“In Seattle.”
He stared at her.
“When?”
“Last month.”
“How?”
“A company saw our online orders. They want to fund expansion.”
Alexander’s mind immediately began working.
Revenue.
Lease agreements.
Distribution.
Then he stopped himself.
“What do you want?”
Claire noticed the effort.
“I don’t know.”
“Would you move?”
“Maybe.”
His chest tightened.
“What about the twins?”
“They would come with me.”
Of course.
He nodded.
Claire studied him carefully.
“You’re not going to call lawyers?”
“No.”
“You’re not going to buy the building?”
“No.”
“You’re not going to acquire the company offering me the deal?”
Alexander almost smiled.
“I considered it for half a second.”
“Alexander.”
“I said considered.”
She shook her head.
Then he became serious.
“If you want Seattle, we’ll figure it out.”
“We?”
“If you’ll let me remain part of their lives.”
Claire’s eyes filled unexpectedly.
“You’d fly every week?”
“Yes.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“I own an airline.”
“That somehow makes the sentence worse.”
He laughed.
Then his expression softened.
“I missed two years. I won’t voluntarily miss more.”
Claire looked at him for a long time.
“I haven’t accepted.”
“Why not?”
“Because part of me wants to know whether I’m leaving for an opportunity or running from something.”
Alexander knew what she meant.
From him.
From memory.
From the possibility that the past had not finished changing.
Two weeks later, Claire received the formal contract.
Alexander did not ask what she had decided.
That Saturday, they took the twins to the park.
Leo chased pigeons.
Lily collected yellow leaves even though it was spring and the leaves were mostly green.
Alexander sat beside Claire on a bench.
She handed him an envelope.
His heart sank.
“Seattle?”
“Open it.”
He did.
It was not a relocation agreement.
It was a legal petition.
Alexander read the heading.
His breath caught.
Application to amend birth records.
Father’s information.
His name.
Alexander Moretti.
He looked at Claire.
“What is this?”
“I never listed you on their birth certificates.”
“I assumed that.”
“I’m ready to change it.”
He stared at her.
“You are?”
Claire nodded.
“If you still want to be legally recognized as their father.”
Alexander could not speak.
For once, no words existed.
Claire smiled faintly.
“You don’t have to answer immediately.”
“Yes.”
She blinked.
“Yes?”
“Yes.”
He laughed, almost breathless.
“Yes.”
Leo ran toward them.
“Alex!”
Alexander looked up.
The boy stopped.
Then he frowned as though remembering something important.
“Mommy says you’re my daddy.”
Everything stopped.
Claire’s eyes widened.
“I was going to explain—”
But Leo was already studying Alexander.
“Are you?”
Alexander crouched.
His throat tightened.
“Yes.”
Leo considered the information with great seriousness.
Then he held out a leaf.
“Okay.”
Alexander stared at the leaf.
“That’s it?”
Leo nodded.
“Do you want this?”
Alexander took it.
“Yes.”
Leo ran away.
Claire covered her face, laughing through tears.
Alexander looked at the small green leaf in his palm.
He had signed contracts worth billions.
None had ever meant more.
Then Lily approached.
She looked at Alexander.
“Are you my daddy too?”
His eyes filled.
“Yes.”
Lily nodded.
Then she climbed into his lap as though the question had been settled forever.
Alexander held her carefully.
Claire watched him.
And for the first time, he saw something in her expression that he had not seen since before their divorce.
Hope.
That night, however, Claire received a phone call.
Her face changed while she listened.
“What happened?” Alexander asked.
Claire ended the call slowly.
“That was Dr. Bennett.”
Alexander stood.
“What does he want?”
“He found something.”
“What?”
Claire looked at the twins sleeping on the sofa.
Then back at Alexander.
“He found a letter.”
“From who?”
Claire’s voice dropped.
“Your father.”
