PROLOGUE Sophia's POV My hands would not stop shaking. I looked down at the pregnancy test again and smiled, it was positive which means I was pregnant. After staring at it for almost five minutes, I grabbed my bag and rushed out of the hospital, I could not wait to tell Ethan. The whole drive to his company, I kept imagining his reaction, he  had been talking about our future for months. About our wedding, about the house we would buy, about the children we would have one day and now that day was finally here. I stepped out of the elevator and headed straight for his office, I was about to enter when I heard his voice... Then I heard his voice"Lena is pregnant." My feet stopped and my  smile disappeared. I frowned. Lena? Who was Lena? Then he continued, "I'll take care of her." The words made my feet started shaking, I just stood there. Certain that I had heard wrong.Then Ethan continued. "I'll do everything I can to make sure she and her child don't lack anything." The pregnancy test slipped from my fingers, It dropped  on the floor, I stared at it. The door was slightly open an I could hear his voice clearly now "No matter what happens, I'll always be there for them." This was where I couldn't hold it anymore, this was Ethan, the  man I had loved for five years, the  man I was supposed to marry, the  man I had come here to surprise. My hand slowly moved to my stomach. I could not do this, I  could not walk in there and pretend everything was fine. I did not want to share the man I loved with another woman, I did not want my child growing up in the middle of this mess, another tear slipped down my face as I took a step back from the door. Then another.   CHAPTER ONE Sophia's POV Five years later... The moment we stepped out of the airport, my daughter wrinkled her nose and looked around. "This country is so hot," she complained, fanning herself with both hands. I laughed despite feeling nervous. "We've only been here for two minutes." "That's enough for me," she said with a dramatic sigh. Beside her, her twin brother dragged his small suitcase behind him while looking around curiously. Neither of them knew how much this place meant to me, none of them knew that I had once planned to build my whole future here. "Mum." I looked down at my son."Yes?" He slipped his hand into mine and looked up at me with hopeful eyes."Do you think we'll find Dad here?" The smile on my face faded immediately. My daughter groaned."Not this again." "What?" he asked. "You ask about Dad all the time." "Because I want to meet him." His answer was so simple that it hurt. For five years, I had avoided that question, I never knew what answer to give. How was I supposed to tell him that his father was here? How was I supposed to tell him that I left before his father even knew he existed? I forced a smile. "We didn't come here to find anyone. Remember, Mum came here for work." My son's shoulders dropped."Oh." The disappointment in his voice made me feel guilt. Before  he could ask anything else, I pointed toward the daycare center. I had already arranged a nearby daycare before coming. My daughter crossed her arms the moment she realized I wasn't taking them with me. "Do we really have to stay here?" "Only for a little while," I said, crouching in front of them. "Once I'm done with my interview, I'll come back for both of you." My son nodded obediently, but my daughter still looked unconvinced. I kissed their foreheads and forced a smile."Wish me luck." "Good luck, Mum," my son said immediately. My daughter sighed dramatically."Fine. Good luck." Laughing softly, I stood and headed toward the company. This job mattered, more  than anything now. *** The interview was in less than an hour, and I desperately needed this job. After leaving the country, I spent years moving from one place to another, taking whatever work I could find while raising my twins alone. The company I worked for overseas shut down three months ago, and since then finding a stable job had not been easy. That was why I found myself standing in front of Willy Company as I held my resume tightly in my hand. I couldn't afford to fail this interview. Not when my children were waiting for me to return with an answer that would decide our next months. I took a deep breath and walked inside. ... "Sofia Alan." My name came from the front, I stood up slowly, holding my file tighter than I needed to. My legs felt heavy as I walked toward the door, I was just hoping it goes well, and I get the job. I pushed the door open and stepped in but  everything stopped.  Who am I seeing? No! My eyes must be seeing wrong. That posture...that presence... It couldn't be! Ethan?   Ethan?Sitting at the head of the table like he had always belonged there, my  fingers tightened around the file until it hurt, No! It could not be him. My heart started beating too fast.Why was he here? This was Willy Company, I had checked everything before I applied? His name was never part of it. So why was he sitting there like he owned the whole place? My  eyes dropped to the table as I tried to steady myself.  He probably  would not recognize me,  five years was enough time for him to forget. People changed, I had changed too, my hair, I changed the colo, my  face? Of course I have given birth literally everything . But... "Sofia Alan." His voice cut through my thoughts. I lifted my head again, his  eyes were already on me. Then he leaned back slightly and looked at the people sitting beside him.n"You may all leave." No one moved at first, most  of them looked confused. "Sir?" "I said leave." This time his voice was sharper. Slowly, chairs shifted, papers were gathered, footsteps filled the room one by one, until the door was  closed. And I was left standing there alone with  Ethan.

CHAPTER TWO Sophia's POV Before I could even take a step back, he was already in front of me. His hand landed against the wall beside my head, not touching me, but he was  close enough to trap me completely, leaving only a narrow space between us that made it hard to breathe properly. My heart jumped immediately, as though it had been waiting for this moment to betray me. Five years and yet the first thing I was met with was this. "You," his voice came low, sharp, carrying something between anger and disbelief. "You think you can walk in here after five years and stand in front of me like nothing happened?" I swallowed hard, forcing air into lungs that suddenly felt too tight. "I searched everywhere for you," he continued, his eyes locked on mine without blinking. "Every place I could think of. And then you just appear here, standing in front of me like I was the one who disappeared, like I was the one who left without an explanation." I tried to move away again, but there was no space left for me to  escape. My palm pressed lightly against his chest, more out of instinct than strength, trying to create even a small distance between us. "And what exactly do you want from me?" I asked, though my voice betrayed me slightly. He tightened his .., and for a moment it looked like he was holding back more than just anger. "What do I want?" he repeated coldly. "Do you hear yourself right now? You vanished for five years, and now you are standing here asking me what I want." My chest started  rising and fell faster, fear and anger twisting together in a way I could not even separate anymore. "Of course," I said quietly, forcing myself to meet his eyes properly. "Of course I am the one you choose to blame. That is always easier, isn't it?" His expression got  shifted, something in his face faltering for a brief second as if my words had struck somewhere unexpected. "You think this is about blame?" he asked, voice lower now, more controlled but sharper in a different way. "You disappear without a word, and I am supposed to feel nothing?" I laughed once, but there was no sound of amusement in it. "You are acting like I had a choice," I said, my voice breaking slightly despite my effort to keep it steady. That sentence seemed to catch him off guard. For the first time, he  narrowed his eyes  slightly, as if he was trying to read something deeper in my face, something he could not immediately understand. Before he could respond, the door behind him opened suddenly. A small voice cut through our conversation. "Daddy!" We had to stop our conversation and before I knew it my entire body went cold. Ethan turned sharply, his expression shifting instantly from anger to shock. A little boy ran into the office without hesitation, as if he had done it many times before. He stopped only when he reached Ethan and wrapped his arms tightly around his leg. "I was looking for you," the child said brightly, looking up at him with complete trust. Ethan froze, then slowly, he bent down, his hands hovering for a second before resting lightly on the child's shoulders. "Willy," he said under his breath, almost as if he was testing the name. "What are you doing here?" The name hit me before I even understood why. Willy? The  company name?  Willy Company?  My breath caught sharply as my eyes moved between them. The child looked completely at ease, like he belonged there more than anyone else in the room. And Ethan... Ethan was looking at him differently now, not with confusion anymore but  with something deeper, something  protective, something  that made my chest tighten painfully. No... The thought formed before I could stop it, it  could not be, I took a slow step back, my hand slipping away from the wall as my strength finally gave out. "No..." I whispered, though I did not even realize I had spoken. Ethan looked up at me again, still holding the child gently, as if afraid he might disappear if he let go but  I could not stay there anymore, nor  with what I had just seen. Not with what I was starting to understand, I don't need to explain to him, I don't need to tell him anything, I don't need to. I turned abruptly and walked out of the office, my steps unsteady, my heart pounding so loudly it drowned everything else out. And I did not look back.

CHAPTER THREE Sophia's POV By the time I returned to the hotel, I felt exhausted. Not jus physically but emotionally . Everything that happened at the company kept replaying inside my head. Seeing Ethan again, hearing  his voice, the  anger in his eyes and importantly, the  little boy who called him Daddy, that gives me reason he can't know about the twins yet  I pushed the thoughts away as I opened the hotel room door where my children are. The twins were sitting on the bed watching cartoons. The moment they saw me, they jumped up. "Mum!" My daughter was the first to notice something was wrong. She narrowed her eyes."What happened?" "Nothing happened," I replied immediately. She folded her arms."That face says something happened." I forced a smile."It is nothing." My son walked closer and held my hand. "Mum, did you get the job?" I shook my head. "The interview didn't happen." Both children looked confused. "What do you mean it didn't happen?" my daughter asked. I sat down on the bed and sighed."A lot happened, but the interview didn't happen" My son looked disappointed. "So we have to look for another one?" "Yes," I said softly. "I'll search somewhere else tomorrow." They dint say anything, I knew they were so disappointed and I hated seeing that look on their faces. They didn't  complained, they  never asked for expensive things but  they knew money was Peniel here. My daughter eventually shrugged."It is okay, Mum." My son nodded. "You always find a way." Those simple words almost made me cry before  I could reply the , my phone vibrated inside my bag. I frowned and reached for it, it was an email notification. My eyes immediately landed on the sender. Willy Company. My heart skipped. Why would they be sending me an email? The interview never happened! Slowly, I opened it. The twins moved closer, both trying to read over my shoulder. The first word appeared on the screen. Congratulations! I blinked, then I  read it again and again again. For a few seconds, I genuinely thought I was reading the wrong email. "Mum?" my daughter asked. "What does it say?" I looked at them, then back at the screen, then  back at them again. "It says..." I swallowed."It says I got the job." "What?" Both of them shouted at the same time. My son grabbed my arm. "But you said the interview didn't happen." "Exactly," my daughter added. Yes, I didn't at all, so how? II stared at the email again, that  was when I rememberedc my  resume I had dropped it in Ethan's office, on the floor when I saw him, I never picked it up before leaving. That was how they got my details. There was no way this happened without Ethan. "Mum?" My son called again. I forced a smile and pushed those thoughts away."Maybe I'm just lucky." The twins exchanged looks before smiling. My daughter threw her arms around me.n"Does that mean we're staying?" I laughed softly. "Looks like it." My son hugged me too.m"Does that mean we don't have to worry anymore?" I wrapped my arms around both of them.n"Yes." For the first time that day, I allowed myself to smile. "Mum will be able to take care of you." My daughter grinned.  "Can we order pizza tonight?" I laughed. "There it is." "What?" "You always think about food." She gasped dramatically. "I am growing." My son nodded seriously. "She's always growing." That earned him a pillow to the face, they were laughing and I watched them and smiled. But deep inside, one question refused to leave my mind. Why would Ethan give me this job after everything that happened between us? Whatever it's, I knew Ethan had a reason.&