Cecilia sat in the alley behind the café, knees pulled to her chest, as the weight of the moment pressed against her ribs. She should've run after Leo. She should've marched into Samuel's office herself, told him the truth face-to-face. But she couldn't.
Not yet.
He looked stunned when he saw Leo, and for a second, she thought he might slam the elevator shut. But he didn't. He just stood there, frozen like the past had sucker-punched him.
And it had.
Because Leo wasn't just a boy. He was the secret Samuel never knew he had.
She remembered the day she found out she was pregnant like it was yesterday. Samuel had just made CEO of Blackwood Industries, and the press were already sniffing around for weaknesses. His father hated scandals — especially ones involving Cecilia, the "nobody" orphan who worked as a junior publicist.
And when Mr. Blackwood found out about the baby… everything shattered.
"You will destroy his future," the old man growled. "If you care about him at all, disappear."
And so, she had.
Meanwhile, in Samuel's Office
Samuel sat across from the boy who claimed to be his son.
Leo was surprisingly calm — sketching something in his notepad while Samuel tried to keep himself from unraveling. The boy looked like him, but more than that, he acted like him too. Focused. Quiet. Watchful.
"What are you drawing?" Samuel finally asked.
Leo flipped the page and held it up. "Your office. From memory."
It was shockingly accurate.
Samuel's jaw tightened. "Where's your mother?"
Leo shrugged. "Probably hiding. She's always afraid you'll be mad if she shows up."
Samuel stared at the boy. "Why would she think that?"
"Because she said she hurt you once," Leo replied quietly, "and she didn't know how to fix it."
Samuel looked away.
He had spent years burying the ache of Cecilia's disappearance. He thought she'd left because she wanted more, or maybe she got bored. He never imagined she left because of a child… because of him.
Back Across the Street
Cecilia knew she couldn't hide forever.
She stood, brushing dust off her thrift store jeans, and marched back toward the building.
When she reached the entrance, the front desk receptionist eyed her with hesitation. "Miss, do you have an appointment?"
"No," she whispered, "but… Samuel Blackwood is expecting me."
The woman blinked. Then picked up the phone.
Five Minutes Later
Samuel turned as the office door creaked open.
There she was.
Cecilia Hart. The ghost he never thought he'd see again. Her blond hair was shorter now, curled around her jaw, and her figure thinner — worn by motherhood, maybe. But her eyes…
They were exactly the same.
"Get out," he said coldly.
Cecilia flinched, but she didn't move. "Samuel—"
"Now."
Leo looked up from his seat and tugged on Samuel's sleeve. "Is that my mom?"
Samuel's jaw tightened. "Yes."
"Don't yell at her," Leo said, frowning. "She's nice."
Cecilia swallowed back her tears.
"Give us a minute," Samuel told the boy.
Leo looked between them, then sighed and walked into the hallway with his sketchbook.
When the door closed, the silence between them was deafening.
"You don't get to waltz back into my life like this," Samuel growled. "You vanished. No goodbye. No call. I thought you were dead."
"I had to protect him," she said softly. "Your father—"
"My father's been dead for three years," Samuel snapped.
Cecilia blinked, stunned.
"I would've taken care of both of you. I would've protected you. Why didn't you trust me?"
"I did," she whispered. "But I didn't trust your world."
The Past Comes Back
She told him everything.
How Mr. Blackwood had threatened her. How she had begged him to keep Leo a secret so Samuel's career wouldn't suffer. How she'd lived paycheck to paycheck in three different cities, raising Leo alone, teaching him to draw instead of dream of a father.
Samuel stood silent. His chest ached.
He remembered the board meetings. The pressure. His father constantly warning him that "love makes men weak." Maybe it was true. Maybe Cecilia had believed it.
But she should've let him decide.
"I lost five years," he said, voice cracking. "I didn't even know I had a son."
"I know," she whispered. "And I'm sorry. I just didn't know how to come back from it."
He looked out the window, his reflection a broken man behind flawless glass. "What do you want now?"
Cecilia looked down at her hands. "I want him to know you. Even if you hate me… he deserves a father."
He didn't respond.
She reached into her bag and pulled out a small envelope.
"Leo drew this for you last year. He said someday, he'd give it to the man who looked like him."
She set the envelope on his desk and turned to leave.
But just as she reached the door, Samuel's voice stopped her.
"What's in there?."