CHAPTER 11: I WANT HER TO BE MY MOMMY!

CHAPTER 11: I WANT HER TO BE MY MOMMY!

Sebastián slowly opened the door and found his son with his back turned, peacefully asleep. He entered the room carefully, avoiding any noise that might wake him. As he watched Nicholas sleep, a wave of emotions washed over him. He felt guilty for being so hard on him, knowing that Nicholas longed for a mother figure in his life. However, the fear of both of them getting hurt if he allowed someone else into their lives paralyzed him.

He gently sat down next to the bed and reached out to stroke his hair.

"I love you, son. You're the most important thing in my life," he whispered.

He leaned in to kiss his forehead, and at that moment, Nicholas opened his eyes, surprising Sebastián.

"Dad?" the boy murmured, his eyes still clouded with sleep.

"Hey, champ," Sebastián responded. "Sorry for waking you."

"Are you mad at me?" Nicholas's question was innocent and filled with worry.

"No, son, no... I wouldn't stay mad at you for too long."

Sebastián forced a smile, trying to ease his son's fears.

"And with Isabella?" Sebastián was caught off guard by the mention of her. "Are you mad at her, Dad? Don't do anything to her, it wasn't her fault. She just helped me."

The sincerity in Nicholas's voice was palpable, and Sebastián found himself struggling to find the right words. Even though his son was defending that woman, Sebastián couldn't forget that she had taken him, even if only briefly. However, he acknowledged that she had been benevolent and hoped never to see her again.

"Don't worry, son. She'll be fine, nothing will happen to her," he assured.

Nicholas smiled, relieved, but then, with the curiosity typical of his age, asked a question that hit Sebastián like a punch.

"Dad, why don't you ever talk about my mom?"

Sebastián's heart stopped. Since Nicholas had come into his life, he had deliberately avoided the topic of his mother, secretly hoping his son would never be interested in the woman who had given him life but had been cruelly indifferent towards him.

Sebastián was absorbed in his work when a knock on the door startled him.

"Come in," he said, not looking up.

"Sir, this person wants to see you urgently," the mansion's housekeeper informed.

A serious-looking man entered, introducing himself as a lawyer.

"Mr. Ashford, I'm Roberto Márquez, and I represent a woman who has filed a paternity suit against you."

Sebastián was speechless with surprise.

"Excuse me?"

The lawyer ignored his incredulity and continued.

"My client is willing to negotiate custody of the child for 10 million dollars."

Sebastián froze, his pen suspended in the air.

"What are you talking about? That's ridiculous," he finally responded, his voice filled with incredulity and anger. "I don't have any children. And I highly doubt I have one and don't know about it."

But the lawyer remained unfazed.

"My client asserts that the child is yours. She has evidence."

Sebastián's head was spinning.

"That's impossible, I...," he said, though the memory of a night of excess nine months ago began to surface in his mind.

"I want to see that woman! Who is she?" he demanded, rising from his chair.

"My client prefers not to have contact with you or the child," the lawyer replied.

Sebastián felt a mix of anger and confusion.

"So she just wants money? Is that all she cares about?"

The lawyer shrugged, a response that only fueled Sebastián's frustration.

"Fine, then she better be telling the truth, because otherwise, she'll regret trying to deceive me."

The lawyer nodded.

"I understand. I'll be in touch."

After the lawyer's visit, Sebastián, driven by a mix of doubt and responsibility, demanded a DNA test. In his mind, he was already planning to sue whoever was responsible for this situation, even having evidence. The anonymous email sent before the lawyer's visit. However, to his surprise, the test confirmed that the child was his.

And when he saw him, something changed inside Sebastián; he felt an immediate love for his son and vowed to himself that he would take care of him and never let Nicholas know the kind of mother he had.

Coming out of his memories, Sebastián looked at Nicholas and, with a heavy heart, opted for a kind lie.

"Nicholas, I don't talk about your mother because she... she's in heaven."

"In heaven?" The innocence in Nicholas's voice was palpable.

"Yes, your mommy is with God."

"Does that mean she's dead?"

Nicholas's question was direct, and Sebastián felt his stomach twist at having to lie to him.

"Yes, my love, mom is in heaven because she's dead." He saw how his son's eyes filled with sadness, knowing that deep down, Nicholas had harbored the hope that his mother would come back for him someday.

Then, with the typical curiosity of a child, Nicholas changed the subject.

"Dad, can Isabella be my mom?"

Sebastián almost choked, surprised by the question.

"What? Your mom?"

"Yeah, I like her, and I think you do too."

Sebastián's eyes widened.

"Where do you get these ideas? No, I don't like her at all. She's... she's... arrogant, careless, and very loud-mouthed. Definitely not my type."

"But... I want a mom," Nicholas said, pouting. "I want her to be my mommy."

His father's words in the study echoed in Sebastián's mind, and for a moment, he imagined Isabella in a wedding dress. It was then that the sound of his phone snapped him out of his thoughts.

"What's up, Louis?"

"Sir, I have the information you requested. I have the full file on the woman from the hotel, or well, the same one who took young Nicholas."

"Good, send it to my email," he ordered, hanging up and standing up, leaning down to kiss his son on the forehead. "Rest, son, we'll have breakfast together tomorrow."

He left the room, and an email appeared in his inbox. He quickly opened it.

"Let's see who you really are, little temptress," he murmured as he began to read.