Chapter 4 - THE WEDDING IS CANCELED
By sunrise, Victoria Haynes had already begun controlling the story.
Her publicist called the incident a misunderstanding.
Her mother called it an unfortunate accident.
Her father called Ethan personally.
Ethan answered none of them.
At seven fifteen in the morning, he made one call.
“Cancel everything.”
His executive assistant hesitated.
“Everything?”
“The venue.”
“The guest list.”
“The caterers.”
“The press arrangements.”
“The wedding.”
Silence followed.
Then came the careful question.
“Should I release a statement?”
“Not yet.”
Ethan ended the call.
Across town, Victoria was standing in the bridal suite of the Plaza when her wedding planner entered with a white face.
“Ms. Haynes…”
Victoria turned.
“What?”
“The Caldwell office just canceled the wedding.”
Victoria did not cry.
She did not scream.
She simply stared at the woman.
Then she removed a crystal champagne glass from the table and threw it against the wall.
Her father, Hugh Haynes, arrived twenty minutes later.
He closed the door.
“You lost control.”
Victoria spun toward him.
“I did not know the girl was his.”
“You should have.”
“How?”
“Because I told you Rosa Martinez mattered.”
Victoria froze.
Her anger vanished.
“What did you just say?”
Hugh looked away.
That was enough.
Victoria stepped closer.
“You knew her?”
Hugh said nothing.
“Four years ago?”
His silence answered again.
Victoria’s face slowly changed.
“You told me Ethan had one meaningless relationship before me.”
“It was supposed to remain meaningless.”
“She had his child.”
Hugh finally looked at his daughter.
“And now we have a bigger problem.”
Back at the hospital, Ethan sat beside Lily while she colored a picture.
She drew three people.
One had long dark hair.
One was very small.
The third was extremely tall.
Ethan pointed toward the tall figure.
“Who is that?”
Lily studied her drawing.
“You.”
His throat tightened.
“You just met me.”
Lily shrugged.
“Mama has a picture.”
Rosa froze near the doorway.
Ethan looked toward her.
“A picture?”
Rosa sighed.
“One.”
“Why?”
“Because someday I knew she would ask.”
Lily looked between them.
“Are you my daddy?”
Neither adult moved.
Rosa had planned to explain it slowly.
Carefully.
Not in a hospital room after a concussion.
Ethan crouched beside the bed.
“If your mama says it’s okay, I would really like to be.”
Lily frowned.
“But are you?”
Ethan almost smiled.
Children had no patience for emotional complexity.
Rosa approached.
She knelt beside Lily.
“Yes, baby.”
Lily looked at Ethan.
Her gray-green eyes widened.
“You’re really my daddy?”
Ethan nodded.
A second later, Lily lifted both arms.
He hesitated.
Rosa gave him the smallest nod.
Ethan picked his daughter up for the first time.
Lily wrapped her arms around his neck.
The billionaire closed his eyes.
No boardroom victory had ever felt like that.
No acquisition.
No magazine cover.
No billion-dollar deal.
Nothing.
Then Lily whispered beside his ear.
“Why didn’t you come before?”
Ethan opened his eyes.
Across the room, Rosa looked away.
He had no answer.
But somebody did.
May you like
And Ethan intended to find them.
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