Alexander froze.
He didn’t answer. A strange, heavy silence descended upon them.
Danielle watched his jaw tighten and asked again.
“Are you still struggling with whether or not to accept Niki as your daughter?”
The question seemed to catch in his throat. His gaze drifted toward the bedroom door, where he could hear the faint rustle of Niki turning in her sleep.
Then, he looked back at Danielle, his voice firm and unwavering. “I accept her. She has always been my daughter, from the day she was born.”
His words landed like a stone in the troubled waters of Danielle’s heart, and a breath she didn’t realize she was holding finally escaped.
She took a couple of steps closer, until they were barely a foot apart. “Then what’s been bothering you lately?” she asked softly. “Is it Nathan? The car accident? Can’t we face it together?”
Alexander’s body went rigid. He instinctively took a step back, putting distance between them again.
He saw the earnestness in her eyes, and his fingers trembled. He wanted so badly to nod, to pour out all the pain and fear, to close the distance between them for good.
But his rational mind held him back, screaming a silent warning. If he pulled her into his world, the consequences would be catastrophic.
He fought down the impulse, his voice turning cold. “My problems are my own to solve. You don’t need to worry about it.”
He grabbed his coat from the sofa and strode toward the door. “It’s late. I should go.”
The moment the meeting started, River was particularly attentive, handing her a bottle of water, straightening her scattered documents, and leaning in to whisper, “I optimized the algorithm data from yesterday. I’ll show you after this.”
Danielle gave him a polite nod, feeling a prickle of discomfort.
She could feel two pairs of eyes fixed on her.
One belonged to Nathan, his gaze sharp and calculating.
The other belonged to Alexander. His was silent but scorching, making it hard for her to sit still.
Nathan watched River’s attentiveness toward Danielle, a mocking smile playing on his lips, but he said nothing. He was curious to see just how long Alexander could sit there and watch another man fawn over his ex-wife.

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