Chapter6—Daddy?
1482 Words
Selena woke up exhausted.
Not because she hadn't slept.
Because she had dreamed.
Again.
The church.
The flowers.
The whispers.
The empty altar.
Adrian never failed to find his way into her nightmares.
She rolled onto her side and immediately reached for her phone.
Nothing urgent.
Just emails.
Board updates.
Meeting requests.
Normal things.
The kind of life she'd spent five years building.
A life that was supposed to be safe.
Stable.
Untouched by Adrian Vale.
Yet somehow, after one night, everything felt fragile again.
A loud giggle drifted down the hallway.
Then another.
Selena smiled despite herself.
Aria.
Her daughter had a remarkable ability to make even the worst mornings bearable.
Selena quickly showered and headed downstairs.
She found Aria sitting at the breakfast table with a bowl of cereal.
The little girl was completely absorbed in the tablet resting beside her plate.
"Good morning."
"Morning, Mommy."
Selena kissed the top of her head before sitting down.
"What are you watching?"
Aria immediately turned the screen toward her.
And Selena froze.
A news article filled the display.
A photo of Adrian stood front and center.
Her stomach dropped.
The headline read:
VALE INDUSTRIES UNDER PRESSURE AS LAURENT LUXE EXPANDS
Of course.
Business news.
It shouldn't have bothered her.
Yet somehow it did.
Because Adrian's face was impossible to avoid.
Five years later and he was still everywhere.
Aria tilted her head.
"He's famous."
Selena picked up her coffee.
"Apparently."
"He was at the party."
The words made her grip tighten around the mug.
"Yes."
Aria stared at the picture.
Then frowned.
Selena's pulse quickened.
That look usually meant her daughter was thinking too hard about something.
And whenever Aria started thinking, trouble followed.
The little girl pointed at the screen.
"Mommy?"
"Yes?"
"He looks like me."
The coffee nearly slipped from Selena's fingers.
For a second she couldn't breathe.
Children noticed everything.
Everything.
Aria squinted at the photo.
"His eyes."
Selena forced a laugh.
"They're just gray eyes."
"But mine are gray too."
A knot formed in her stomach.
"Lots of people have gray eyes."
Aria looked unconvinced.
Then she zoomed in on the article photo.
"Oh."
Selena immediately regretted looking.
Because now she saw it too.
The resemblance.
Not just the eyes.
The shape.
The expression.
The stubborn set of the jaw.
Things she'd spent years trying not to notice.
Things that became impossible to ignore once someone pointed them out.
Aria stared between the photo and her reflection in the dark tablet screen.
Then she asked the question Selena had feared for years.
"Why does he look like me?"
The room became unbearably quiet.
Selena carefully set her coffee down.
Because suddenly her hands were shaking.
She had always known this day would come.
Children grew up.
They became curious.
They asked questions.
But she wasn't ready.
Not yet.
"Coincidence," she said softly.
Aria wrinkled her nose.
"You always say that when you're making things up."
Selena blinked.
"What?"
The little girl nodded confidently.
"You do."
Despite everything, Selena almost laughed.
Almost.
Because she had bigger problems.
Aria wasn't done.
Not even close.
"Why was he staring at me?"
There it was.
The second question.
The dangerous one.
Selena remembered that moment perfectly.
Adrian standing frozen.
Looking at Aria like he'd forgotten how to breathe.
Looking at her the same way she'd looked at the positive pregnancy test five years ago.
Like his entire world had changed.
"He was just surprised."
"Why?"
Selena's headache immediately returned.
Because there was no safe answer.
No easy lie.
No escape.
"Mommy?"
She forced herself to smile.
"Finish your breakfast."
Aria narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
Exactly like Adrian used to.
That realization hurt far more than it should have.
The entire drive to school was torture.
Aria kept asking questions.
Small questions.
Harmless questions.
Yet every single one felt dangerous.
"Does he know you?"
"Maybe."
"Was he your friend?"
"Something like that."
"Did he make you sad?"
Selena gripped the steering wheel tighter.
"Why would you ask that?"
Aria shrugged.
"Because you looked sad when you saw him."
The answer hit harder than expected.
Children truly saw everything.
Selena pulled into the school parking lot.
Thank God.
A distraction.
Finally.
She climbed out and helped Aria gather her things.
The little girl hugged her tightly.
Then paused.
"Mommy?"
"Yes?"
Aria looked unusually serious.
"Do I have a dad?"
The question punched every ounce of air from Selena's lungs.
For one terrible second she couldn't move.
Couldn't think.
Couldn't speak.
Five years.
She had successfully avoided this conversation for five years.
Now it was here.
Standing in front of her with curious gray eyes.
Waiting.
Selena crouched down slowly.
Her heart aching.
"You do."
Aria's eyes widened.
"Really?"
Selena nodded.
The little girl smiled immediately.
A hopeful smile.
An innocent smile.
One that nearly shattered Selena.
"Where is he?"
The question came quietly.
Without accusation.
Without anger.
Just curiosity.
And somehow that hurt even more.
Selena swallowed hard.
"I don't know."
It wasn't entirely a lie.
Because the Adrian she once knew no longer existed.
The man she'd seen at the gala felt like a stranger.
Aria accepted the answer surprisingly easily.
Then kissed her cheek.
"Okay."
And just like that she ran toward the school building.
Leaving Selena standing alone.
Heartbroken.
Terrified.
And realizing something she'd been avoiding.
She couldn't hide the truth forever.
Sooner or later Aria would want answers.
Real answers.
And Selena wasn't prepared for that conversation.
Not at all.
Across the city, Adrian hadn't stopped thinking about Aria.
He tried.
Failed.
Then tried again.
Failed worse.
His desk was covered in documents.
Reports.
Contracts.
Meeting schedules.
Yet his attention remained elsewhere.
On one little girl.
A knock interrupted his thoughts.
Marcus entered.
Holding a file.
Adrian immediately noticed.
"What is that?"
Marcus closed the office door.
"Information."
Adrian frowned.
"What kind of information?"
Marcus hesitated.
Which was unusual.
"I wasn't sure whether to give this to you."
Adrian's stomach tightened.
"Marcus."
His friend sighed.
Then handed over the folder.
Adrian opened it.
And froze.
A school enrollment form.
A photograph.
Medical records.
Art competition certificates.
Attendance reports.
Every page belonged to Aria.
His pulse accelerated.
"What is this?"
Marcus rubbed the back of his neck.
"You asked me to investigate."
"I asked you to investigate the wedding."
"One thing led to another."
Adrian barely heard him.
Because his eyes were locked on a school photo.
Aria smiled brightly at the camera.
Gap-toothed.
Happy.
Beautiful.
His daughter.
The realization slammed into him all over again.
He turned another page.
Then another.
Then another.
Every detail felt precious.
Favorite subject.
Drawing.
Favorite food.
Pasta.
Favorite color.
Purple.
Tiny pieces of a life he'd never witnessed.
Five years.
Five years he'd missed.
His chest tightened painfully.
Marcus sat down across from him.
"She seems like a good kid."
Adrian couldn't speak.
He simply nodded.
Because emotion had lodged itself firmly in his throat.
There were dozens of photographs.
School events.
Birthday parties.
Family activities.
Selena appeared in many of them.
Always smiling at Aria.
Always protecting her.
Always there.
The sight stirred conflicting emotions.
Gratitude.
Regret.
Jealousy.
Because Selena had experienced every moment.
And Adrian had experienced none.
He picked up one particular photograph.
Aria sat on a swing.
Laughing.
Her head tilted back.
Gray eyes shining.
For a moment Adrian saw himself.
Then he saw Selena.
Then both.
And something inside him broke.
"God."
Marcus remained silent.
Giving him space.
Adrian stared at the photograph.
His daughter.
His flesh and blood.
His little girl.
The child he never knew existed.
The child who probably didn't know he existed either.
His vision blurred slightly.
The realization hurt more than any business loss.
More than any public scandal.
More than any betrayal.
Because this wasn't something he could get back.
He couldn't relive her first birthday.
Or her first word.
Or her first day of school.
Those moments were gone forever.
Stolen.
Whether intentionally or not.
Adrian lowered his head.
Then whispered the words he'd been afraid to say aloud.
"My daughter."
The office fell silent.
Neither man moved.
Neither spoke.
Then something caught Adrian's attention.
A flicker of movement outside the window.
His head lifted immediately.
The office overlooked the street below.
Normally he ignored the traffic.
Today he didn't.
Because a black sedan sat parked directly across from the building.
Engine running.
Windows tinted.
And someone inside was watching.
Watching him.
The moment Adrian focused on the vehicle, the car pulled away.
Fast.
Too fast.
Every instinct in his body came alive.
Danger.
Marcus stood.
"What is it?"
Adrian remained staring through the glass.
His pulse quickening.
Something wasn't right.
The car disappeared around the corner.
Gone.
But not before Adrian realized one thing.
The person inside hadn't been watching the building.
They had been watching him.
And suddenly the mystery surrounding the wedding felt much larger than he'd ever imagined.
- Writer
