Friday.
The day Asher had been dreading for weeks.
The networking event. The night Marcus would see him in full view, under bright lights, presenting marketing materials to a room full of investors and executives.
The night everything would end.
Asher woke at 4 AM, gave up on sleep by 4:30, and spent the next hour staring at his ceiling while his children slept peacefully in his bed—remnants of last night's "sleepover."
Today was the day his carefully constructed life would crumble.
Today, Kael would learn the truth.
"Fer-daddy?" Lily's small voice broke through his spiraling thoughts. "Why are you awake?"
"Just thinking, sweetheart."
"About the bad things?"
Yes. About how your mer-daddy is going to find out you exist. About how he might try to take you from me. About how everything is about to change and I can't stop it.
"A little bit."
