"I told you it would work. It's done."
"Now I'll have to endure his anger."
"Don't worry too much about that. I did this very carefully."
"What are you talking about?"
"You'll see soon enough. I opened the door for you; it's your move now. You've stayed in the shadows too long. Either seize the opportunity now or do what you want. For me, the game is over."
"You really are frightening."
Beverly maintained a serious posture and an indignant face as they went down in the elevator. She was confident this would regain Daniel's trust, clear her of blame, and now that Deanna had left him, she would finally have her chance. But she needed to remain cautious.When they arrived at the security chief's office, everyone was surprised—the owner rarely came down to this basement."Good morning, Mr. Colins.""Good morning, Mr. Crusher. What brings you here?""I need to ask you some questions about the restricted security cameras on the upper floor. Recently there was access to the recordings from those cameras, and I'd like to know what happened.""That's impossible; those recordi
He collapsed into a chair; his hand hurt. He had released all his frustration and pain over Deanna in that punch. His life was, once again, a disaster without her. He tilted his head back and cried again, silently.Every time her smile invaded his thoughts, his heart clenched. He could still go beg her to return; but he pictured her with Reed, getting out of his car, the man ready to come to blows with him to defend her, and his stomach turned.And Harry... all his speeches about starting over were for this. He would start a new life in another city with his daughter and wife, but before leaving, he would make sure to finish him. Was his resentment so great that he needed to separate them to be happy?God, he wanted to kiss her so badly! He had believed he would spend the rest of his life k
Days passed for Daniel as if in a trance, endless. At times, he had episodes of desperation and threw things against the wall, enraged because Deanna had left him; at other times, he broke down crying like a child for the same reason. He was going to lose his mind.He went back to half-living in his office at the company, finding it difficult to face the accusing looks from his children and Jonathan's sadness. The little boy seemed like a ghost around the house, wandering aimlessly or shutting himself in his room, no longer even using his music player. Daniel couldn't bear to see him, couldn't face them because he himself couldn't escape his state of anguish.What support could he give his children when he was such a mess himself? When his wife had died, Daniel spent almost three intermittent months between the office and home. Camila and S
"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
Deanna wasn't at all happy with what Harry was proposing. He had to be crazy to come up with such an idea."What you're saying makes zero sense. Did you hit your head before coming here?""I know, but we need your help. I don't know who else to ask."Harry's girlfriend, Laura, wasn't saying anything, but she was getting more nervous by the minute.Their situation wasn't good - they were still in school, they were young, madly in love, but they'd been careless. Laura had confirmed her pregnancy just three days ago."I get where you're coming from, Harry, but no one's going to buy it. Your family doesn't even know me.""But I talked to my brother and he agreed. Please Deanna, help us."Laura finally spoke up, her eyes full of tears."We wouldn't ask this if it wasn't so important to us. Our families are really strict about this stuff. They won't let Harry marry me if his older brother is still single. And my family won't let me keep the baby unless I'm married."Seeing Laura so distress
Daniel Crusher had been a widower for 5 years. His wife had died from a heart condition shortly after giving birth to their youngest son. She left him alone with 3 kids and a deep sadness in a house that suddenly felt too big.He had no intentions of remarrying, even though he was one of the most eligible bachelors and was known to have had a few brief relationships. He could raise his children alone, or at least that's what he thought.And then his younger brother comes along, backs him into a corner with a completely unthinkable proposal. When he found out why, he exploded in fury."How can you be so irresponsible?!"But Daniel couldn't leave his brother and Laura to their fate. Much less abandon the little one on the way. Behind the ice shield he'd built around himself, there was still a warm-hearted man."Who is she?" he had asked.And again, he hit the roof when Harry told him about Deanna."But if she goes to university with you, that means... she's your age?""Yes, she's 25 lik
Daniel was the first to arrive at the apartment. He'd been there a few times over the years, but this time Laura's presence was noticeable in little things throughout the house. It was clear they'd been sharing the place for a while. For some reason, he felt nervous; this situation was very similar to when his mother set him up with her friends' daughters, except this time he came willingly. Maybe because this was the first time he was the one waiting for approval. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang - it was Deanna. The moment he saw her cross the threshold, he knew this would be harder than he'd thought. She entered with a huge smile and within seconds filled the place with her energy, as if radiating some kind of warm light. She wore her hair down, the abundant caramel-colored mane covering her shoulders. Daniel's first reaction was to stand up immediately, as if pushed by an invisible force. Upon seeing him, Deanna didn't hesitate to approach and stand before the tall, dark-h
"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
Days passed for Daniel as if in a trance, endless. At times, he had episodes of desperation and threw things against the wall, enraged because Deanna had left him; at other times, he broke down crying like a child for the same reason. He was going to lose his mind.He went back to half-living in his office at the company, finding it difficult to face the accusing looks from his children and Jonathan's sadness. The little boy seemed like a ghost around the house, wandering aimlessly or shutting himself in his room, no longer even using his music player. Daniel couldn't bear to see him, couldn't face them because he himself couldn't escape his state of anguish.What support could he give his children when he was such a mess himself? When his wife had died, Daniel spent almost three intermittent months between the office and home. Camila and S
He collapsed into a chair; his hand hurt. He had released all his frustration and pain over Deanna in that punch. His life was, once again, a disaster without her. He tilted his head back and cried again, silently.Every time her smile invaded his thoughts, his heart clenched. He could still go beg her to return; but he pictured her with Reed, getting out of his car, the man ready to come to blows with him to defend her, and his stomach turned.And Harry... all his speeches about starting over were for this. He would start a new life in another city with his daughter and wife, but before leaving, he would make sure to finish him. Was his resentment so great that he needed to separate them to be happy?God, he wanted to kiss her so badly! He had believed he would spend the rest of his life k
Beverly maintained a serious posture and an indignant face as they went down in the elevator. She was confident this would regain Daniel's trust, clear her of blame, and now that Deanna had left him, she would finally have her chance. But she needed to remain cautious.When they arrived at the security chief's office, everyone was surprised—the owner rarely came down to this basement."Good morning, Mr. Colins.""Good morning, Mr. Crusher. What brings you here?""I need to ask you some questions about the restricted security cameras on the upper floor. Recently there was access to the recordings from those cameras, and I'd like to know what happened.""That's impossible; those recordi
"I told you it would work. It's done.""Now I'll have to endure his anger.""Don't worry too much about that. I did this very carefully.""What are you talking about?""You'll see soon enough. I opened the door for you; it's your move now. You've stayed in the shadows too long. Either seize the opportunity now or do what you want. For me, the game is over.""You really are frightening."
Daniel woke up in his office, still with the door closed when the children left for school. Fortunately, Susan had refused to leave that night. She stayed with the children in Ethan's room, not coming out, but the shouting was heard anyway. She had to comfort Naomi and Jonathan who had been frightened by their father's harsh voice.She knew him, knew her brother very well. All that wall of cement and ice that made up his armor was nothing more than a defense for him; inside he would be breaking into pieces. Before leaving for school, she tried once more to knock on his door, but got no response.He would stay there until he had no choice but to face reality again. Silence was falling over the house once more, but this time it would feel heavier and more oppressive. The pieces of the phone and the ring had been left on the floor in the livin
"What happened?" Camila asked Harry."Your son is an idiot. He lost the only good thing he could have by sleeping with Beverly.""What? That can't be...""What can't be, mom? I told you not to mess it up!" he shouted at his brother.She entered the bedroom, her bedroom, the one she had shared with him for so long; she leaned against the door and tried to fight the anguish that was making it difficult to breathe. She inhaled and exhaled through her mouth several times, large amounts of air each time; she was about to break down.She grabbed a bag from the coat rack and hurriedly, without looking at what she was taking, began to fill it. She didn't even need any of that stuff; she just wanted
Daniel was growing anxious. She had gone to visit her mother that afternoon but still hadn't returned and wasn't answering his messages. Everyone had arrived quite a while ago; his plan was to try to repair relationships now that the truth was out in the open.Harry cradled Emma while feeling the same unease. Was she avoiding him? Maybe she was deliberately running late so she wouldn't have to show up because he was there. But that wasn't like Deanna—she never hid from confrontation.Someone mentioned a car pulling up. Daniel glanced out the window and saw a vehicle parked at the entrance, but nobody was getting out."Want me to wait?" Leonard asked."I thought you were worried about him seeing you?"