“Can I come to one of your parties’ mommy?”

Scarlet looked down at her five-year-old son and smiled. He was so charming for such a little boy and she couldn’t help but adore him.

“I’m so sorry my love, no parties for little boys” she replied leaning down and kissing him on the cheek

It was their usual morning routine to eat together and she always loved this time of the day more than anything else.

“I’m five now,” he said lifting one of his hands to show her five tiny fingers, “I’m a big boy now.”

“Yes, yes,” she replied, “I apologize, no parties for big boys.”

She could hear the tiny sigh that left his body and she tried not to chuckle. He went back to spooning out some cereal and shoving it into his mouth. As she watched him she was suddenly filled with unimaginable sadness. Her son was the best thing that had ever happened to her. After figuring out she had been pregnant, she had kept it to herself for months before she started showing. It was Ethan who had taken her to her first doctor’s appointment and insisted she tell her family. They had been shocked and revolted by the news so much so that she had been disowned by both her parents. What made it worse was that she had to confess that Lucas was the father. They hated Lucas and his entire family, the fact that she bore his child made them even more upset.

As she watched him, she picked up her phone and called her younger sister. Cecile was her best friend and the only one in her family who still spoke to her.

“Why are you awake?” Cecile asked in a groggy voice that told Scarlet her sister was still asleep in her dorm room.

“I need to talk to you,” Scarlet replied ignoring her sister’s question

“What’s going on?” Cecile asked, “is everything alright? Is it Logan?”

“No, it’s Lucas” she replied

The phone was silent, and Scarlet knew what was going through her sister’s mind.

“What’s happened Scarlet?” Cecile asked

“I saw him at a party I organized last night” she replied, “we didn’t talk.”

“Did you tell him?” Cecile asked

“I saw him,” Scarlet said, “I didn’t lose my mind.”

“Good” Cecile replied,

“I don’t think it should be a problem regardless, I don’t think it matters if I have a child or not, it’s not general knowledge and what are the odds that he will think it’s his?” she asked both herself and her sister.

“You did try to tell him remember” Cecile reminded her, “they sent the letter back informing you never to write back to their address.”

The memory of the nasty note written by Lucas’ mother replayed in her mind. It had stung so painfully she almost ripped it to shreds but she had kept it to remind herself never to lose her nerve.

“I’m just shaken up,” she replied, “I doubt I’ll be seeing him again.”

“I hope not” Cecile replied,

“Can you pick him up from school later?” she asked, “I have a late meeting today. As co-owner, I have to listen to a pitch from a company who wants to buy us out.”

“Sure,” Cecile replied, “I can take care of him.”

“Good” Scarlet replied, “we’ll talk later.”

Scarlet hung up and looked over at Logan, he lifted his head and smiled revealing his missing tooth.

“You need to hurry up mister, we have a long day ahead of us.” She said,

“Will you tuck me in tonight?” he asked with big blue hopeful eyes. They reminded her so much of Lucas’ that it pained her heart.

“I’ll try to be home in time to tuck you in,” she replied

He frowned, and she felt her heart sink.

“We can have a movie night tomorrow,” she said

“Oh yay,” he said, and all the light returned to his face.

He was a master at manipulating her to get his way but she was his happy and eager victim.

An hour later she dropped him off at school and made her way to work. It was a big day today den she was going in early to begin working on a few events they had coming up. She knew Ethan was nervous about the possible buyout and what it meant for their company, but she had told him long ago that they would do whatever it took to save their people. Partnering to own their own company was a big risk but it had paid off tremendously. She had her clients and he had his, but they worked together to do the work. In the end, it led to expansion and they had taken on more clients to become bigger than she ever imagined. They planned all sorts of events now and they were thinking of more expansions. The offer to buy their company had come as a surprise and she knew that if they weren’t careful, they would either get a great deal or mess up everything they had worked years developing.

When she got to the office, Ethan was already in and he was mulling over a few documents. She went into his office and sat down in front of his desk.

“How did the party end last night?” she asked

“It was spectacular” he replied, “great job as always.”

He looked up at her and she knew what was coming.

“That was him last night wasn’t it?” he said

“What are you talking about?” she asked hoping the question would throw him off.

“I basically raised your son for two years of his life.” He said, “I know what he looks like and that man last night was his father.”

She looked over at her friend and let her shoulders drop.

“I can’t tell him.” She whispered, “only five or six people know about my son’s father and he is not one of them.”

Ethan raised his head and sat back. He studied her for a very long time before shaking his head

“You never told me what happened to you two.” He said, “only that you broke up badly.”

She shook her head slightly and smiled.

“I don’t talk about it” she replied, “it’s far too painful. Just trust me that this is what’s right for me and my son. I’m protecting him and myself.”

“Is this man dangerous?” he asked

“No, not in the slightest. It’s just that letting him into my life wouldn’t be good for any of us. Especially Logan. I’m still going with the story that I prayed for him and he appeared in my tummy. I’ll tell him the truth one day.”

Ethan didn’t seem happy to hear that, neither did he appear to agree with her methods, but he wasn’t one to intrude on personal matters. He had always given her the space she needed while coming to her rescue if things went bad. He was like the brother she never had.

“You know I trust you” he replied, “it’s your decision to make.”

With that, she nodded and stood to leave but before she got to the door he stopped her.

“I know you say that your son is the reason you’ve never really dated but have you ever thought that it’s all this hurt that’s preventing you?” he asked

“I can’t date” she replied

“You’re only twenty-five,” he said, “it must be a sad thing to never seek after love again at such a young age.”

She smiled and bit back the tears.

“I’ve been in love before,” she said, “I know what it’s like, and I know what it does to me. It’s a weakness, not a strength.”

She didn’t stay and wait for a response. Instead, she walked out of the office and left him to stare after her. She ran to the bathroom and locked herself in a stall. The tears flowed from her eyes and she couldn’t seem to dispel the brilliant blue eyes from her mind. They were Lucas’ eyes, they looked down at her with such adoration until they changed and became empty.

“everything will be alright” she whispered to herself as she made her way to her office, “you just need to pretend as if you never saw him,”

She said that but she knew it was a lie, it was likely that she’d spend the next few months thinking of nothing but him. The realization terrified her.