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                             Gracias....

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   Anna walked back into the house. She found Daniel in Isla's room, he had already put her to sleep.

   Daniel stood up from the bed and went over to meet Anna who stood by the doorway.

    "Thank you so much." Anna thanked him as they both walked out of the room.

     Daniel smiled at her. "Anna, don't thank me." He said to her.

     They both entered the living room. "I wish everything would go back to the way it was before. When I didn't have to think about Scott." Anna sighed sadly. "Everything is so chaotic."

     He cupped her chin, lifting it up. "I won't leave you. Everything would go back to the way it was." Daniel told her.

    "What did I ever do to deserve you?" Anna's arms wrapped around his waist. "I really want to do something for you, tell me, what is it?"

     Daniel had always been there for her, helping her. Ever since they met a year ago, Daniel hadn't left her side and Anna had grown to like him so much.

   "How about that lunch date?" Daniel smiled at her.

     "Okay." Anna smiled back.

  He leaned in, touching her lips with his. When he saw that she didn't pull away, Daniel kissed her.

    Anna felt like a teenager again reminiscing the time when they both kissed each other seven years ago, a kiss that led to something more. She kissed him back, slowly to passionately. As his arms slid down her waist, she tilted her head further, placing her hands on the sides of his neck.

    Stay away from Daniel... She heard Rhonda's voice ring in her head.

    Anna jolted back, breaking away from him.

    Her sudden reaction made Daniel confused. "So-sorry. Did I do something wrong? I-I'm sorry." He could see the panic in her eyes.

    Anna looked away embarrassed. She kissed Daniel because of she wanted comfort.

  "Anna... Anna... Anna please look at me." Daniel held her hand when he saw how edgy she looked. "I'm sorry I made you very uncomfortable, it won't happen again." He told her with a look of guilt in his eyes.

    She licked her lips. "Daniel I'm sorry," She apologized to him. "I didn't mean—"

    "Forget about it. Let's just pretend it didn't happen." Daniel told her. He knew something was bothering her but he didn't say anything.

    Anna nodded, going closer to hug him. God, Daniel was just so perfect for her. But she was philophobic— fear of being in love.

      Tuesday morning....

   "Relax okay, relax." Naraya rubbed Anna's arms, trying to calm her down.

    They were already at the family court, preparing.

    "I just want to get this over with." Anna kept taking in deep breaths. "It's a good thing aunt Syla flew down here yesterday, at least Isla has someone with her."

   "Miss Windsor." It was a Latin American man. Mr Fabian Vidal. He was Anna's attorney.

  Anna looked at him and smiled. "Hey."

    "I heard that there was a leak of the case, but I assure you that has been taken care of." Mr Vidal adjusted his necktie.

     She nodded. She couldn't let people know about the custody case.

    "Are you ready?" He asked her.

   "Don't worry, I'll be right here until everything is over." Naraya assured Anna.

    Just then, Scott and his attorney arrived, they met Anna right outside the courtroom.

    Scott walked over to her. "Good morning." He gave her a warm smile.

   Anna gave him a long stare. "Excuse me." She walked out of his presence following her lawyer into the courtroom.

    They were both seated on a ten table seater arrangement while the judge sat at the head of the table, with the two parties by each side across the long table, facing each other.

  "Attorney Vidal, your client doesn't want joint custody why?" The lady judge adjusted the glasses seated on her nose as she kept on writing into a file.

"My client feels that Mr Ontario isn't fit to raise a child given his history of previous public scandals. For a child, more precisely, a female child to grow up in that kind of environment is harmful. Mr Ontario has no idea what it entails to be a father." Mr Vidal said to the judge.

    "What does your client say to this claim Defense Attorney?" The lady judge asked the Defendant.

    "Your Honor, my client wants to get to know his daughter. According to him, he would have wanted a peaceful agreement outside the courtroom but Miss Windsor stated clearly that My client had no claim on the child. For the public scandals, that was before he knew he had a daughter. His daughter won't be harmed in anyway due to his past." Mr Wyatt spoke confidently to the lady judge.

    The judge looked up at Anna. "How long have you known Mr Ontario?" 

   She turned to the intimidating judge, as she nervously swallowed down saliva. "Years." Anna answered.

     "You'll have to be more specific than that Miss Windsor." The judge raised a brow at her.

    "We were friends throughout middle school to highschool." Anna looked down at her trembling fingers which were placed on her laps.

    "So, if you're saying you were friends, why don't you trust him with your daughter? For you both to have been friends, there would have been a lot of trust. How close were you?" The judge asked her.

    "We... We were close but that was seven years ago. He is a totally different person now." Anna said to her, glancing at the judge. "He is not the same person I knew back then."

    The judge turned to Mr Wyatt. "Mr Wyatt, the little girl in question, how did your client find out she was his daughter because according to what I have here, Mr Ontario didn't know he had a daughter until some weeks ago."

   "Mr Ontario had her DNA sample taken for testing. When he had his doubts, he could not rely on what he was told by Anna and so he went to his daughter's school and got the sample."

    "Without the knowledge of Miss Windsor." The judge raised a brow.

    "Yes." Mr Wyatt nodded slowly.

    She wrote somethings down before speaking again. "Mr Wyatt, why do you think I should award your client with an exclusive custody? The little girl in question doesn't know he exists." The judge asked. "How are you sure giving her to your client won't affect her emotionally."

    "My client has spent sometime with his daughter and she was quick to warm up to him. Miss Windsor can attest to that." Mr Wyatt gestured towards Anna.

    "Is this true?" The judge asked the defence counsel.

   "It is. But it didn't mean anything. That is just how she is, she warms up to people easily." Anna's attorney, Mr Vidal quickly answered. 

    The judge nodded slowly. "Are you sure? If I bring her in here, would she be able to warm up to me just like she did with Mr Ontario? You know blood is thicker than water." The judge reminded him.

    Mr Vidal kept quiet and didn't answer, making Anna inhale sharply.

  "It states here that Miss Windsor and Mr Ontario are both financially stable to cater for the girl's needs, even still, Mr Ontario would have the upper hand in that area. Attorney Vidal, you say Miss Windsor does not want Mr Ontario in her daughter's life, has she ever asked the daughter what she wanted?" She asked Anna.

    "My client knows that her daughter doesn't need him." Mr Vidal said to her.

     "How are you sure?" The judge questioned.

    "Because for seven years my client took care of her, she know her." Mr Vidal responded.

 The judge nodded and then asked, "Who looks after the little girl when Miss Windsor is working?" The judge asked him.

     "Her daughter is always at her preschool but after school, Miss Windsor picks her up and she looks after her own daughter." Vidal answered the judge.

   "Attorney Wyatt, does the plaintiff plan to do the same?" The judge asked.

    "Of course! He will do all the best he can to make sure he looks after her." Scott's lawyer answered confidently to the judge. "He knows it will not be easy but it is worth everything."

   "Defense Attorney, there was a time Miss Windsor had lost your daughter at a carnival in Ireland due to her... Negligence? What can you say about that?" The judge asked her.

    Anna gasped. How on earth did Scott get hold of that kind of information?! Anna  turned to Scott who only frowned at her. She was tongue-tied, her racing heart, ready to split into two. This could not be happening.

  Mr Vidal turned to Anna, giving her a confused look. Anna looked like she was about to pass out as the color of her face suddenly turned pale.

     When Mr Vidal couldn't get a quick reaction from Anna, he spoke. "Miss Windsor takes full responsibility for what happened. The girl was found in due time, the criminal was apprehended."

   Fear crossed her mind as she held her breath. "It's not... It's not related to the case... Right?" Anna asked her lawyer immediately as she was visibly shaking.

      "It happened under Miss Windsor's care don't forget that." The judge continued. "Defense Attorney, apart from public scandals, is there any other reason the defendant is preventing the plaintiff from having access to the child?"

   "My client's daughter is a little kid Your Honor, the only home she has known all her life is with her mother. The defendant fears that the plaintiff would not fulfill his obligations as the father to their daughter as he had walked out on her before." Mr Vidal answered the judge.

     "Is this true Attorney Wyatt?"

  "Mr Ontario didn't know she was pregnant Your Honor. According to Mr Ontario, he had only left to complete his admission process into Berkeley, by the time he returned, the defendant had moved out of the country." Mr Wyatt answered the judge.

    "That's not how it happened!" Anna's sudden outburst causes Vidal hold her back. She turned to Vidal. "He's twisting the whole thing."

     "Defense Attorney, subdue your client." The Judge ordered while writing.

    Vidal shook his head at Anna. "I've got this, okay?" He tried to reassure her.

    "Okay then." The judge finally raised her head looking at both the plaintiff and defendant. 'I'll adjourn the case. The next hearing will be next two weeks Tuesday, same time. Attorney Vidal, I would like to speak to the child at the next hearing, is that okay?"

      "Yes your Honor." Mr Vidal nodded.

    "Okay good." The judge nodded, as she began packing her case files.

    Scott walked out of the courtroom with Mr Wyatt, after almost two hours of questioning.

    "Do you think this is a good start?" Scott asked his lawyer.

    "It's really hard to say Mr Ontario, we just have to keep our fingers crossed." His lawyer said to him.

   Scott remembered that the judge had said something about Isla being lost at a carnival. "Um Wyatt... You didn't tell me Anna had once lost Isabelle. How come I am just finding that out?" He curiously asked his lawyer.

    "It was your father. He found out about it and said I submit it to the judge, it was a last minute decision. I must say, that piece of evidence clearly stated that Anna overlooked watching her daughter." Mr Wyatt told him.

   "What happened?" Scott was interested to know.

    "A year ago, some notorious psycho serial killer had tried to abduct your daughter. He had lured her wearing a disguise of a clown but while he was taking her away, he was caught and apprehened. Your daughter was extremely lucky because that man had gotten away with ten murders of little girls before he was finally nabbed. His name was Sirius Howard." His lawyer explained to him.

   Scott couldn't believe what he had heard. He was confused at that moment.
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   She turned on the faucet, splashing water on her face. She rinsed off her face with the cool water. Anna glanced at her sad reflection at the mirror in front of her before taking some tissue to wipe her wet face. She got out of the restroom, on her way out, she met Scott waiting by the end of the corridor.

  Anna sighed. She decided to ignore him but he blocked her path, she tried going around but he blocked her path again.

     "What are you doing?" Anna looked up at him, frowning slightly.

     "I want to talk to you." He spoke authoritatively.

     "And I don't want to talk to you, now get out of my way." Anna told him, she was too weak to get into an argument with him.

    "What were doing that you let Isabelle out of your sight back at the carnival? You could have gotten her killed!" Scott raised his voice. He was upset about the news.

   Anna buried her face in her hand, trying not to breakdown in front of him. For heaven sake, she was on the verge of losing her daughter. She just wanted to go home, take a long rest, and remain calm. Why was Scott having this confrontation with her? She wasn't in a good mood, she didn't want an argument, she was emotionally exhausted.

     "Go away." Anna croaked out from her hands.

    "You tell me I am not fit to raise my daughter but you almost got her killed!" Scott said, frowning.

     Anna looked up at him. "Sorry." She whispered softly. "I only turned away for two minutes and she was gone, I'm sorry." Anna apologized to him as her eyes watered.

    Scott softened his gaze at her. "Don't... Don't emotionally blackmail me with those tears." He said to her.

    Anna sniffled, using a finger to stop her tears from falling down her cheeks. "You can—"

   Scott raised his hand to stop her. "Don't talk." He went closer to her, slowly wrapping his arms around her. "Take deep breaths." He soothed her back with his hand. After some seconds, Anna relaxed to his touch as she rested her face against his chest. "Don't cry anymore. It'll be okay." He cooed softly, pulling her closer to his warmth.

    Anna shut her eyes as her tears fell down her cheeks. Scott was... comforting her? She felt a sense of safety in his arms, all her tension had seized and she felt a wave of calmness wash down her body. What she had waited for... Seven years ago...
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   "How was the hearing?" That was the first thing Ethan Ontario asked as soon as he sighted Scott in the mansion. "I hope it's a good news."

    "Dad it's too early to say." Scott shrugged. "Where is mom? She told me to come here because it's urgent." Scott asked his father.

    "She's upstairs in our room. I think she's about to open a preschool here." Ethan rubbed his forehead.

    Scott gave his father a weird look before climbing the staircase, heading to his parents' room. As soon as he knocked and he heard his mother's voice from behind the door telling him to come, Scott opened the door and his eyes widened when he saw the whole place.

      The whole room was filled with new toys, assorted toys of different kinds that there was hardly space to walk. Toys of both big and small, gigantic and massive toys. He could even spot two mini Ferrari in the room.

      "What's all of these?!" Scott exclaimed in shock. He had to move the packages away as he walked by.

     "I know, this is only a few." Rhonda sighed as she held smaller boxes in her hands.

    "A few? Mom, what's going on?" His brow raised a fraction. "Is this for charity?"

    "No my dear." Rhonda smiled at her son.

   "Are you making donations to a school?" He looked at the bed, more boxes and packages were on it.

   "Not that. I think we need more." Rhonda clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction as she looked at the thousands of children toys and games.

    "Hold on..." He eyed his mom, looking her up and down. "Don't tell me... Don't tell me I am going to be a big brother soon." He frowned at his mom.

     She looked flustered. "What?" Then she burst into a fit of laughter. "Of course not Scott, what are you thinking? These are for our little princess Isabelle." She grinned at her son.

    He made a face of realization. "Wow," he chuckled. "This is nice." He looked around proudly.

    "I am also setting a room up for her too." Rhonda seemed very excited at the thought of Isla coming. "It's going to be so beautiful, I talked to a world class interior designer, she would be coming tomorrow. I can't wait to start decorating. And oh!! We have to invite the party planner too!! So much to be done before her homecoming." Rhonda said dreamily.

    Scott blinked at his mother. "Home-Homecoming?"

    "Yes baby- oh sorry, we have another baby." Rhonda laughed to herself.

      Scott didn't understand what his mother was saying. "Mom... What's going on?" He gave her suspicious eyes.

     "We, my dear, we are throwing the biggest, loudest, most expensive, party ever." His mom grinned at him.

    "We are?" Scott frowned slightly.

   "It's Isabelle's birthday soon!" Rhonda couldn't hold her excitement.

     "What?"

"That's not all," Rhonda smiled softly. "She shares the same birthday as you Scott." She revealed to him.

         "What?" His jaw dropped immediately.