Chapter 2 - Two Sets of Blue-Gray Eyes"Mommy! Mommy, look what we found!"
Noah came skidding out from the back hallway, his curly dark hair a messy halo, holding a massive pinecone triumphantly in the air. Right behind him was Eli, quieter and more cautious, clutching a slightly smaller pinecone and eyeing the crowded lobby with suspicion. Both boys were wearing identical oversized knit sweaters Aunt Margaret had made them, their cheeks flushed pink from playing on the back patio.
Time stopped.
I rushed out from behind the desk, instinctively placing my body between my sons and Nathan. "Boys, I told you to stay with Aunt Margaret in the kitchen," I scolded, though my voice was shaking. I herded them backward, trying to block them from view.
But it was too late.
Nathan had frozen again, but this time, it was a different kind of paralysis. He wasn't looking at me anymore. He was staring down at the two little boys who shared his exact jawline, his exact dark hair, and—when they looked up at the tall stranger in the expensive suit—his exact blue-gray eyes.
I watched the math working in Nathan’s head. I saw the gears turning behind those sharp eyes. Four years since I disappeared. Two boys who looked to be about three and a half years old.
"Emily..." Nathan breathed, stepping around the edge of the desk. His voice was completely hollowed out, stripped of all its corporate authority. He looked like a man who had just been struck by lightning. "Emily, who are they?"
Noah, never one to be shy, stepped out from behind my leg and puffed out his little chest. "I'm Noah. And that's Eli. Who are you?"
Nathan fell to his knees in the middle of the lobby, completely ruining the crease of his thousand-dollar suit pants on the wet floor. He didn't seem to care. He stared into Noah’s eyes, reaching a trembling hand forward before pulling it back, as if he were afraid the boy would shatter. A tear slipped down Nathan’s cheek, catching the light of the chandelier.
"Are they...?" Nathan looked up at me, his face twisted in a mixture of profound awe and agonizing betrayal. "Emily, tell me. Tell me right now."
"Noah, Eli, go to the kitchen. Now," I commanded, my voice cracking. Eli grabbed his brother's hand, sensing my panic, and pulled him away.
Once they were gone, I looked down at the man kneeling on the floor. The executives in the lobby were staring in stunned silence. I leaned in close, my voice a fierce whisper that only he could hear. "They are my sons, Nathan. Mine."
"They're mine too," he choked out, standing up, his chest heaving. "My God, Emily. You took my children from me? You hid my sons for four years?"
"You lost the right to a family the night I found Chloe’s lipstick on your mouth," I snapped back, the anger I had buried for four years suddenly erupting like a volcano. "You didn't want a family. You wanted an assistant who made you feel powerful. Don't you dare come into my home and play the victim."
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"I was a fool!" Nathan fired back, ignoring his staff completely. "I fired Chloe the morning after you left! I practically destroyed my own company trying to find you! I spent every single night for the last four years staring at an empty bed, hating myself for what I threw away. But this? Keeping my children a secret? That is cruel, Emily. Even for you."
"Cruel is letting a child grow up with a father who lies," I said, stepping back. "Enjoy your stay, Mr. Cole. But stay away from my boys."
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