Four months after we broke up, I called Jace. “I’m pregnant. Do you want this baby?” Jace recoiled instantly. “We were super careful. Don’t try to pin this on me.” I asked again, my voice calm. “You’re sure you don’t want this child, right?” “I don’t,” Jace firmly replied. I exhaled, a wave of relief washing over me. Good. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about him trying to fight me for Luna later. I raised our daughter alone. Until she was five. Then, my ex and his best friend both started fighting to be her dad. It had been six years since I last saw Jace. Honestly, he hadn’t changed much. Still dressed fashionably, but his face looked grim. “Mom, I’m hungry!” Luna rubbed her tummy. I turned and headed into the kitchen to prepare her a bowl of oatmeal. Jace still stood frozen at the doorway. Luna finished her big bowl, then turned to Jace, letting out a heavy sigh. “Mom, maybe you two should talk? I’ve got homework to do,” she said, picking up her little backpack. “But just so you know, you can’t give away my custody rights, okay?” The words “custody rights” finally hit a nerve with Jace. He glared at me, his voice booming. “Chloe, you secretly had my child!” I glanced at Luna’s tightly shut bedroom door. My daughter was mature for her age, but some things weren’t meant for her ears. Worried the walls weren’t thick enough, I stepped out, leading Jace into the stairwell. “Chloe, don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to. Are you after my family’s money, hoping to get a piece of the pie by having a kid?” Jace scoffed. “I’m telling you, it won’t be that easy!” I pulled out my phone and played a recording I’d saved for six years. “I’m pregnant. Do you want this baby?” “We were super careful. Don’t try to pin this on me.” “You’re sure you don’t want this child, right?” “I don’t.” After it played, I feared Jace hadn’t heard, so I replayed it. He froze, his angry questions dying in his throat, like someone had just muted him. “I expected something like this, so I kept all the evidence safe and sound,” I said, crossing my arms. I gave Jace a critical once-over. “You’ve been around forever, and your parents still haven’t made you the heir. Guess they know you’re not up to it. You think you can fight me for custody? As if *you* could!” Jace, enraged, punched the wall. I patted his shoulder. “Just a warning: stay away from my daughter from now on, or I’ll call the police and report you for child abduction.” “Why? I’m her dad!” “Oh? Proof?” “I can do a paternity test!” I looked at him with pity. “You can’t just run off and do a private paternity test, Jace. It won’t stand up in court.”
Jace left, grumbling and clearly pissed off. That evening at dinner, Luna kept sighing dramatically. “Mom, why weren’t you more careful when you were looking for a dad for me?” she asked indignantly. “Were you only focused on how hot he was?” “I was young back then,” I reflected, genuinely reconsidering my past choices. “Will he keep bothering me?” “Hard to say,” I mused. “He definitely didn’t want kids before, but who knows if he’s changed his mind now that he’s older. Anyway, how did you even run into Jace?” “I saw him talking to our principal after school today,” Luna said, not looking up. “They must know each other, right?” The next day, after dropping Luna off at school, I drove to my shop. When Luna was younger, I’d been doing private baking from home to make it easier to care for her. Later, when she was a bit older and I’d won a pretty prestigious international baking award, I decided to open this dessert shop. Business had been good these past two years, with a steady stream of customers, and I was actually thinking about opening a second location. Soon after I arrived, a middle-aged woman walked in, wanting to order a five-tier birthday cake. “Of course,” I said, smiling as I sat down with her to discuss the details. She wore an elegant green dress and had a kind smile. Suddenly, she asked, “Are you married?” I smiled. “No.” Then she asked, “Do you have a boyfriend?” I shook my head again. The woman’s smile widened. “I’m Jace’s mom! Jace is single too! Why don’t you consider him again?” Before I could answer, she eagerly pulled out a bracelet and tried to put it on my wrist. Eleanor was incredibly kind throughout our conversation. She probably worried I’d misunderstand her intentions—that she was there to fight for custody—so she proactively explained that she just wanted to get close to Luna. “It must be hard raising a child alone. I just want to help you.” I wasn’t naive enough to believe Eleanor was as genuinely sweet as she appeared. She was a total corporate shark. The Sterling family must have already done a private paternity test, confirming Luna was Jace’s biological daughter. They’d likely consulted lawyers and realized their chances of winning a custody battle were slim to none. So, they had no choice but to push for shared custody. “Mrs. Sterling, I respect Luna’s wishes,” I said, smiling. “As long as Luna is willing to get close to you all, I won’t object.” Eleanor excitedly said, “Then I’ll arrange a dinner party right away!” I emphasized that I needed to respect Luna’s opinion and discuss it with her first. After exchanging contact info with Eleanor, she made a phone call, beaming. “Come in. Apologize properly to Chloe, and then thank her.” Then I saw Jace push open the door, looking totally annoyed. He must have been waiting in the car, ready to be summoned. When he saw me, a flicker of triumph crossed his eyes.
As school dismissal approached, I finished up my work, planning to pick Luna up. Jace lingered, saying he wanted to see Luna too. “You should probably stay away from Luna for a bit,” I told him honestly. “You need to give her some time to process.” Time to accept that her biological father was a good-looking dummy. “Why?” Jace huffed, looking personally attacked. “I’m tall, handsome, and rich. What could Luna possibly be unhappy about?” “Luna’s more interested in personality than pretty faces.” “Chloe, what’s that supposed to mean?” Jace blew up instantly. “Elaborate! You were the one who chased me first, remember?” “Yeah, and now I’m using that firsthand lesson to teach Luna not to just look at a guy’s face, right?” I stomped on the gas, not bothering to say another word to Jace. During school dismissal, the school entrance was pure chaos. I parked the car in the lot and walked over. Luna was just walking out with a classmate, laughing and chatting, her backpack on. Spotting me from way across the lot, she immediately started waving, all excited. “Mom, did the teacher tell you? We have a parent-teacher conference next week!” “Yep, saw the alert on our Snapchat group.” I scooped Luna into my arms and walked towards the parking lot. She wrapped her arms around my neck, swinging her little legs and humming a happy tune. She was absolutely thrilled! I briefly explained the Sterling family situation to Luna. She cocked her head, thinking it over. “It’s just dinner, right? Let’s go.” A horn sounded from behind us. I turned, quickly pulling Luna closer to the side of the road. The car drove out from inside the school. The back window was half-down, and I only saw a young man sitting in the back. “Mom, that’s our principal. The one I told you was talking to my bio-dad.” “Really?” I was a bit surprised, unconsciously glancing back, but I didn’t get a clear look at the man. Since Luna agreed to meet the Sterlings, I didn’t intentionally delay and set the dinner for the weekend. The location was the Sterling family mansion. They said it was so Luna could recognize the house and feel free to visit whenever she wanted. Jace and I had dated for a very short time, and we certainly hadn’t reached the stage of meeting parents, so this was my first time at the Sterling residence. It was in an exclusive, upscale neighborhood—a massive villa. But Luna, being only six, even with some awareness of money, saw no difference between this mansion and the big house back at our old place in the countryside. She even complained the yard wasn’t as big as ours back home, saying it wasn’t convenient for keeping a pony or a big dog. “Luna, hello there, I’m your grandpa.” “My precious granddaughter, I’m your grandma.” Arthur and Eleanor smiled with the utmost benevolence. Luna wasn’t shy at all, greeting them confidently. “Hello, Grandpa and Grandma.” “Oh, my sweet girl, you’re so adorable. Here, these are gifts from Grandpa and Grandma.” Gold bracelets, a gold necklace, a diamond tiara, and a wad of cash envelopes were all there. Luna sweetly thanked her grandparents, then, saying she was afraid of losing them, handed everything over to me. She specifically instructed me, “Mom, make sure you keep these super safe, okay? These are all Grandpa and Grandma’s love for me!” I knew she actually just found them heavy and didn’t want to wear them. “Son, after raising you for thirty years, you’ve finally done something worthwhile!” Eleanor dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief, turning to Jace. “Thank goodness you brought a granddaughter into the Sterling family, otherwise, I truly wouldn’t want you to step foot in this house again!” Jace sat isolated on a single sofa, looking like he wanted to argue but didn’t dare. He’d clearly dressed up for the occasion, his hair perfectly styled, and he was loaded with all his usual bling – earrings, a necklace, rings, the whole nine yards. But Luna often played with older folks in the neighborhood, and her style, clearly shaped by her senior citizen friends, was totally old-school. She just looked at Jace with complete disdain.
Arthur and Eleanor seemed incredibly open-minded. They didn’t demand Luna report to the Sterling house regularly, nor did they try to dictate her future plans. When they learned Luna was interested in horseback riding, they simply mentioned a friend who owned a stable and offered to take Luna there. From start to finish, they were terrified of upsetting Luna or me in the slightest. Midway through, Jace leaned over. “Hey, I think Luna still kinda dislikes me. Can you think of a way to make her like me more?” “No.” Jace’s face fell instantly. “But how did you even find out Luna was your daughter?” I asked, a bit curious. “I didn’t find out. Liam did.” Seeing my confused expression, Jace explained, “Liam’s my best friend, and he’s also Luna’s school principal.” “He accidentally stumbled upon Luna’s enrollment records and said her eyes looked a bit like mine. Then he saw her last name, and then he saw your name listed as the parent.” “Mainly, your last name is pretty unique. I’ve dated so many women, and you’re the only one with your last name. The chance of two people having the exact same name and last name is super low. Plus, Luna’s age matched perfectly, so he told me about it, and then…” “Have I met this friend of yours?” Jace changed girlfriends faster than clothes, so it was surprising this guy even remembered me. Jace thought for a moment, then pulled out his phone and opened his gallery. “Here, you two must have met, right? I’m not sure.” I leaned in. The man in the picture wore rimless glasses; he was quite handsome. But I couldn’t recall ever seeing him. The thought that all this drama was because of this guy made me etch his name into my memory. Liam Sterling! You nosy busybody!
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