Four and a half years earlier"I don't want anyone near my son," Ayden tells his father."If you had listened to me, none of this would be happening," Gerard scolds his son. "If you and Arya were married now, she might not have left.""But understand that it's not your decision who comes or goes from my life!" he asserts with a frustrated look.Gerard had cornered him at a moment of weakness."My grandson needs a mother. The warmth of a woman is always good for a man," he resolves aloud.Ayden, who had once been affected by his father's mantra, doesn't want the same to happen to him."I don't care what you think. You wanted descendants, now you have them," objects Ayden Emory, the millionaire who, unable to contradict his father, has acquiesced to his wishes.Gerard bursts into a self-satisfied laugh. He enjoys feeling that he has power over his children. Ayden, noticing his father's arrogance, leaves his office angrily.All day he had meditated on what the Emory patriarch had propose
Four and a half years earlier"I don't want anyone near my son," Ayden tells his father."If you had listened to me, none of this would be happening," Gerard scolds his son. "If you and Arya were married now, she might not have left.""But understand that it's not your decision who comes or goes from my life!" he asserts with a frustrated look.Gerard had cornered him at a moment of weakness."My grandson needs a mother. The warmth of a woman is always good for a man," he resolves aloud.Ayden, who had once been affected by his father's mantra, doesn't want the same to happen to him."I don't care what you think. You wanted descendants, now you have them," objects Ayden Emory, the millionaire who, unable to contradict his father, has acquiesced to his wishes.Gerard bursts into a self-satisfied laugh. He enjoys feeling that he has power over his children. Ayden, noticing his father's arrogance, leaves his office angrily.All day he had meditated on what the Emory patriarch had propose
Present TimeAyden Emory watched Arya attentively. He knew he had messed up since he left home in the middle of the night without giving any further explanations.Arya stood before him, looking at him expectantly, waiting for a logical explanation for his erratic behavior. After a few minutes passed without him saying anything, Arya started to worry."Fine, you can't be reasoned with, I see you're still the same," she declared and walked away.Ayden stood up with the clear intention of going after her, but the ringing of his office phone stopped him. His assistant knew not to interrupt him unless it was important. Which meant it was.He picked up the phone."Mr. Emory, your father is calling on line four, he says it's urgent," Katty informed him."Okay, thank you. Please call John and ask him to stop Arya," he explained and then hung up to take his father's call. "What's going on?""Bob called me very angry," his father informed him. "He says you received his daughter last night and t
Ayden and Arya arrived at the hospital. The young doctor had already informed her friend, and he would meet them there. They had also informed Dr. Swan that Ayden Emory's father was hospitalized. Despite all the chaos, and curiously, no one thought to call him Mark and inform him. However, when they arrived and inquired about the condition of his father, Ayden tried to contact his brother without success."Mr. Emory is already in surgery," informs the nurse in charge in the emergency area. Dr. Swan quickly approached when she noticed their presence and provided details about what had happened. She explained that Mr. Emory had been physically attacked and shot. He had been shot twice and needed emergency surgery due to internal bleeding."We still can't determine his condition. He entered surgery not long ago," Dr. Swan explained, checking the emergency log. "But it's important to understand the risks associated with this type of procedure," she added with professionalism. "I've put th
Arya had decided to return to Ayden's house to take care of her son. Dr. Swan had allowed her to take a few days off for the funeral, which gave her the opportunity to investigate what was happening with her apartment."George, hi," she greets as she calls the young man who installed her security system."Miss Harley, I heard about Mr. Emory. My deepest condolences," he offers respectfully. "I'm very sorry for your losses.""Thank you, George," Arya responds. "I'm actually calling about another matter, but I want your complete discretion on this, and please don't let Ayden know. He has so much to deal with right now."George becomes concerned but doesn't say anything. He's not a fan of keeping things from his boss."Alright, what's going on?" he inquires, understanding the situation."Somebody tried to break into the apartment again yesterday. Neither Robin nor I were there, but he received an alert," Arya explains.George worries because he didn't receive any alerts. "Something must
A week had passed after the attack on Ayden and the death of his father, Gerard Emory. Arya had spent every day at the hospital. Sometimes she brought Aryehn, other times not. She wanted to protect him, and the less he ventured out of the house, the better.In the end, she heeded the advice of her friend Robin and decided to homeschool Aryehn, at least for the time being.Ayden would be discharged just in time for his father's funeral. It had been decided that Gerard would be cremated, one of his final wishes. The will had not yet been read, but some of the clauses he had modified at the end were well known, including the inclusion of his grandson.Daniel and Sebas had been tasked with transporting Ayden along with a retinue of escorts. Security had been doubled since the attack, and even Sebas couldn't escape going shopping alone anymore.Bob Moore had been charged with the crimes of collusion, embezzlement of income, and tax evasion. Cameron had been transported to Charlotte for her
Mark was hurt and disappointed because his father had ignored him his entire life. He always knew that the favorite in the Emory family was the eldest son, Ayden. And why wouldn't he be? He was the son of the woman his father truly loved. Everyone knew that Gerard Emory had married Mark's mother only because she got pregnant; he didn't want to bring shame to his family and create a public scandal.Just as Gerard had once pressured Ayden for a child, Gerard's parents had pressured him to marry again. That's how he ended up marrying Mark's mother. She had been a woman of the night, that's how Gerard met her, in a nightclub, so to speak.While Gerard loved his children, his disdain for Mark had grown in recent years as he realized who his son really was and what he did behind closed doors. He couldn't say anything because exposing him would be a matter of public scandal, so he chose to remain silent. After all, the only one who had always seen the truth about Mark Emory had been Ayden hi
The day of their vacation had arrived. It was exactly one week before Christmas. Arya had booked a trip to the Fiji Islands, a place neither she nor Ayden had ever been to, making it an experience they both looked forward to, especially with their son Aryehn. They would depart early on the first flight of the morning, accompanied by Sebas and Bea, along with Daniel, Cathy, and of course, Robin.News of the vacation had spread, and everyone needed a break after everything that had happened recently. It was well-known that they all needed rest and a change of scenery. When Arya mentioned the vacation, they all decided to join in.Arya had no problem with this; on the contrary, she enjoyed the company of Sebas and Bea, although Cathy wasn't her favorite person. She didn't have anything against her, but there was something about her that didn't sit right with Arya; she seemed fake in some way.John would stay behind to oversee their security abroad, taking their guards with him while leav