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𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚'𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°°Nevena blinked slowly, unable to scrape up an excuse.He took sagely steps toward her, eyes fpinned on the camera.“Let me take a look.”Nevena instinctively pulled it behind her, the only defense she could thought of.But Antonio curved an arm around her and snatched the camera with effortless precision.He said nothing, just lifting it to examine—But his phone buzzed.Without wasting a beat, he answered.When he was done, he handed the camera back to her without even glancing at it.They had their meal, and by evening, they were already heading back.Junior drifted off the moment the sea wind touched him.By the time they reached the city, he was snoring softly, completely gone.Antonio parked the boat and carried the boy to the car with practiced ease.Once inside the quiet bubble of his vehicle, he turned to Nevena.“Let me have your phone.”She handed it over without a single question.After only a few seconds, his phone rang —this time, he total
𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°° “You need to keep watch on the kind of movies he watches,” Antonio throated to Nevena before carefully setting her upright.But his hand didn’t leave her waist immediately — not until she found her balance.She cleared her throat and adjusted her position. “Th-thank you.”His jaw flexed as if he wanted to say something, but instead he looked away.With no reply from him, she turned to Junior. “This isn’t some castle story. He’s only helping me from tripping.”The ship creaked again, shifting beneath them with a deeper roll and a sailing announcement.Antonio instantly moved to hold her while Junior squealed in excitement.“This is so cool!”“Cool?” Nevena cried, clinging to the railing with both hands. “This thing is trying to kill me.”Antonio chuckled behind her. “You’ll be fine,” he murmured, placing his hand lightly at the small of her back. “I’m right here.”Junior, completely oblivious, threw his arms open.“We are sailing!” he screamed.“Of cour
𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°° Antonio’s gaze flicked away, cold and distant. “You don’t owe me any gratitude.” “Really?” She stepped toward him. “Arizona. My kidnap. The fire. And now— Court?” Antonio exhaled slowly, tilting his head to look at her. “Nevena. Do one thing the—” Her hands clamping around his waist cut him mid-sentence, her cheek pressed into his chest. “Thank you for everything,” Nevena whispered, oblivious to the tornado she was causing in him. “It’s very comforting to know that someone is always there for me.” Antonio went mute, every hair on him standing tall. “Tourist!” he finally called, but in a tone he didn’t will. She tilted her head against his chest to look up, but he turned his face away sharply. “Don’t do this next time,” he muttered, voice raw. “You’re only complicating things the more.” The physical contact disappeared as quickly as it had happened. Trapped somewhere between disappointment and humiliation, she stood staring at a spot on the
𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°° Nevena’s heart tightened… but in a way that made her throat warm.“Hey,” she murmured softly. “I’m here for you. That’s what matters, okay?”Junior nodded against her.A wave crashed far below, spraying mist upward. Nevena’s gaze drifted over the ocean, its endless stretch both terrifying and strangely calming now.“Come on,” Antonio cleared his throat, seemingly uncomfortable. “Next up… Science.”They all leaned their heads over the next assignment in unison.With the wind, the waves, and the endless sky above them, they continued their quiet battle against homework like a family.“Done and dusted,” Antonio exhaled, as Junior finished the art assignment.“Bestie?” Junior called, reaching to erase a pencil mistake in his drawing.Nevena rolled her eyes fondly. “Yes.”“It’s breakfast time. Did you perhaps pack enough food to reach, Buddy?”“Yeah…” Nevena whispered a little silently, not trusting the contents she had packed.Antonio exhaled slowly, almos
𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°°Nevena stared at his tiny outstretched hand.It was ridiculous; she was the adult here. But her palm still slid into his, fingers trembling.“See?” Junior grinned. “Easy-peasy.”“Just focus on the stairs,” she muttered, clinging to the rail with her other hand.Step by step, they climbed.The higher they went, the more the sea revealed itself — wide, roaring, endless. The crashing waves echoed through the tower like a heartbeat.When they finally reached the final flight, sunlight spilled through the top hatch, bright and golden.Nevena’s legs shook so badly she had to stop and press her forehead against the cool stone.Junior tilted his head. “Bestie… you’re really scared of heights?” Nevena peeled her face off the wall, her dignity dying slowly.“I’m not scared. I just don’t appreciate being reminded there’s nothing but ocean under my feet.”Junior blinked. “We’re on land.”“Emotionally, I am in the ocean.”Junior snorted and pushed open the hatch do
𝐌𝐚𝐟𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐍𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬°°° “Sorry, ma’am. Mr. Hunt is still in a meeting,” the secretary apologized.Nevena’s fingers tightened around the strap of her small purse.“Okay,” she murmured, stepping back to sit again.“Ma’am… I’d advise otherwise,” the woman added carefully.Nevena looked up. “Are you sending me away?”A faint crinkle formed around her eyes.“No—just that this meeting will last another for at least two hours,” the secretary explained.“By then, office hours will be over.”Nevena’s shoulders sagged. What the secretary said was not less than the truth. “Can I get a reschedule?" She managed after some wrenching seconds.“Yes, of course.”The woman tapped a few times on her tablet. “Tomorrow at 9:00am —lucky enough, you happened to be the first on his schedule”Nevena nodded and turned toward the glass elevator that carried her up that afternoon—eyes tired, steps slow.One reschedule turned into two, then into a week-long rescheduling, and somehow, she became a famili







