Chapter 68

Annie's POV

My heart thundered against my ribsas I watched Howard disappear into Sue's apartment building. The damaged security door swung lazily on íts hinges, a stark reminder of Dave's violent intrusion. Lucy and Penny huddled together in the back seat, their small hands clasped tightly.

"Should we call the police now?" Lucy whispered, her voice carrying that remarkable maturity that still caught me off guard.

Before I could answer, Sue burst through the security door, still partially bound to a kitchen chair with what appeared to be a necktie. Her usually immaculate appearance was disheveled, face pale with fear. Without hesitation, I jumped out to help her.

"Are you hurt?" I asked, quickly working to loosen the makeshift restraints.

Sue shook her head, though her hands trembled violently. "He... he was waiting when I got home. Said he needed money." Her voice cracked. "I've been trying so hard to build a new life, to show Penny that we don't need...

"Mommy?" Penny's worried voice carried from the car. "Is it the bad man again?"

Sue's expression crumpled at her daughter's words. "Everything's fine,sweetheart," she called back, though her voice wavered. "Just stay in the car with Lucy."

I finished freeing Sue from the chair just as heavy footsteps echoed from the stairwell. Dave emerged first, stumbling backward, with Howard following in measured steps. The contrast between them was stark -Dave's disheveled aggression against Howard's controlled power. "You can't do this!" Dave slurred, his earlier bravado reduced to desperate threats. "She's my wife!"

"Ex-wife," Howard corrected coldly. "A distinction you seem unable to grasp."

Something in Howard's tone made my pulse quicken. I'd seen him command boardrooms and navigate corporate takeovers,but this was different. This wasn't the calculated CEO- this was raw protective instinct barely contained by civilized restraint.

"You think you're better than me?" Dave sneered, though he kept retreating from Howard's advance. "Coming here in your fancy suit,playing hero? I know what you really want. Think you can buy her with that cushy job?"

Howard's expression didn't change, but something dangerous flickered in his eyes. "Ms. Peterson is a valued employee whose safety and wellbeing are my concern. Your implications say more about your character than mine."

Police sirens wailed in the distance, growing closer. Dave's face contorted with panic as he realized his situation. He lunged forward suddenly, but Howard intercepted him with practiced ease, pinning him against the wall until uniformed officers flooded the entrance.

As the police led Dave away in handcuffs, the building's security team finally appeared, looking distinctly uncomfortable under Sue's withering glare.

"I pay premium rates for security," she stated, her professional composure returning now that the immediate danger had passed. "Yet you let an unauthorized person enter without proper verification?"

The head of security shifted uneasily. "He said he was your husband,ma'am. Had some story about Penny leaving her backpack..."

"And you didn't think to call and confirm?" Sue's voice carried the sharp edge I recognized from corporate negotiations. "What exactly am I paying for if you can't perform basic identity verification?"

While Sue dealt with the security team, I found myself studying Howard.He stood slightly apart, his usual pristine appearance barely disturbed despite the physical confrontation. Something about seeing him like this-protective, powerful, yet perfectly controlled - made my heart race in a way that had nothing to do with the evening's drama.

I remembered our conversation about pretending to be a couple, how clinical and strategic it had seemed at the time. But watching him now,I couldn't ignore how real it felt when he held me at the charity gala. The way my body responded to his touch hadn't been pretense at all.

The next morning, I paused outside Lucy's bedroom,caught off guard by the sound of her practicing her speech. Her voice carried clearly through the partially open door, confident in a way that still amazed me after her months of silence.

"The butterfly starts as a tiny egg," she read carefully, "but through determination and patience, it transforms into something beautiful."

My throat tightened with emotion. How far she'd comne from the silent,withdrawn child I'd first met. Now here she was, preparing for a public speaking competition.

"Mom?" Lucy caught my eye in the mirror as she adjusted her dress."How was that?"

"Beautiful, sweetheart," I said honestly, moving to help her with a stubborn button. "Your delivery gets stronger every day." She beamed at the praise, then fell quiet as she watched me in the mirror.After a moment, she spoke again, her voice thoughtful. "Mom, what happens after people get divorced?"

The question caught me off guard, but I tried to keep my voice steady."What do you mean,sweetheart?"

"Like... with money and stuff," she elaborated, fidgeting with her sleeve."Penny said her mom didn't have any money saved up when se left her dad. That's why the bad man could be mean to her last night."

My heart ached at her precocious understanding. "That's a very grown-up observation," I said carefully. "But you don't need to worry about Sue. She has a good job now, and people who will protect her."

Lucy nodded, but her expression remained serious. "But it got me thinking..."She turned to face me directly. "We're kind of like Penny's family,aren't we? Sort of... but not really?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I call you Mom, and I call him Dad," she explained with child-like logic. "We live together in the same house... we're a family, right? But you're not married like other parents."

I felt my chest tighten. "Lucy..."

"If you're not married," she continued, her voice taking on a slight edge of worry, "what happens if something goes wrong? Like with Penny's parents?"

"That's... that's different," I tried to explain, though my own heart was racing now.

Lucy's eyes narrowed with determination. "Then why aren't you married?I'm going to ask Dad why he hasn't married you yet." "Lucy, wait," I caught her arm gently. "Marriage... marriage isn't just about living together or being a family. It needs love."

"But don't you love each other?" she asked, her eyes wide with genuine confusion. "Is that the problem? You don't love Dad? Or..." her voice dropped to a whisper, "Dad doesn't love you?"

The innocent question forced me to confront feelings I'd been carefully avoiding. Our arrangement with Howard had started as a simple solution-a shield against Philip's increasingly desperate attempts to insert himself back into my life. Astrategic move, nothing more.

But somewhere along the way, the lines had blurred. I found myself watching him when he wasn't looking, memorizing the way his expression softened when Lucy showed him her drawings, how his hand felt protective and warm against my back when we walked together. The way my heart raced when he kissed me at the charity gala hadn't been pretense at all.

Last night, seeing him protect Sue with such controlled power, I'd felt something shift inside me. The truth was, I wanted this pretense to be real.I wanted lazy Sunday mornings and shared coffee and quiet evening conversations that didn't end. I wanted...

But could I risk the peaceful life we'd built? Lucy was finally thriving,my career was blossoming, and for the first time since my divorce, I felt truly secure. Opening my heart again meant risking everything - not just for me,but for Lucy too. The memory of my failed marriage with Philip still cast long shadows over any thoughts of romance.

Before I could untangle these conflicting emotions, a shadow fell across the doorway.Howard stood there, his expression unreadable as his eyes met mine in the mirror. My heart stuttered in my chest as Lucy's question seemed to echo in the suddenly thick air between us: "So is it that you don't love Dad, or Dad d oesn't love you?" The answer caught in my throat, too dangerous to voice, too powerful to deny.