"I'll accept your proposal, but with one condition," Deanna told him as they walked through the park.Leonard got excited."Really?!""Yes... But I don't want to have a representative who chases after young girls...""Oh, Deanna! Don't do this to me...""It's the only thing I'm asking you, otherwise I'll go back to finish the semester and look for a job."The relationship between them wasn't yet one of father and daughter, but it had grown closer with the days and with Leonard's persistence. A few weeks ago, he was nothing more than a stranger who pursued her to corner her, and now he had become a support for her. Without Harry, without her
Ethan was doing his school homework when his computer began to emit a constant beeping sound. It was a video call. He couldn't identify where it was coming from, but he answered anyway. The screen showed him an image of Deanna."Deanna!""Hello Ethan, how are you?" Her smile was barely a grimace."Deanna! Where are you?""I'm so sorry about what happened... I'm sorry... They told me you wanted to see me.""Yes! Yes! Wait, I'll go get my siblings! Wait Deanna!""Of course..."Ethan ran out, but he didn't find his siblings in their rooms. He went downstairs and saw them in the living room wit
Leonard went to speak with Marcus that morning, needing a place where Deanna could practice her voice before the audition. The professor was furious with his friend."You're a traitor. You knew I wanted her here with me, and now you're going to hand her over to Sacha...""Don't be like that, Marcus. You know as well as I do that this is a one-in-a-thousand opportunity, and if this Sacha doesn't appreciate her, I'm sure she'll agree to stay with you.""You finally got your hands on her, you bastard.""It's not like that...""And you really put in the effort this time. I suppose you must be euphoric.""I'm telling you it's not like that..."
The Ambassador Theater was packed with people. The audition was closed, but it had attracted many aspiring performers from the area and neighboring cities. Deanna had arrived with Leonard, but when the moment came, they had to separate, and he went to sit in the upper rows, just like when he used to spy on her before knowing the truth.Sacha Feni, the producer, was seated right in the middle of the orchestra section, and Marcus came and went at his every request. The guy had a reputation for being fussy, but he already had several successful stars to his credit. When the auditions began, the Professor looked for his friend and sat down beside him."Well... What's she going to sing?" he asked."Un bel dì vedremo," Leonard answered."S
Sacha Feni wasn't just left open-mouthed; he was amazed. The call to Deanna didn't take too long—the next day he was already informing her that her audition had been a success and that he wanted to start working with her as soon as possible."I can't believe it..." She was so surprised."I told you! I told you! This is great, Deanna!" Leonard was euphoric."But...""But nothing! You did it!... I'll have to get in touch with the guy and see how we proceed... Get ready, baby, because the world awaits you from now on.""I have to call mom."Shouts of joy and tears rang out in the small restaurant. Her little girl had taken a giant step f
But the papers remained abandoned in a corner of his desk; he didn’t even look at them. Her signature was on them, and he didn’t want to see it. If he did, reality would hit him straight in the face: "She doesn’t love you anymore."Harry had become the black sheep of the family. Susan was livid with him and never missed a chance to throw what he had done in his face. Daniel outright pretended he didn’t exist, and Charles would sometimes watch him with suspicion. He kept going over it in his head. He had gone down to the security department to check if it was true, and it was. His ID badge had recorded it, and he had made a copy of the video.What bothered him the most was seeing her with Leonard. It was more than confirmed that Deanna had left Daniel for him. They were seen all over the city together, and now people were saying the guy had
What Daniel needed to finally accept that Deanna wasn’t coming back arrived in the form of a news article in the local paper.That Sunday, he had woken up and gone downstairs for breakfast like always. His kids were going to their grandparents' house to visit Emma and spend the day there, and for some reason, around 11, Beverly was already at his house. He didn’t care. He knew she was hovering around, trying to find a way into his life. She could do whatever she wanted—if she wanted to keep enduring his indifference, that was her choice.He locked himself in his office, trying to avoid her, but there she was again, with her laptop and a stack of documents. He didn’t even know why he didn’t just tell her to leave. He was too apathetic to care.He sat back in his chair, reading the newspaper, wh
"Let us see the full costume!" Naomi asked excitedly.Deanna stood up and took a few steps back. She was wearing an empire-waist dress, burgundy with gold details. Her hair was styled in an updo reminiscent of the era, adorned with a delicate headpiece that looked like a small tiara.Six months had passed since she had started working with Sacha Feni, and that night was her debut. She was in Rome, waiting for the curtain to rise. The Teatro dell’Opera had been chosen to present the new gem of the operatic world. The theater was packed; every seat had been sold. Leonard had spared no expense in promoting her, and with Feni’s name attached, expectations were high."You look beautiful, Deanna!""Thank you, Ethan… I’m so nervous!"
Deanna searched her mind, but she couldn't remember anyone named Amanda, not even from college. But from the way she asked about Harry and looked at Emma, she knew him.“Harry's fine... I saw him a few hours ago.”“Emma has grown so much,” she said, but something in her voice sounded wrong.“Excuse me... are you okay?”“To be honest, no... I sound like a stalker, don't I? I'm sorry... I couldn't resist the urge... I came to town to do some research and see my doctor, and I was passing by... I know I shouldn't have done it.”She was confused. The woman spoke to her naturally, even confidently. However, it was clear from her expression and tone of voice that she wasn't quite right. She looked at her belly as she caressed it with one hand.“I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused Daniel too. He's been so good and kind, he cared about me... About us. If it hadn't been for him, Harry would have
“I miss Emma…”“Me too, but she's spending time with her dad now… It's better that way, Deanna.”“Where do he leave her when he goes to work?“At the company daycare; she can interact with other children and is well looked after. He picks her up for lunch and goes to see her often.”“How do you know?“Because I do the same thing. I go to see her and sometimes Harry is already there. He looks better.”“Did you talk?”“No... not much, actually.”“I'm sorry.”“Why? It's not your fault, he's stubborn.”“Sometimes I feel like I broke your family.” Deanna was having one of those days.“You're being silly. We just fell in lov
But first, Charles had things to discuss with Daniel. The Crusher patriarch had long since retired from the business world, passing the baton to Daniel, but that didn't mean he was out of the company. He still hung around from time to time, ready to act, as he had done when some partners had abandoned them at Reed's instigation.Every so often, he received reports and endless accounting lists. He killed time that way, entertaining himself by reading numbers. But one of the balance sheets caught his attention: there was a bank account that did not belong to any official company expense, nor to suppliers or customers. It was in a woman's name, and every two weeks a significant sum was deposited into it, with the transfers signed by Daniel himself.Perhaps a little upset by his younger son's situation, perhaps remembering the mistakes of his older son, he became so concerned that he asked him to lunch to discuss “important matters.” And of course, Daniel rearr
Breaking the news to Daniel was going to be a challenge. She left the theater feeling confident, happy to the core for Leonard, excited like a little girl with a new toy.But the screams coming from their room could be heard by the children downstairs.“That old bastard! With my sister?!”“Don't get angry... They're in love...”“Susan is in love with him?! Please, Deanna!”“Hey! You're talking about my father!”“I don't want to argue with you about this... It's unacceptable.”“What? Unacceptable? They're two adults, Daniel. Susan doesn't need to ask you or anyone else for permission to live her life.”“We know what Reed is like! Do you think he'll change just like that? He'll be back to his old ways overnight!”“That's not true! He's been behaving himself for a long time! Give him a chance...””Leonard?! With my s
He wanted to forget everything, he didn't want to think about anything else, just be with his family, with Deanna. He spent those two weeks spending time with her, accompanying her to the theater, watching rehearsals, taking her out to dinner. They even escaped for a weekend out of town. “I need to spoil you,” he said to convince her to leave the kids with Susan.And so they went out that Friday night for dinner. He knew how to flatter her. They drove all night to the little cottage; they had breakfast under the trees in their bathrobes, listened to music, and relaxed in the evenings after giving in to their desires.It wasn't hard for Daniel to fall in love with his wife all over again every day, or for Deanna to melt at his thoughtful gestures and attention. Despite the routine of married life, the house, and the children, he planned to court her forever.The season premiere was approaching, and once again the theater began to take on a life of its own.“You don't understand, I don'
When Leonard finished reading the folder his assistant had given him that afternoon, he stretched out on the couch, closed his eyes, and sighed. The woman in question didn't have much to say, but she did have a direct connection to Crusher.Daniel was already back home. The scare was over.“I'm going to take a break from rehearsals and stay with you...”“No, of course not, I'm fine.”“And how do I know you won't go back to work like a madman?”“Don't you trust me?” he said, feigning indignation.“Let me think... No!”Alone, in the privacy of their bedroom, with the house silent, they were themselves again. Embraced on the bed, talking and feeling each other's warmth. That was when they could relax and leave all their worries behind.“It scared me so much, Daniel...”“I know, I'm sorry,” he apologized, squeezing her waist a little tighter.“Take a few days off.”“That's the idea, I'll let Harry take care of things for a few weeks.”“Really?”“I want to stay with you, here, with the kid
Deanna settled down next to him, watching him sleep. She thanked God a thousand times for still having him with her. She asked that please this not happen again, that please he not leave her alone.Leonard returned with a change of clothes for his daughter. She gave him what she was wearing and asked him to please go to sleep, that whatever happened she would call him. Daniel had not woken up, apparently he was going to sleep for all those hours he had stayed up working.“You always take care of us,“ Deanna said with gratitude in her voice.“I don't take care of him,” her father replied, with a gesture of annoyance.“Yes, you do.”He kissed her on the cheek and left. He was heading out the main entrance when he felt something hit his knee, Daniel's coat folded in one arm. He reached in and found Deanna's phone. “That's not going to help her call me,” he thought. But there was something else besides the phone, a piece of paper.Could it be his daughter's too? He opened it, it was folde
“Where did they take him?“ asked Deanna, as she jumped out of bed.“Hudson Hospital, wait for me,” replied Leonard.But Deanna didn't wait for him; she ran out in her slippers, grabbing the overcoat Daniel had left on a chair and the car keys. “Deanna! Baby!” Leonard shouted into the phone.Deanna couldn't hear him, the phone remained in one of her pockets, but Leonard could hear the car engine starting.“Shit!” exclaimed Reed, raising his arms. He went out to the street to get a taxi. He was closer to the hospital, he'd get there first. He'd better not die, bastard! Two more seconds and he could have let out all that pent-up desire he had to beat him up. And to top it all off, Deanna had left in a hurry, he hadn't had time to explain anything to her. “As if he deserved it, the bastard! He doesn't deserve anything from her!” he said out loud, the taxi driver only watched him in the mirror. Deanna was driving fast. What had happened? God! Please let him be okay! She ended up running
Once again, she had dinner alone with the kids. This streak of bad luck didn’t seem to want to end. She understood that his responsibilities could pull him away sometimes, but all these last-minute emergencies and late arrivals were starting to really wear on her.What was driving him crazy—or rather, who—was sitting right across from him.A small café, tucked away, discreet. Her green eyes were watery again, and her voice was trembling.“You can’t do this,” Daniel said quietly.“I don’t have a choice,” the woman replied.“But…”“I can’t live hiding forever. I know I shouldn’t have done it, I know I made a mistake, but I can’t take it anymore… Especially not now.”“Leaving won’t solve anything… Please…”She looked at him with sadness, but she’d made up her mind.“I’m going back to my parents, I’ll find another job; I know I can do this on my own.”“What happened? What changed?”“Everything changed… I’m leaving in a week.”“You’re rushing this. Let me fix it.”“You can’t fix it. Are yo