Chapter 2 - The Woman Who Disappeared
Five years earlier, Grace had believed Nathan loved her.
They had been young.
They had been foolish.
And they had believed love was stronger than money.
Nathan had been twenty-nine.
Grace had been twenty-four.
She had worked part-time at a restaurant while finishing college.
Nathan had never cared about her background.
He cared about her laugh.
Her stubbornness.
The way she always rescued stray animals.
The way she touched his hand whenever she was nervous.
When Grace discovered she was pregnant, Nathan had smiled.
He had kissed her forehead.
Then he had promised they would build a family together.
Three days later, his father summoned Grace to the Cole mansion.
Richard Cole sat behind his enormous desk.
Two lawyers stood behind him.
“You will disappear.”
Grace stared at him.
“I’m carrying Nathan’s child.”
“I know.”
“Then he deserves to know.”
Richard leaned back.
“My son has a future.”
Grace felt her stomach tighten.
“He has a daughter.”
Richard placed a folder on the desk.
Inside were photographs.
Grace’s mother leaving work.
Her younger brother outside his apartment.
Her family’s bank statements.
Grace's hands began to shake.
“If Nathan marries you, his inheritance will be complicated.”
“I don't care about his money.”
Richard smiled.
“Perhaps.”
He pushed another document forward.
“You will leave the city.”
Grace refused.
Richard made one phone call.
That night, Grace's brother was fired.
The next morning, her mother received a legal notice threatening foreclosure.
Grace finally understood.
Richard wasn't asking.
He was destroying everything around her.
“Stay away from Nathan,” he said.
“Or your child will grow up watching everyone you love suffer.”
Grace left.
She disappeared.
Nathan searched for her for months.
Richard told him Grace had chosen another man.
Nathan eventually believed him.
Or perhaps he simply couldn't survive the alternative.
Five years later, Grace was standing in his kitchen.
May you like
And the daughter he had mourned without knowing her name was calling him Daddy.
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