Celina’s afternoon had been flowing in quiet calm inside her mansion. Sunlight streamed through the wide windows of the main living room, where she sat on the enormous light-linen sofa, her legs stretched out over the cushions, a laptop resting on her thighs. The soft rhythm of the keyboard filled the otherwise silent space. With the twins’ birth approaching, Celina tried to get as much of her new book done as possible. She was immersed in an emotional scene when the doorbell rang.The housekeeper hurried across the entrance hall and opened the imposing solid-oak door. When she saw who it was, she swallowed hard.“Mrs. Celina… Mrs. Emma is here,” she announced hesitantly.Celina stopped typing. Her fingers froze midair. She took a deep breath before lifting her eyes from the laptop. Her expression hardened.“What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice firm, her gaze cold.Emma stepped forward, hesitant, but with wounded dignity in her eyes.“We need to talk, Celina. I can’t take th

“I hate myself for everything. For every lie. Every omission. For not giving you a choice. But unfortunately, I can’t go back in time and change it all. You will find a good man, Zoe—someone who will love you, respect you, and make you happy.”“Hating yourself now won’t change anything, Arthur. You should have thought about that when you slept with her. When you thought you could control everything. I’m no longer that woman full of dreams who believed in love. That fun, hopeful woman you once knew. She’s dead. You killed her.”She turned her back for a moment, breathless, trying to pull herself together. Then she noticed the envelope on the side table, marked DNA. Her eyes were drawn to it like a magnet. With trembling hands, she picked it up and opened it.Tests. Ultrasound. Sabrina’s name at the top.Her body went cold.She slowly turned toward Arthur, eyes wide, her breath trapped in her chest.“So it’s true, then?” Her voice came out like a torn whisper. “You really are going to h

After another long day at work, Ava headed to Gabriel’s apartment, since she was spending the night there as they had agreed days earlier. She stopped by a nearby bakery to buy a dessert he liked and then went straight to his building, using her own key to let herself in.The moment she pushed the apartment door open, Ava heard a woman’s laughter coming from the living room. Instinctively, she froze.From where she stood, she could see clearly: a young woman, smiling brightly, was hugging Gabriel with enthusiasm. She looked spontaneous, radiant, as if celebrating a personal victory. Gabriel stood there, surprised and smiling at her reaction. The girl—Brazilian like him—had befriended Gabriel at work and, since then, had been taking weekly singing lessons with him after hours. Ava knew about that—he had always been transparent—but she had never witnessed any of those lessons, nor had she ever met the girl.The young woman, euphoric, exclaimed,“I managed to sing without missing a singl

After the shower, she wrapped herself in a towel, holding the lingerie pieces with a critical stare.“This is ridiculous. This is… pure theater.”Still, phone in hand, she took a photo of the two lingerie sets laid out on the bed. The lighting turned out perfect—she had to admit that. She sent it to Gabriel with the caption:“Choose one.”The moment she hit send, she let out a muffled scream, tossed the phone onto the bed, and covered her face.“What did I just do?! I sent it! I actually sent it?!”She paced back and forth. “He’s going to laugh. Or worse—he’ll think I’ve been kidnapped and someone else took over my phone!”Meanwhile, in Gabriel’s apartment, he had just stepped out of the shower and unlocked his phone. When he saw the message, his eyes widened.He froze, staring at the screen as if it were some impossible hologram.“Ava?” he whispered, stunned. “Is this a trap? A test?”He reread the caption. The photo. The caption again.Then he smiled. A wide, surprised, utterly char

Gabriel turned off the shower and wrapped Ava in a soft towel. She kept her eyes on his. He pulled her closer, drying every part of her body with care and tenderness, unhurried, as if he were touching a treasure.“Come here, love…” he said softly, lifting her into his arms as if she weighed nothing.He carried her to the bedroom and laid Ava on the bed with all the care in the world. Then he lay beside her, drawing her up against his bare chest. Her head rested exactly where his heart beat—strong, steady… for her.He ran his fingers through her still-damp hair in a slow, silent caress.“Do you still doubt everything I told you?” he murmured, a faint smile at the corner of his mouth.Ava sighed, eyes closed, letting herself relax there. For the first time, she felt peace.“I don’t doubt it… I’m just afraid. Because I wouldn’t know how to survive if you ever hurt me, Gabriel.”He held her chin, lifting her face so she would look at him.“I will never hurt you, Ava. Never. You can write