The Billionaire’s Forgotten Night

Neriah’s POV “Give me my son.” The words hit me so hard that for a moment, I forgot how to breathe. I stood in the middle of the hotel lobby with Elias holding my hand, staring at the one man I had spent five years trying to forget. Xavian Devereaux. He looked exactly the way I remembered him, only somehow more intimidating. His black hair was neatly styled, his expensive suit fit him perfectly, and his face was colder than I remembered. But it was his eyes that made my stomach twist because the moment they met mine, I knew he recognized me. Five years had passed, but he remembered. Of all the places in the city, I had to run into him here. I looked down at Elias, hoping he would somehow understand that we needed to leave, but my son was too busy looking up at the stranger standing in front of us. “Mommy,” Elias whispered, “who is he?” I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Xavian’s eyes moved from my face to Elias, and I watched his expression slowly change. At first, he looked confused, then suspicious, and finally shocked. He took one step toward us. I immediately stepped back. “Don’t come any closer.” His jaw tightened. “You disappeared.” I swallowed. “I had to.” “You vanished without a word.” “I left a message.” His eyes narrowed. “What message?” I said nothing. I had spent five years wondering what would happen if we ever met again, but I had never imagined that it would happen with Elias standing between us. Xavian looked at my son again. “How old is he?” I tightened my grip around Elias’s hand. “Why?” “How old is he, Neriah?” The way he said my name made my heart race. “Four. ”He went completely still and I could almost see the calculation happening in his head. Four years old, one night, five years ago. His eyes moved back to Elias. Then he looked at me. “Is he mine?” My heart sank. Elias looked between us, clearly confused by the tension. I crouched beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Go stand with Auntie Amara for a minute, okay?” “But Mommy…” “Please.” Elias looked at me, then at Xavian, before slowly walking toward Amara, who had been standing a few feet away watching everything unfold. Xavian waited until Elias was gone before speaking again. “You have a son.” “Yes.” “And you expect me to believe you never thought I deserved to know?” I felt anger rising inside me. “You didn’t know because I didn’t tell you.” “Why?” “Because I was scared.” “Of me?” “Of your family.” His expression changed. “My family?” I nodded. “You have no idea what it was like when I found out I was pregnant.” “Then tell me.” “I tried.” His eyes narrowed. “What do you mean you tried?” “I tried to contact you. “When?” “After I found out.” “And?” “You never answered.” “I never received anything from you.” I stared at him. “You didn’t?” “No.” For the first time, something inside me shifted. I had always believed Xavian had ignored me. I had believed he had seen my messages and decided he wanted nothing to do with me. That was why I left. That was why I raised Elias alone. But the look on his face made me wonder if I had been wrong all these years. Before I could ask another question, Xavian’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen, answered it, and his expression immediately became serious. What happened?” He listened for a few seconds before looking directly at me. “Are you sure?” He ended the call. “What is it?” I asked. He slipped his phone into his pocket. “My security team just confirmed something.” My stomach tightened. “What?” He looked at Elias. Then back at me. “The custody papers were filed this morning.” My heart stopped. “What custody papers?” “Someone has filed for temporary custody of your son.” I felt like the floor had disappeared beneath my feet. “What?” Xavian stepped closer. “Did you know about this?” “No.” “Then you need to come with me. ”I shook my head. “I’m not going anywhere with you.” “Neriah, listen to me. Whoever filed those papers knows about Elias, and they know how to use the law against you.” “How do you know?” “Because I have people looking into it.” I stared at him. “You’ve been investigating me?” “I had to.” “You had no right.” “And you had no right to hide my son from me.” His words hit me hard, but before I could answer, Elias came running back. “Mommy!” I immediately pulled him into my arms. Xavian watched us quietly. For the first time, I saw something different in his eyes. It wasn’t anger or suspicion or even fear. He was afraid. Maybe not for me or himself but he was afraid for his son. And that scared me more than anything. Because if Xavian really was Elias’s father, then the life I had built for my son was about to change I looked at the man standing in front of me and suddenly remembered the last time I had seen him. Five years earlier, before Elias, before the fear. Before I learned that one night could change everything. Five Years Earlier, I should have walked away the moment I saw him. Instead, I smiled. And that was where my life went wrong. Five years earlier, I had no idea who Xavian Devereaux was. I was twenty years old, broke, tired, and standing inside a hotel I could barely afford because Amara had convinced me to attend a party with her. I didn’t belong there. Everyone around us looked rich, confident, and perfectly dressed. I kept wondering how quickly I could leave without embarrassing my friend. “You are doing it again,” Amara said. “Doing what?” “Looking for the exit.” “I want to go home.” “You always want to go home.” “Because home is peaceful.” She laughed and pushed a drink into my hand. “Just relax for once.” I was about to answer when someone bumped into me from behind. My drink almost fell. A hand reached out and caught the glass before it hit the floor. “Careful.” I looked up. And there he was. The first thing I noticed was his height. The second was his eyes. The third was the fact that he was staring at me like everyone else in the room had disappeared. “Thank you,” I said. He handed me the glass. “You’re welcome.” I nodded and turned away. Then I heard him laugh softly. “You’re not going to ask my name?” I looked back. “Should I?” He smiled. “No.” I raised an eyebrow. “Then why did you ask?” “Because I wanted you to.” I shook my head. “You’re strange.” “And you are honest.” “I don’t know you.” “Xavian.” I hesitated. “Neriah.” He repeated my name quietly, as if he wanted to remember it. “Neriah.” I didn’t know it then, but that was the first time Xavian Devereaux said my name. And it would not be the last. What I also didn’t know was that before the night was over, I would make the biggest mistake of my life. And five years later, I would be standing in front of the same man with his son holding my hand.