Maybe 9

I nodded obediently and covered my eyes with the towel. 

The second I did, I heard the brutal sound of fists hitting flesh. 

When I lowered the towel, Cassian was sprawled on the ground bleeding from his mouth. 

Hector walked over and helped me to my feet. 

“Come on. Let’s go home.” 

After that day, Cassian camped out in front of our house 24/7. 

Day and night, rain or shine, there he was on his knees. 

Didn’t matter how many times security threw him out, or how many beatings Hector gave him–he kept coming back. 

I stood on the third–floor balcony looking down at him. 

But I felt absolutely nothing. 

“Aurora… are you… feeling sorry for him? Because if you want to-” 

Hector was standing behind me, looking like a kicked puppy. 

I turned away from the window and smiled at him. 

“Hector, you know why I said you saved me ‘again‘ that day?” 

He shook his head. 

“Because you gave me back my ability to love and be loved.” 

I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around his waist. 

“Hector, I’ve got a ton of baggage. Scandals, rumors, health problems, I had an abortion and probably can’t get pregnant again… if any of that bothers you, just say so now. That way I can go back to calling you my big brother.” 

Hector pulled me closer without hesitation. 

23-51 

Ten Years of My Fire 

Chapter 9 

Fall hit London hard–scorching hot during the day, but freezing when it rained. 

I grabbed an umbrella and walked toward the pathetic figure kneeling in our driveway. 

I didn’t look down at him, just angled the umbrella slightly his way. 

“Aurora, I fucked up. Everything was my fault. Please don’t leave me like this. Come back with me–I’ll give you whatever you want.” 

Cassian grabbed onto my legs, looking up at me with stubble covering his face. He looked like absolute shit. 

“It’s too late, Cassian. This umbrella only covers one person. How can you split your love between two people? I’m not desperate for you, and it’s not like you’re my only option. And honestly? Even if I had no options, so what? I’m me–not somebody’s backup plan.” 

My calm tone made Cassian panic even more. 

He used to think my calmness meant I was being obedient. 

Now he was realizing it just meant I was falling out of love. 

You only get that detached with people you don’t care about anymore. 

“Aurora, I swear–I’ll never contact Melody again. It’ll just be YOU AND ME this time.” 

I glanced up at the silhouette on our balcony and couldn’t help smiling. 

“I’m with Hector now.” 

His death grip on my legs went slack. 

Cassian scrambled to his feet and stared into my eyes. 

“Aurora! What the hell does he have that I don’t?! Why him instead of me?!” 

I took a deep breath. 

“Cassian, be honest with yourself–you keep saying you love me, but when have you ever actually chosen me? I’m just now realizing that maybe you do love me, but you also love Melody, and your buddies, and everyone else. More than loving me, you love being wanted. Having options.” 

“And that mountain thing–I never want to go through that hell again.” 

23:51 

Chapter 9 

Cassian looked like I’d punched him in the gut, staring at his feet with no comeback. 

“And at the river–your first reaction was that I was attacking Melody. You know what hurts the most? Those automatic responses. It destroyed me, and I’m sure it destroyed her too. Lucky for me, I don’t love you anymore. I escaped.” 

Cassian opened his mouth but no words came out. His eyes just got redder and he looked even more broken. 

I pressed the umbrella handle into his hand. 

“I’m healed now. Don’t rip those wounds open again. And be decent to Melody while you’re at it.” 

I stepped around him and started running back to the house. 

Before I’d taken three steps, another umbrella appeared over my head. 

Hector wrapped his arm around my shoulders. 

“Can’t have you getting sick–Dad would kill me.” 

I looked at Hector and burst out laughing. 

Behind us, Cassian hesitated for a few seconds, then slowly started walking away. 

This time, neither of us looked back. 

Five years later, I handed our crying daughter to Hector. 

“Take her to Mom or dump her on your dad. Want to sneak out for some late–night food?” 

Hector and I exchanged a look and immediately agreed. 

I never saw Cassian again. 

But sometimes when Mom had her book club friends over, I’d overhear the neighborhood gossip. 

Apparently Melody developed some kind of memory disorder. 

She forgot everything about me, only remembering being a teenager following Cassian around like a puppy. 

And Cassian never married, never had kids. Just takes care of Melody like she’s his little sister. 

Ten Years of My First Love’s Maid. 

Chapter 9 

This time, we’re finally just strangers passing in each other’s stories. 

Life was everything I’d dreamed it could be. Hector never let me doubt his love–not for a single day. We built something beautiful together in London, far from all that New York bullshit. 

Our daughter Iris grew up surrounded by warmth and laughter. 

We had everything–love, success, peace. 

Hector’s business expanded globally, and when he suggested opening a New York branch, I didn’t even hesitate. The woman who once fled that city broken and bleeding was ready to return as Mrs. Aurora Orlando. 

We enrolled Iris at Oak Lane Academy–supposedly the best private school in Manhattan. With Hector’s reputation and my own consulting firm doing well, we fit right into their elite crowd. 

I thought we were untouchable now. 

But this afternoon, my five–year–old daughter burst through our penthouse door in tears, begging me not to make her go back to school. 

She was too scared to tell me why. Just kept shaking and crying. 

My gut told me something was seriously fucking wrong. 

The rage that hit me was the same fury I’d felt in that London river–pure, protective mother’s instinct. 

I grabbed my phone and snapped photos, my hands shaking with anger. Then I posted them to the school’s parent group chat. 

“Who the hell hurt my daughter?” 

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