Lena's POV
I thought the art fair would be just another Saturday. Smile for the parents, clap for the kids, eat a cookie or two, have some orange juice and then go home.
But it wasn't.
It was Dominic leaning against the bake-sale table like he belonged there. Dominic is shaking hands with Eliana's teacher. Dominic crouching beside her lion painting, looking at her like she'd invented fire. Dominic is taking pictures of her artwork like an obsessed fan.
And the worst part? Nobody questioned it. Not the teachers, not the parents, not even Eliana. Because in their eyes, he completely belonged
As for me, I did question it and I see how our future will look from now if this continues to happen.
By the time we got home, Eliana was still bubbling over. The excitement is not dying down.
"Uncle Dom said he's going to help me build a birdhouse! Can you believe it, Mommy? A real one! Isn't that cool?"
I tried to keep my tone steady. "Sweetheart, maybe you should slow down with the plans. Uncle Dom has a busy life."
She looked at me like I'd spoken another language. "He said he'll make time for me. He promised."
Her certainty hit me like a stone.
******
Later at night, after she went to bed, I stayed at the kitchen table with my untouched tea. I told myself I was fine. He'd visit, make a few gestures, then disappear like always.
That was his pattern. That was what men like Dominic did. Gave you hope, made you feel happy. Then they crush your spirits.
So why did I keep seeing the way he crouched to Eliana's level? The way he nodded when she called him Uncle Dom, like he'd been waiting his whole life for that name?
I pressed my palms to my face. I couldn't do this again. I have a lot to lose now, Eliana's feelings were also on the line this time. I couldn't allow her to go through what I went through.
The knock at the door was soft but unmistakable.
I knew who it was before I opened it, and my pulse betrayed me by racing anyway.
Dominic stood there, rain misting against his shoulders, his hands buried in the pockets of his dark coat. He looked… tired. Not the kind of fatigue a billionaire wears after a boardroom war, but the kind that comes from carrying something heavy for too long. My stomach tightened.
"You shouldn't be here," I said immediately.
"Maybe," he admitted. "But I wanted to check up on you. On her."
"She's fine," I said quickly. "She doesn't need—"
"She doesn't need me," he finished for me. His eyes darkened. "But maybe she wants me. There's a huge difference."
I looked away. "Dominic, don't start. You can't just barge in here—"
"Just what? Show up? Care? Try?" His voice was low, urgent. "I know what I lost, Lena. I'm not asking you to forgive me overnight. But don't push me out of her life because you're scared of me."
My breath caught. "I'm not scared of you."
"Yes, you are," he said softly. "But I'm scared too. Scared that I'll mess this up again. Scared that she'll look at me one day the way you do."
"She's a child," I said, folding my arms. "She wants ice cream for dinner and to stay up past midnight too. Wanting doesn't mean it's good for her."
A flicker of hurt crossed his face, but he didn't back down. "So I'm the equivalent of bad habits and sugar rushes?"
"You're worse," I shot back before I could stop myself.
His brows lifted. "Worse?"
"Yes," I hissed, heat rising in my chest. "Because at least when I say no to ice cream, she gets over it in five minutes. But when you leave—when you will eventually leave again—it won't take her five minutes to recover, Dominic. It'll take her years."
The words hung heavy between us, raw and jagged.
He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "I don't plan on leaving this time."
I shook my head, fighting the pull in his voice. "That's what you always do. You plan… but when it matters, you disappear."
"I didn't disappear, Lena." His tone cracked, frustration seeping through. "I was pushed. I was wrong. I was—" He broke off, running a hand over his face. "You don't know everything. Not yet."
I swallowed hard. "Then tell me. Give me a reasonable explanation, since you claim to have one so bad."
He stared at me like he wanted to. Like the truth was burning inside him. But instead, he took a slow step back, his expression shuttered again.
"Not tonight," he said quietly. "She's asleep. You're angry. And if I tell you now, you'll hear it as another excuse. I don't want excuses between us anymore."
His restraint unnerved me more than his presence.
"Dominic," I whispered, hating the way his name trembled on my lips.
His eyes softened, and for a breathless moment it was just us—the silence of the house, the distance of the years, the ache that never left.
" I want to prove to you, that I'm here to stay." He said softly.
For a long moment, the only sound was the distant ticking of the kitchen clock.
Finally, I stepped back. "You should go.
Then he gave the faintest shake of his head. "Goodnight, Lena."
When the door closed, I pressed my palms against it, my chest heaving.
I told myself I was angry. I told myself I was protecting Eliana. I was being careful and pushing him away for her. But the truth?
I was protecting myself. I was being extremely selfish.
And the worst part of it all was that Dominic knew it.