Hazel probably thought I had abandoned everyone.

And now I was going back with a secret baby, a video, and a story that could destroy the marriage my family had been trying to force on me.