All Chapters of He Chose His First Love, I Gave Our Daughter a New Dad: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

Darian froze and instinctively reached for her. "No, Lillian, Daddy really does have something urgent to take care of...""All right, Mr. Ford." Lillian moved out of reach and cut him off, smiling. "You should go."My eyes burned. I covered my mouth with one hand, fighting back tears.For as long as I could remember, there had always been room in his schedule for Maya.Every time he left for that woman, I held my crying daughter and said, "It's all right. You still have me. He's very busy."Lillian used to cry and try to stop Darian from leaving.I thought this time would be the same. I had even braced myself to hold her while she cried.I hadn't expected her to push Darian's hand away and tell him no.She didn't cry. She didn't ask him to stay. She was only five, but she was handling it like a grown-up. That was what hurt.Guilt filled Darian's eyes. He stood and looked at me. "Calm her down for me. As soon as I've handled this, I'll book the next flight to join you."Before I could s

Chapter 2

I held back my tears and patted her back. "All right. We only need each other."During that first week, Lillian and I ran along the beach and built sandcastles until she'd had enough.Without Darian, even the air felt lighter and more peaceful.Maya clearly had no intention of leaving me alone. She kept sending photos and videos to needle me.One photo showed Darian in an apron, cooking for her at the stove.One video showed Darian lying beside Sean, gently patting his back until he fell asleep.In the latest video, Maya asked a question she clearly wanted me to hear. "Darian, Sean says he wants a family portrait with you as his dad. Should we go take one tomorrow?"Off camera, Darian answered tenderly, "Of course we can."Five minutes later, Maya sent a voice note. "Serena, Darian only has eyes for me now. I'm the only woman he loves. Take the hint. Let him go and stop using your child to hold on to him."Once, hearing that would have left me sobbing. It would have destroyed me.Now I

Chapter 3

Before I could get it out, Darian's phone went off on the nightstand.A message had come in.He hesitated, then let go of me and walked over to read it.A minute later, Darian pulled out a suitcase and started throwing clothes into it."Sean and Maya were in a car accident. I have to go back right now!"At the door, he glanced back at me with a guilty look. "Serena, tell Lillian I'm sorry."The door slammed behind him. Darian had walked out of our lives yet again.The next morning, I calmly told my daughter, "Lillian, Mr. Ford had something else to take care of again."Lillian didn't ask where he'd gone.She walked to the couch, snatched up the collector's doll Darian had given her the day before, and threw it in the trash.A week later, I decided to cut the trip short and take Lillian home.At our front door, I had barely turned the key when I heard laughter upstairs.My stomach dropped. It was coming from Lillian's bedroom.My grandmother had left me this house. It held so many memor

Chapter 4

I looked back at him, expressionless, and nodded. "I did. Now take your first love and her son and get out of my house."Darian froze for a second, then shook his head. "No, that's impossible. Serena, even if you're trying to get back at me, you don't have to hire people to put on this ridiculous act.""Get back at you?" I let out a cold laugh. "Darian, you think far too much of yourself. I don't hate you. I'm done with you. You make me sick."I pointed at the door, my expression cold. "Now get out of my house!"Darian was still trying to explain. "No, Serena, don't do this. I'm not divorcing you. Lillian, I'm your dad!"Lillian stood beside me, watching him coldly. The affection she'd once felt for him was gone."No, you aren't. Mr. Ford, please leave our house."Darian stood frozen, panic in his eyes. Before he could say anything else, I pushed him out.(Darian’s POV)Darian stared at the door that had just shut in his face. His chest tightened, and his mind went blank.Serena's and

Chapter 5

(Serena’s POV)Once they were gone, I changed the gate code and removed every last trace of Darian from the house.Then I opened a drawer and took out the old sketching tools I hadn't touched in years.I used to be a rising star in jewelry design, but after Lillian was born, I let my career slip away.Back then, Darian had held my hand and said, "Serena, this family needs you. I need a warm home to come back to."I was naive enough to fall for those sweet promises. I gave up my design career to be a stay-at-home wife.Looking back, I could only laugh at how foolish I'd been.Now I was determined to return and prove to them all that I was more than someone's wife or mother. I was a talented designer.Returning to an industry I'd been away from for so long was harder than I'd expected. Rebuilding my network and finding the resources I needed wasn't easy.Just when I felt lost, I got a call from an unfamiliar number."Serena, it's Romeo. I'm glad to hear you're designing again. Could we m

Chapter 6

[Darian's POV]Meanwhile, Darian returned to his apartment, feeling empty.He couldn't stop thinking about Serena's indifferent expression.Her indifference gripped his heart like an invisible hand, squeezing until it hurt to breathe.Exhausted, he went upstairs. As he passed the half-open guest room door, he heard Maya's voice.The repairs to her house weren't finished yet, so he'd let her and her son stay there for the time being."Darian has already divorced that idiot Serena. Now I'm all he has. I always said I'd get him back one day."That's right. All I had to do was pretend Sean was sick and cry a little. Darian would drop everything and come running, leaving her behind."The person on the other end said something, and Maya gave a scornful laugh. "Guilty? Why would I feel guilty?"I met Darian first. That bitch Serena just got lucky!"She sounded nothing like the fragile, pitiful woman she pretended to be. Now she was smug and pleased with herself."And that daughter of hers, th

Chapter 7

With the apartment finally quiet, Darian knelt on the floor with his hands over his face.Regret crashed over him like a tsunami.What had he done?For a greedy, lying snake like Maya, he'd repeatedly hurt the wife who had once loved him with all her heart. He'd even put Sean ahead of his own daughter!He couldn't bear it. He slapped himself again and again. Then, unable to stop thinking about Serena, he grabbed his car keys and drove to her house.He stood outside the familiar house, looking up at that familiar light, and his eyes stung.He hurried to the door and knocked.Lillian opened the door. The second she saw Darian, her smile vanished. She looked at him with distaste.His chest tightened painfully, and his hands shook. "Lillian, it's Daddy. Why are you looking at Daddy like that?"She didn't run into his arms the way she always had. She looked at him coldly."Mr. Ford, Mom said she doesn't want to see you again. If you don't want to get arrested, you should leave right now!""

Chapter 8

[Serena's POV]After that one visit, Darian didn't come back.I had no time or energy to spare for him. I was busy preparing my competition piece.This time, I didn't use a flawless, expensive stone. Instead, I took a chance on a rare red diamond split down the middle.I melted pure gold and diamond fragments into vines and used them to mend the ugly crack bit by bit. I transformed the stone, topping it with a small, brilliant crown.I called it Rebirth.A rebirth for the stone, and a rebirth for me.On the day the results were announced, Romeo stood beside me with Lillian in his arms, offering quiet, steady support.When it was time for the judges' comments, the notoriously harsh head judge looked at my piece and couldn't hide his excitement."Flawless stones are everywhere," he said. "But this piece feels alive. It touches you deeply. This isn't just jewelry. It's a woman's rebirth!"First place in this competition goes to Rebirth, by Serena Vale!"The room erupted in applause."Rome

Chapter 9

One year later.It was the launch of S. Rebirth, the independent jewelry label I'd founded.Wearing a custom-made black gown, I walked up to take questions, my arm linked through Romeo's.Romeo carried Lillian. She kept her arms around his neck, smiling sweetly and calling him Daddy.Camera flashes exploded around us, capturing the moment from every angle.As I stood in the glare of the cameras, listening to the applause, my thoughts drifted for a moment.Over the past year, Darian and Maya had fared worse than I could have imagined.Maya was the first to fall. After Darian cut off her credit cards and sued her, she sold everything she owned to pay him back and was left with nothing.But she'd spent too many years throwing money around to bear living in poverty.To keep up appearances, she began frequenting upscale venues in search of another wealthy man to support her. Soon she was forging checks and committing fraud and theft on a large scale.A month earlier, she'd been arrested and

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