A sharp sting spread across my cheek as my head snapped to the side. I sucked in a breath, my palm pressing against my burning skin. Carter had hit me before, but it never stopped feeling like a slap to my soul.

“Useless,” he spat.

I clenched my fists, forcing myself to meet his cold gaze. My voice was steady, but my insides shook.

“I almost died last night.” I lifted my chin. “Did you even know that? The restaurant I was supposed to meet the investor at was attacked. Gang members, gunmen—I don’t even know who they were. But people died, Carter.”

He rolled his eyes. “And yet, here you are. Not dead. So does it even matter?”

I stiffened. My nails dug into my palms as something inside me cracked. My life. It meant nothing to him.

I ran a hand through my hair, frustration clawing at my chest. “This was the last time. I’m not doing it again. No more meetings. No more investors.” My voice wavered, but I forced the words out. “It’s like you and Father are selling me to them. Some have even tried taking me to bed.”

Carter’s face remained unreadable.

I swallowed hard and continued, “But I’ve been so lucky that no one has ever succeeded. Thank God.” My lips twisted. “Yet, you and Father still blame me when things don’t go your way.”

Carter’s gaze darkened. “Why are you being so stubborn?” His tone was sharp, irritated. “Why can’t you just help the family?”

My blood boiled. “I have helped!” I snapped. “Over and over! But last night—Carter, I almost lost my life, Carter! My life!”

He scoffed, crossing his arms. “But you didn’t. So what’s the big deal?”

My hands trembled. “It is a big deal!” My voice cracked. “It’s my life we’re talking about!”

For a brief moment, I thought I saw a flicker of something in his eyes. But then he snorted.

“You’re being dramatic.”

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. Why did I ever fall in love with this man and do whatever he wanted me to do? It was their doing that I got pregnant with someone I didn’t know. I woke up, body battered and aching but they just told me that they were sorry and didn’t mean it to happen? I’m so stupid I just forgive them for doing that to me. As if they didn’t even care.

Of course. No one ever cared how I felt.

Before I could respond, Salvina entered the room, holding her six-year-old son, Noah. Her eyes flicked between Carter and me. “What’s going on?”

Carter scoffed. “Talk to your sister. She’s throwing a tantrum, again” He walked out, leaving me standing there, my heart pounding with anger and pain.

Salvina sighed like I was an inconvenience, then stepped closer, placing Noah in my arms.

I blinked. “Why are you giving him to me?”

“Noah was asking for his nanny,” she said with a smirk.

I pressed my lips together. “I’m not a nanny, Salvina. Not his nanny, I’m his aunt.”

She laughed, a cruel edge to her voice. “At least you’re useful for something.”

Noah tugged at my sleeve, his small face scrunching in a pout. “Stop bullying my mommy!” His tiny hand slapped my wounded arm.

Pain shot through me. I hissed, gently setting him down.

“I wasn’t bullying her, Noah,” I explained it to him gently but he wasn’t listening.

At that moment, our mother, Rowena, entered the room. The warmth in her eyes was reserved only for Noah and Salvina.

“Noah! Come here, sweetheart,” she cooed. Noah ran into her arms.

“Grandma, Serena was bullying Mommy.”

Rowena’s eyes snapped to me, cold and filled with disgust. She walked towards me and then—another slap.

My head turned with the force of it. My breath hitched. Both of my cheeks stung now, my skin burning from the impact. But also a part of me collapsed into tiny pieces.

“How dare you hurt my daughter?” she hissed.

I stared at her, my heart shattering into pieces.

“I—” My voice was weak. Wasn’t I her daughter too?

Rowena’s lips curled in disdain. “If you keep being jealous and cruel to your Salvina, you should just leave this place! This house!”

Her next words drove a dagger into my chest.

“You’re the most useless and disgusting child I ever bore.”

I staggered back, feeling like the floor had disappeared beneath me. She turned away, facing Salvina and Noah with warmth and love, the kind I never received.

And then I saw it. Salvina’s smirk. She knew. She had always known. And she reveled in it. I had no place here. I turned on my heel, my vision blurring. I needed to leave. Forever.

Then, my phone rang. I wiped my tears, clearing my throat before answering.

“Serena,” my father’s voice came through, sharp and impatient.

I swallowed. “Yes?”

“Go to Aaron Alabaster’s company. Now.”

I froze. To Aaron Alabaster’s company?

The billionaire. The man whose daughter I had saved.

What did he want with me?

I stood outside the tall glass building, my fingers curling into my palm. My father had called, cold as ever, telling me to get to Aaron Alabaster’s company. No details. No reason. Just an order.

The same man I’d saved a child for last night. The same man who’d watched me wake up in the hospital, asking questions that shook something inside me.

I wasn’t sure why I came. Maybe it was curiosity. Maybe it was because, deep down, I hoped someone—anyone—would finally see me for more than what my family thought I was.

I took a breath, stepped inside, and told the receptionist my name. She immediately stood and gestured to the elevator. “Mr. Alabaster is expecting you.”

Of course he is.

As the elevator rose, I felt my heart pounding harder. I wasn’t nervous… I was terrified.

---

Meanwhile...

Inside a sleek black car parked just outside the building, Aaron sat in silence, his eyes watching the bustling streets through the window.

In the backseat, his daughter, Aria, played quietly in the corner of her dress.

“She was really pretty,” Aria said suddenly, her soft voice breaking the silence. “And warm.”

Aaron looked over at her. “The woman from yesterday?”

Aria nodded. “She held me tight. Even when she got hurt. I felt… safe.”

He didn’t say anything.

Aria looked up at him. “Daddy… I want to be with her.”

Aaron raised a brow. “Why?”

Aria shrugged. “She smiled at me like I mattered. Not like the others at school. That other kid… the one she picks up? He always pushes me, calls me names.”

Aaron frowned. He hadn’t heard that.

“I saw her before,” Aria whispered, “at school. I thought she looked like a princess. I didn’t know she was real.”

He chuckled lightly. “She’s real.”

“If she were my mommy…” Aria trailed off, then smiled faintly. “She would love me. I can tell.”

Aaron’s heart tightened, a rare thing for him. He reached out and gently ran his fingers through Aria’s hair.

He glanced back out the window, mind drifting to five years ago.

Back then, he’d woken up in a strange room, beside a woman he didn’t know. His first instinct was rage. He thought it was his brother’s doing, a trap for him. Another petty attempt to ruin him.

He didn’t confront her. He didn’t even ask her name. He just left.

But months later, a baby appeared at his doorstep and he didn’t know who the mother was. He never saw the woman’s face. He just left after he put his clothes on. At first, he’s going to ask his secretary, Hanson, to take the child to the orphanage since he knows that it wasn’t his.

Maybe it was a scheme of his brother to make his life worse. Handson offered him a paternity test to check if the child was really his daughter or not. It turns out that Aria was really his child. He doesn’t have any other choice but to accept the child.

He was abandoned the same when he was young to his father’s doorstep. But he was taken to the orphanage and lived there until he left after he reached 18 years old. Would he really do the same thing to his child?

“Handson, hire a nanny for her. Make sure that she is well fed and well taken care of,” Aaron said and looked at the child. A mole under her lips is her distinct feature on her face. It didn’t come from him but it might have come from her mother.

“Alright. But what will her name be?” Handson asked. Aaron thought about it.

“Aria. Her name is Aria Alabaster,” Aaron answered firmly and held the child in his arms. He’s not ready to be a father, but… when did anyone be ready? But the real question is, who is her mother and who took her to his place?

Years had passed and it still lingers in his mind who was the mother of Aria. But for Aria to say that she has a strong connection with me who saved her, could he deny her request when his daughter never asked for anything?

“Aria,” he said, voice low. “Would you want the woman who saved you to be your mother?”

Aria blinked. Then slowly nodded. “I’d really love that.”

---

Back in the building…

I sat on the leather chair, awkward under the weight of the silence. The office was massive, intimidating, but strangely cold.

Aaron hadn’t arrived yet. I shifted in place, staring at the city skyline outside the window. Why did I come? Before I could talk myself into leaving, the door creaked open.

He walked in, tall, composed, like the world bowed to him. Our eyes met. He didn’t say anything at first. He just watched me.

Then finally, “You came.”

I nodded. “You called my father and asked him to come here.”

A pause.

“I wanted to thank you again,” he said. “For saving my daughter.”

I swallowed. “No worries about it. She’s a kind child.”

“Thank you for thinking about her like that.”

I gave a small smile. “She was brave. Though she’s afraid, she’s never cried. ”

Aaron sat across from me, silent for a beat. “Serena Clake,” he said. “There’s something I want to ask you.”

My stomach dropped. “What is it?”

He leaned forward. “My daughter doesn’t really open herself to other strangers. Only to her nanny or to me. This is the first time she has done this. Can you do me a favor? Can you take care of her until she adjusts?”

I sat there across from Aaron Alabaster, shocked by the words he said. He looked serious, like he was about to discuss his father or some high-stakes business deal. Honestly, I expected a long talk about partnerships and investments.

But instead, he said, “I want you to take care of Aria.”

I blinked. “Aria… the little girl?”

He nodded once, fingers laced in front of him on the desk. “She’s refusing to leave the house. She keeps asking for you. I tried reasoning with her, but… she’s scared.”

My heart squeezed. I could still remember how tightly she clung to me inside that closet, how she trembled in my arms. “She’s been through a lot,” I said softly.

“I’ll pay you,” he added, watching me. “And you can stay at my house. I’ve arranged a room. You’d have everything you need.”

I hesitated. I didn’t want to rely on anyone again. But the truth was, I had nowhere else to go. I’d been thrown out. Salvina and Noah made sure of that. And I wasn’t about to show up on anyone else’s doorstep.

Still, I didn’t want to give him the wrong idea.

“I’ll do it,” I finally said, holding his gaze. “But only for six months.”

“Alright. Let's draw up some contract,” he said without hesitation.

He drew up a contract with all the conditions written clearly, six months of stay, care for Aria, compensation. I read it all and signed.

“Do you have anything to pack or bring?” he asked.

I shook my head. “No. I don’t really have anything left.”

He paused for a second, like he wanted to say something, then simply said, “My driver will take you to the house. Aria will be happy to see you.”

---

The next few days felt… warm. Peaceful, even. Father called me but I never accepted the call.

Aria and I clicked like we’d known each other forever. She followed me around the house like a shadow, held my hand while we watched cartoons, and insisted I sit beside her during every meal. Her laughter filled the big house that once felt cold and too silent.

She was bright, curious, and so full of life.

“Miss Serena,” she said one night while we were building blocks in her room, “Can you stay here forever?”

I smiled and brushed her hair away from her eyes. “I can only stay here for six months. But we’ll make the most out of it.”

Aria pouted, crossing her arms. “Not enough…”

I didn’t know what to say to that, I just hugged her because I can’t promise her. Even Aaron seemed to soften around us. He would join us sometimes quietly, observing, but present.

It was during one of those dinners that something odd happened.

The chef brought out dessert—peach sorbet. It looked beautiful, but I gently pushed it away.

“Peaches make me itchy,” I said, trying not to sound ungrateful.

Aaron glanced at me. “You’re allergic?”

I nodded. “Always have been.”

He called for a different dessert for both Aria and me. A small gesture, but it made my chest ache a little. Like someone finally noticed. Later that night, while Aria and I were going through her schoolwork, Aaron sat on a nearby couch pretending to read. But I felt his eyes on us.

He watched as Aria furrowed her brows and pouted while thinking about a problem.

“Like this, see?” I leaned closer, helping her trace the letters. I didn’t notice that I was doing the exact same pout.

I heard a faint chuckle from Aaron’s direction, but when I looked at him, his face was unreadable.

---

The next morning, Aaron caught him staring again. This time, he wasn’t looking at our expressions. His eyes landed right under Serena's lips but not making it obvious.

The mole. It was the same spot where Aria had one. Aaron felt a little skeptical about this since a lot of people have moles on their faces. But he took note of it. Even the allergy that Aria has, she has one too.

Isn't that a little too much coincidence? He tried not to think about it too much, but it kept on bugging him for days. He had decided to collect some samples from Aria and Serena. He asked the maids to get some samples of Serena and Aria's hair indiscreetly from the brush they were using.

He wanted it to be tested. Nothing will change if it's just a coincidence, but what if it's not? That will be a big change.

Three days later, Aaron got the results.

He was in his office, holding the envelope in his hands. His fingers trembled slightly as he opened it. His breath caught when he saw the result: 99.99% Mother and daughter.