Chapter 1

　　Getting on a plane was something that always scared the sh*t out of Gwen, but due to her career, she always had to be in one.

　　Though she wasn't on a work trip now, getting to her destination made her happy. The journey was over…or maybe just beginning.

　　It was the first time in five years that she would put her feet back in City X. She had never thought she'd be back, especially with her four year old son at her side.

　　Cody was the most precious and handsome little boy, although his features resembled his father a little too much, breaking Gwen's heart whenever he looked at her. His green eyes and blond hair brought matched those of the man who she had tried so hard to forget.

　　Shaking her head to shove away those thoughts, Gwen grabbed Cody by his hand and got inside a cab.

　　“The X Town Mall, please," she uttered to the driver, as she fastened Cody's seat belt.

　　“Are we not going to Aunt Steph's house anymore, mommy?" Cody asked, looking out the window, enchanted.

　　It was his first time in his mother's hometown, really his first time away from home, and he was delighted by everything around him.

　　“Yes, we are, baby. We're just going to pass by the mall to buy a few things and eat something, okay? We need to wait for Aunt Steph to get out of work anyway."

　　Leaning her head on the other window, every street seemed to remind Gwen of her past. She thought she was ready to come back, but suddenly her confidence wasn't so high.

　　Why was she thinking so much of him lately? She thought she had come to terms with the horrible things that had happened. It shouldn't be such a big deal to her anymore.

　　When Stephanie asked her to pay a visit, Gwen thought it would be nice to finally come back and see her best friend. It had been a long time since they saw each other.

　　Though the city was teeming with memories, it had felt like the right time to show Cody where she had been born and lived most of her life.

　　She even considered the idea of moving back to the city with him to start a new life there.

　　“Mommy, look!" Cody said excitedly by her side. “It's so beautiful and big."

　　His little finger was pointing at an enormous building made of glass.

　　Her heart almost dropped.

　　They were passing by the company of the man who hadn't left her mind for the past five years.

　　She didn't even know what to say to her son, so she simply murmured something incomprehensible.

　　A few minutes later, the cab stopped in front of the mall and they left. Gwen grabbed the suitcase with one hand and Cody's hand with the other. Walking around, looking at the windows and still trying to get her sh*t together, Gwen suddenly regretted going to such an open space.

　　She felt as though she were being watched, which was absurd. How, or better yet, why would someone watch her?

　　Nobody even knew she was back in town.

　　“That's ridiculous!" she said to herself.

　　“What is ridiculous, mommy?" Cody asked by her side, with his eyes still glowing with excitement.

　　“Nothing, baby. Come on, let's find something yummy to eat. I'm starving." And she pulled his little hand towards the food court.

　　****

　　Finn was seated at his desk, looking out the big windows behind him and contemplating how his life had become so empty.

　　Ever since the woman of his dreams vanished from the Earth, he lost his interest in everything.

　　He was in his early thirties, but all he did was party and drink most of the time and sink himself in work.

　　To this day, he couldn't imagine what made her leave the way she did. They seemed to be so happy; he had never been in a better relationship.

　　They weren't together for a long time, but he knew deep down that she was the one. He couldn't possibly love someone else the way he loved her.

　　But then she was nowhere to be found. For a while, he used everything in his power to look for her. He wasted money, time and a lot of his men to search for her in the country and abroad. But it was all in vain.

　　It was like she never existed. All he had were her memories and some pictures of them to fill the hole she left in his heart, and his life.

　　He also developed another bad habit after she left. As he searched his desk for his lighter, he remembered how proud she had been of him when he quit smoking. But when she was gone, he was angry and wanted to feel like he was hurting her somehow. At least in his mind, so he wouldn't have to suffer alone.

　　Lighting his cigarette while watching the cars below him, Finn closed his eyes trying to enjoy the feeling of peace that it gave him.

　　He heard the click of the door behind him, but didn't bother to look.

　　“Mr. Lane?" his assistant's voice invaded his thoughts like a sharp knife.

　　“Hm?" he muttered, not wanting to move.

　　He was feeling exhausted lately, since a billion dollar contract was on the table and the negotiations were consuming all the energy he had left.

　　“I have some news. I think you'll like to hear it," his assistant Melanie said, and he could almost hear her voice shaking with nervousness.

　　Even after years working for him, she knew he didn't like to be bothered, and he had to admit that his temper wasn't something easily dealt with.

　　She deserved a raise actually.

　　“Yes, Melanie. Just spit it out. What is it this time?"

　　“One of our guys called. He said she was found. She is here in the city."

Chapter 2

　　Finn opened his eyes in shock.

　　“What did you say?"

　　He couldn't possibly have heard correctly.

　　He wasn't even searching for her anymore. So how could she be found now? And back in town?

　　He turned his chair to stare at Melanie, looking like an idiot instead of a powerful and scary CEO.

　　“I said that Ms. Gwen Miller was seen today at a mall here in town," Melanie explained with an odd expression on her face.

　　It was like she was at the same time trying to hold her laugh, probably because of the look on his face, and also apprehensive, like she didn't know how to proceed with this information.

　　After all, they had never thought they'd reach this point.

　　“What should we do, sir?" she continued, seeing that Finn wasn't reacting at all.

　　He didn't know the answer to that question. At first, when he started to search for Gwen like a crazy man, he had a whole dialogue ready in his mind.

　　He'd go after her wherever she was and demand that she gave him a plausible answer for leaving him without even saying goodbye.

　　But now, after years of disappointing outcomes, Finn had given up hope, at least in his heart.

　　Five years was a lot of time.

　　Many things could've happened and changed in her life. Of course he couldn't say the same about his own, since it didn't change much at all. He had become richer, that was a fact, but it didn't matter. He wasn't a greedy guy.

　　Although he couldn't say the same about his family, especially his mom, but that wasn't the time to think about her.

　　He was suddenly overwhelmed by the anguish he had felt in the last five years, and he realized that he was a fool to have searched for Gwen in the first place.

　　She had left him, right? So why should he go after her and show that he was a stupid man in love?

　　But at the same time, all the good moments he had with her stood out. She was the only woman that ever made him feel like himself.

　　Like she wasn't interested in his money, his status, his surname. It was him and only him that mattered to her. Or at least, that's how it seemed back then.

　　“Sir?" Melanie's voice took him out of his daydreams.

　　“Yes." He didn't want to sound indecisive, so he had to make a decision fast. “Tell my men to follow her and keep me updated," he ordered.

　　Melanie nodded and left the room in a hurry, apparently very pleased that he didn't ask her to do anything more complex.

　　As soon as she closed the door, Finn lit up another cigarette and inhaled the smoke very slowly, trying to ease his erratically beating heart.

　　Why was she back? Why now?

　　Deep down he wanted to know everything about her, what she had been doing in the past years. But then he had to remind himself that the answers to those questions could be very unpleasant. Did he really want to go after her?

　　But the thought of that brown highlighted hair, those honey-colored eyes and the bright smile that could make his world feel lighter and happier was enough for him to make up his mind.

　　Whatever the consequences were, he had to see her. He had to ask why she left. It was all he wanted after she broke his heart. He deserved at least that.

　　***

　　Stephanie called Gwen a few hours later to tell her that she was already at home.

　　Cody was asleep in her arms, completely exhausted from the flight, and she was feeling a bit jealous of her own son for being able to sleep so easily.

　　All she wanted was a hot bath and a soft bed to lie down in.

　　So as soon as she hung up the phone, Gwen grabbed the suitcase with one hand, while still carrying Cody on the other, and managed to call a cab with the help of a very sweet old lady outside of the mall.

　　“Oh, dear. How can you manage to do all this by yourself? Where is your husband?" she asked Gwen as they waited for the cab.

　　“I don't have one, ma'am. It's not that hard once you get the hang of it," Gwen replied, but the pant she let out from supporting Cody's weight for too long told otherwise.

　　Of course no one would believe that. And of course it was also a lie. It wasn't easy. It wasn't easy at all to take care of a four year old boy by herself.

　　She did get used to it with time, and the beauty of being a human was that every day was a new experience. She was growing with Cody, and as he started to learn something new, she also had to learn in order to explain to him why things were the way they were.

　　Perks of being a mother.

　　“Come, child. Let me help you with that." The kind lady grabbed the suitcase and placed it near a stool outside. “Come sit here, I'll call a cab for you."

　　Gwen smiled in return and sat, as the lady made a sign to the driver.

　　“Thank you very much," she said as she tried to put Cody on her other arm. The one he was on was already numb.

　　“How come you don't have a nice man by your side? You are so beautiful." The old lady gave her a warm smile, but Gwen could almost sense her pity towards her.

　　She sighed, thinking of all the glances and whispers that followed her, when society thought that she needed a man by her side. She had gotten used to it, but it still stung.

　　Not that she was against the love and companionship. She loved the idea of having someone to share her life with, or even help her. She didn't mind asking for, or receiving, a helping hand.

　　But she wasn't a china doll. She could do it by herself. She could manage to raise a child without a man. And it was not like she had much choice anyway.

　　Being pregnant and giving birth to a baby alone was one of the darkest periods of her life, if not the most.

　　And at the end of the day, nobody had anything to do with her life, so… Screw them!

　　Nobody was paying her bills for her.

　　Gwen didn't want to give that rude answer to someone so nice like that woman helping her, so all she could do was shrug her shoulders and wait for the cab to stop in front of them.

　　It took a few minutes to get to Stephanie's house, but as soon as the car stopped in front of her door, her friend was already waiting for them.

　　Gwen felt her heart warm with her friend's welcoming hug. It had been so long since she had felt such a feeling.

　　It was only her and Cody for years.

　　Her parents weren't alive anymore and her best friend was hours away, so she admitted that it was hard.

　　But now, receiving such an embrace almost made Gwen forget about all the hardships she went through.

　　“Finally! I can't believe this day has finally come," Stephanie said as they entered the house, with Cody still asleep. “Come, I'll show you your room so you can put this little man to sleep properly."

　　After getting acquainted with the house and putting Cody in bed, Gwen could finally take a shower and put some comfortable clothes.

　　It was already dark when Stephanie opened a bottle of wine and invited her to catch up on all the gossip.

　　After a few hours and some bottles of wine, Stephanie mentioned a topic that Gwen was certain was going to come up eventually, but wasn't ready to deal with yet.

　　“So… I have to ask you this. Have you thought about what you're going to do if you meet him again? Or even worse, if he finds out that he has a son?"

　　“Well, I'm not going to stay here for a long time, so all I can do is hope that he's busy with his rich world and won't even have the chance to know I'm here. After all, he probably doesn't go to the same places as someone like me, right?"

　　If only she knew.

Chapter 3

　　“Come on, Cody. We're going to miss the movie," Gwen screamed from the door, as she waited for Cody to grab one of his favorite toys to go with him to the movies.

　　A few days had passed since they arrived at City X and they spent most of the time outdoors. Gwen took Cody to a lot of places she used to go as a child, which he loved.

　　Now, Stephanie had to go to work again, and Gwen didn't know what else to do with a four year old boy who seemed to never stay quiet for long enough.

　　Cody was an energetic kid and a very curious one. He was always trying to find new things to learn and do, so Gwen was freaking out a little bit. She just wanted to relax a little, but being alone 24/7 with a kid didn't give much space for her to do that.

　　“I'm coming, mommy. I wasn't find Mr. Boots," he said, shoving the plush little snowman with boots in her face.

　　When they got out of the movie theater, it was already dark. Gwen had rented a car to get around town with Cody, which made things easier.

　　As they walked towards the parking lot, Gwen could barely believe what her eyes were seeing.

　　It couldn't be…

　　At first, she thought it was a normal person on the parking lot, searching for his car. But as she got closer, she realized he was leaning against the car she had rented.

　　It was dark, only dim lights illuminated the place, but even so, she couldn't possibly be mistaken about him. After all, she saw a mini version of him everyday at home.

　　"Oh, my God!" she thought.

　　It was Finn.

　　But she couldn't let him see Cody, he could make the connections.

　　She couldn't risk it.

　　Looking around, Gwen spotted an empty stool, but she couldn't leave Cody there alone while she got the car, could she?

　　He could be kidnapped, or hurt.

　　Though a million worst case scenarios ran through her brain, Gwen knew that she couldn't risk Finn trying to take her son away if he realized the truth.

　　With her heartbeat pumping in her ears, Gwen had to make a quick decision. She prayed that nothing bad would happen, but she didn't have another choice. She couldn't risk making Finn suspicious that Cody was his son.

　　“Cody, baby…" she squatted by his side, caressing his cheeks. “Mommy is going to get the car and pick you up here, ok? Can you wait seated here? It won't take long." She guided him to the stool while the little boy rubbed his eyes, already feeling sleepy.

　　“Ok, mommy."

　　“Don't leave this place until mommy gets here, alright? Otherwise, mommy will be very sad."

　　Gwen saw Cody nodding and with her heart aching, she walked towards the car again.

　　Finn wasn't aware of her presence yet, and she was trying her best to control her body so he didn't see her shaking like a leaf. Using her best poker face, Gwen stopped in front of the car, getting a clear vision of the man in front of her now.

　　He was alone, even more handsome than she remembered, and he was blocking the door with his tall body and sharp green eyes.

　　How could someone be so imposing and handsome like him? That shouldn't be allowed among humans.

　　“Finn?" she asked, trying to sound surprised.

　　Not that she wasn't, but she had a few minutes to pull herself together before facing him.

　　Finn narrowed his eyes and his smile almost made Gwen tremble again.

　　“Gwen." That manly and raspy voice was like music to her ears. But she wasn't going to let that nightmare invade her thoughts again.

　　He shouldn't have that much impact in her life anymore, and she cursed her body for betraying her.

　　“I never thought I would see you again," he continued.

　　“How did you know I was here?" she asked, still surprised that he was able to find her.

　　“Well, I pretty much own half of the city now, so I know what goes on within it," he smiled.

　　"Of course," she murmured.

　　The billionaire card. He used that real quickly.

　　“So, how have you been these past few years? I never heard from you again. You look amazing, by the way."

　　Gwen gulped with his compliment.

　　And she was also starting to get worried with Cody being alone. He wasn't far from her, and she would hear if something happened to him. He was a smart kid, he would definitely scream.

　　“I'm doing great, thank you. I don't live here anymore, maybe that's why you never heard from me again."

　　“Probably," Finn said in a low voice.

　　It had been a long time since Gwen saw him, of course a lot had changed. For both of them.

　　But Finn was acting weird. And even though he could be a totally different person now, she still could read some of his expressions.

　　She was always good with that when they had their brief affair.

　　“So… Where are you living now? What are you doing in life?" Finn asked curiously.

　　But before Gwen had the chance to think of a proper answer, what she was most afraid of happened in front of her eyes.

　　And she didn't even have time to do anything.

　　“Mommy! Why were you taking so long? I got scared." Cody's voice made Gwen turn abruptly to look at the little boy coming in her direction.

　　She looked from him to Finn, and could see the man looking over her son with a lot of curiosity.

　　She could almost see his brain working to understand the situation in front of him.

　　“Cody, didn't I tell you to wait for me there? Why did you follow me?" Gwen said nervously while grabbing Cody's hand.

　　“I was scared to stay there alone. You said you would be back soon."

　　“I…"

　　“Is this your son?" Finn interrupted her, completely disturbed.

　　The expression on his face changed drastically. Before, she could almost say he was happy to see her. Now, she couldn't read him. She had no idea what was going on inside his mind.

　　Did he realize that Cody was his son?

　　Of course the kid had a lot of similarities, but maybe Finn wouldn't notice it.

　　“Er… Yes. He is. This is Cody. Cody, this is Finn. Say hello to him," Gwen said, trying not to sound so nervous.

　　“Hi, Finn. This is Mr. Boots." Cody showed the man his puppet, and it took a few seconds for Finn to recover from the shock.

　　“Hello, Cody. Hello, Mr. Boots. It's a pleasure to meet both of you," he said, squatting in front of the little boy.

　　Gwen's heart melted immediately; she had never seen Finn interact with children, and she softened at the sight of his kind smile and gentle tone.

　　“Cody, come. Get in the car and fasten your seat belt. Mommy is coming right after you. Just a second," she said to Finn as she opened the door and turned on the car.

　　Finn was analyzing both of them like an x-ray machine.

　　What was he thinking?

　　“I never thought you'd be a mom already," he commented after she helped Cody to get in his baby car seat.

　　“Yeah… Life never goes as we plan, right?" she laughed, trying to break the ice.

　　“Are you married?" Finn asked.

　　He couldn't help it. Ever since the kid appeared in front of him, it was more than clear to Finn that Gwen's life hadn't been boring and unpleasant like his. Let alone lonely.

　　While he was spending years working to get over her and make more money, Gwen was living her life to the fullest and with a beautiful baby boy.

　　He glanced at her hand as soon as he saw the kid, but there was no sign of a ring.

　　So maybe, just maybe, she wasn't married.

　　That would make it a little easier to stand the fact that Gwen had moved on with her life, while he hasn't.