Chapter 21EVA POINT OF VIEW I couldn't remember the last time Max really talked to me. Like, actually talked not just those cold little orders he'd throw my way. These days, he mostly pretended I wasn't even there. Every morning, I'd wake up hoping today would be different, that maybe he'd finally
Chapter 22EVA POINT OF VIEW I was trying to get my head straight when Max's grandfather started walking toward me. He looked important walking through the crowd he always did. But unlike everyone else at this party who had a judgemental look, when he looked at me, his eyes were actually nice and w
Chapter 23EVA'S POINT OF VIEW Sara's laugh made me weak, it cut through my heart like a dagger, She walked around me like a shark, her mean-girl friends right behind her, all of them looking at me like I was their next meal."Just look at her," Sara said with that mean smile of hers. "Mrs. Maximil
Sara tried to talk but nothing came out. Her friends looked like they wanted to disappear. Nobody had ever seen Max's grandfather this mad before."You've brought shame on this family tonight," he said, getting closer to Sara. "You're like a snake, feeding off being mean to others. Look at yourself,
Chapter 24EVA'S POINT OF VIEW The ballroom sparkled like something from a fairy tale, but I felt anything but magical. My heart felt heavy, like someone had filled it with rocks. Max's grandfather held my arm as we walked through the crowd, and honestly, his grip was the only thing keeping me from
*Click. Click. Click.*My heels hit the marble floor like angry little hammers as I ran. Each step echoed in my head: I. Hate. Her. I. Hate. Her.Eva. Sweet, perfect, innocent Eva. Just thinking her name made bile rise in my throat.You know what makes me the angriest? She doesn't even deserve any o
The thought made my heart beat faster. She was right. These past few weeks, Max had barely touched Eva. Barely looked at her. When she talked, his eyes would glaze over like he was a million miles away."And who's been there for him?" Mom's voice dripped honey and poison. "Who's been his shoulder to
Chapter 25EMILY (SARA'S MOTHER) POINT OF VIEW I just left Sara's room, and my heart feels like it's breaking into a million pieces. These big fancy mansion walls they're so cold and empty, just like Williams' heart. I can still hear my baby girl crying in there. Each sob feels like someone's stabb
Max’s Point of View It was the first time in weeks that we had something close to peace. Eva actually smiled, really smiled, as the kids worked on their fort, a chaotic masterpiece of pillows, sheets, and blankets piled high in the living room. It was the kind of moment I had been desperate for, t
Chapter 254 Sara’s Point of View I spread the financial documents across my desk, my gut twisting with unease. Something wasn’t right. Something about Martha Taylor’s spending habits gnawed at me, like an itch just beneath the surface of my skin. "Look at this," I said, pushing the credit card st
*** *** *** ***** I woke at dawn, Josh's words from last night echoing in my head. Time to prove to my family they came first. Starting with breakfast, real breakfast, like we used to have before everything fell apart. The kitchen was quiet as I pulled out ingredients. Pancake batter mixed with ch
Max point of view The bar was quiet at midnight, just me, Josh, and a bottle of scotch between us. The same drink that had started this whole mess five years ago. "Eva's right," I said, staring into my glass. "I'm destroying everything. My kids asked about divorce today, Josh. Divorce. They're fi
"Daddy?" Mia's voice trembled. "Are you leaving us?" And in that moment, looking between my wife's tears and my children's fear, I realized exactly what my one night's mistake had cost. Because sometimes the hardest wounds come from the ones we love most. And sometimes there are no right choices,
Max point of view I found Eva in our bedroom, packing my remaining clothes into a suitcase with violent movements. "Martha told me what you said," I started, anger boiling beneath my calm. "Threatening her, calling Nathan illegitimate, acting like some queen on her throne." "Oh, did your mistres
Eva's Point of View The walls of my office at Brown Tower were made of glass and steel, but right now, they felt as unyielding as iron. Outside, the city stretched endlessly beneath me, a kingdom that belonged to my children. A kingdom I would protect with everything I had. The soft knock on the d
**** ***** I sat alone in my darkened office at midnight, a glass of scotch untouched before me. The same drink that had created this mess five years ago. Eva's words echoed in my head, mixing with memories of Nathan's hopeful face. "A bastard son," Eva had called him. The words made me sick. On
Max point of view I found Eva in our home office, papers spread across her desk. The look she gave me was colder than I'd ever seen. "The lawyers sent everything," she said, her voice arctic. "Their demands. The trust fund. The visitation schedules." "Eva..." "Fifty thousand dollars a month." S