He stood and walked over to Celina, kneeling down in front of her.

“But I disappointed him again when I chose Karina and married her. The plan had been for me to marry Isabela. Everything was already arranged. But I was stubborn. I followed my heart. Raul was disappointed. We drifted apart again. But Karina… she won him over. And when he found out he’d be a grandfather for the first time, he was overjoyed.”

Celina lowered her gaze, and Thor took her hands in his.

“As you already know, life took everything from me. My wife. My child. My peace. But my father… my father left me a lesson I’ll never forget. He used to say that when a man is interested in a woman who already has a child, he has to accept the child first—and if possible, be better than the biological father.”

Thor brushed his thumb gently across her hands.

“That’s what a real man does, Celina. And that’s what I tried to do. Because my father—the man who taught me what real love is—showed me that with every gesture. He never