LOGINLydia POVBy the time I finally pushed open the door to my office, I could feel every ounce of energy drain out of me.The silence was almost startling after spending the entire morning inside conference rooms filled with executives talking over one another, lawyers quoting policies, investors demanding reassurance, and journalists calling every five minutes.I shut the door behind me, leaned against it for a second, and closed my eyes.Today had been…A lot.Not bad.Not impossible.Just…Heavy.The kind of heavy that settled into your shoulders before slowly working its way into your bones.I loosened the top button of my blouse before walking toward my desk.Almost on cue, there was a soft knock.“Come in.”My assistant peeked her head inside.“I figured you hadn’t eaten.”I looked at the clock.Nearly three in the afternoon.“…You’re right.”She smiled knowingly.“I already guessed.”I laughed.“I hate that you know me this well.”“It’s literally my job.”“Fair.”She stepped fully
Lydia POVThe silence only lasted a few seconds.Then, just as I expected, someone broke it.The head of Legal, a silver-haired man named Mr. Wallace, adjusted his glasses and leaned forward.“I appreciate the sentiment, Ms. Lydia,” he began carefully, “but we still have to protect the company, sentiments don’t pay the bills.”I nodded.“Of course.”He looked relieved.“However…”His relief disappeared.“…protecting the company is no longer our first objective.”A few eyebrows rose around the table.“The company survives if people trust it again.”I folded my hands on the conference table.“And people won’t trust a company that spends more time protecting itself than protecting children.”Nobody interrupted.Mr. Wallace looked thoughtful.“The law exists to reduce liability,” I continued.“My job exists to rebuild trust.”“They’re different jobs.”The room remained quiet.“Legal should absolutely do its job.”I looked directly at him.“But Public Relations cannot sound like Legal.”Th
Lydia POVBy eight o’clock on Monday morning, I was already halfway through my second cup of coffee.Monday mornings had a personality of their own.Emails multiplied overnight like rabbits.Clients suddenly remembered “urgent” issues they’d apparently forgotten to mention on Friday.Assistants moved through hallways with the speed of people trying to outrun disasters.And somewhere, someone was always asking for a meeting that could have been an email.I wasn’t complaining.This was the life I’d chosen.The life I’d built.As I stepped out of the elevator, my assistant immediately fell into step beside me, tablet in hand.“Good morning, Lydia.”“Morning.”She glanced down at her schedule.“You’ve got the strategy session with Mr. Theo’s team at nine.”“I know.”“They confirmed everyone will be attending.”“Everyone?”She nodded.“The executive board. Legal. Marketing. Investor Relations. Human Resources. Digital Communications. Corporate Affairs. Operations. Even two outside consulta
Lydia POVNature had other plans.Within minutes, Ava rubbed her nose.Then again.Then again.I noticed immediately.“You okay, sweetheart?”She nodded.“I think so.”A second later—“Achoo!”Another sneeze.Then another.Brooke’s mother looked concerned.“Seasonal allergies?”I smiled apologetically.“Rhinitis.”“Oh.”Another sneeze interrupted us.Then another.Poor Ava’s nose had already turned pink.She looked genuinely annoyed.“I don’t like pollen.”“I know.”“It’s rude.”“I completely agree.”Brooke quickly disappeared inside before returning with tissues.“I get allergies sometimes too.”Ava accepted them gratefully.“Thank you.”“I still want to finish the experiment.”I gently brushed a loose strand of hair away from her forehead.“You can finish after antihistamines.”She sighed dramatically.“Fine.”“It’s not surrender.”“It feels like surrender.”“It isn’t.”“It emotionally is.”Even through her blocked nose…She somehow managed to sound offended by flowers.Lunch was se
Lydia POVBrooke’s mother wasn’t joking.I realized that exactly seven minutes after the girls disappeared upstairs.A loud pop echoed through the house.Not loud enough to be dangerous.Just loud enough to make every adult instinctively stop talking.Brooke’s mother slowly looked toward the ceiling.“…That’s the baking soda.”I blinked.“You knew what that sound was?”She sighed the sigh of a woman who had clearly lived through many science experiments.“They’re making elephant toothpaste.”“…Should I be concerned?”“Only if they come downstairs asking for more dish soap.”Almost on cue—“Mom!”Brooke’s voice floated down the hallway.“We’re out of hydrogen peroxide!”Brooke’s mother closed her eyes for a brief second before smiling.“I’ll be right there.”She stood.“Come on.”By the time we reached the upstairs activity room, I understood why Brooke’s television show was so popular.The room looked less like a child’s bedroom and more like a miniature science laboratory.There were
Lydia POVSaturday mornings had always felt different.The city seemed quieter, the roads less impatient, and for once, my phone wasn’t vibrating every three minutes with another work emergency demanding my attention.After everything that had happened over the past few weeks—the endless meetings with Theo, crisis strategies, custody conversations, and trying to balance my company with motherhood—I desperately needed a day that wasn’t about fixing someone’s life.Today wasn’t about PR.It wasn’t about shareholders.It wasn’t about lawsuits or boardrooms.Today belonged entirely to my children.Ever since I’d told them about the playdate with Brooke, they had been counting down the days as though Christmas had arrived early.Mostly Ava.Eli simply enjoyed reminding his sister that if she annoyed the science girl too much, she’d probably invent a machine that launched people into another galaxy.Ava had immediately informed him that wasn’t how science worked.Eli, naturally, disagreed.
Lydia’s POVThe morning after the birthday party, I woke up expecting destruction.A headache.Body pain.Emotional exhaustion.At least some form of suffering after hosting what essentially became a miniature festival disguised as a children’s birthday party.Instead?Nothing.I actually felt refr
Lydia’s POVGuests began arriving shortly after six in the evening, and suddenly the house no longer felt like my house anymore.It felt like an event.A real one.The garden lights had fully come alive now, wrapping the entire backyard in soft pastel glows and silver reflections. The balloon insta
Lydia POV“Hm?”“If sharks had jobs, what jobs would they do?”I blinked slowly.“What?”“I think sharks would work in finance.”Ava nodded from the couch.“That feels accurate.”Then thirty minutes later:“Mom.”“What now?”“If aliens came to Earth and saw chickens first, do you think they’d respe
Lydia’s POVAfter Dave left, the house finally became quiet again.Not peaceful quiet.Just exhausted quiet.The kind that settled after too many emotions had happened in one day.I stayed in Eli’s room for almost the entire evening after that. I didn’t trust myself enough to go too far from him. E







