Chapter 24

Johnny's decision to choose another woman over my daughter. Our daughter. It was painful, very painful. His rejection of Harley wasn't the only reason it hurt so much. It pained me to know that he would marry another woman.

Unintentionally, I ended up falling in love with him. I was foolish to do so. I knew who he was from the moment I arrived here. I knew he was engaged, and even more so, that he wouldn't give up anything for Harley, let alone for me...

But what could I do? Exactly, nothing. I just had to turn the page and forget that I was in love with a man who felt absolutely nothing for me. Maybe if I hadn't realized my feelings for him, things would be easier.

After he left without saying a word, I went inside the house, walking straight to the room. I curled up under the sheets of my bed with my little girl inches away from me. And I fell asleep. In the early morning, Harley woke up hungry. I breastfed her and tried to put her back to sleep, but it was impossible. She just kept crying and crying. I knew exactly what she wanted: her father. Every early morning, after I finished feeding her, he would take her and soothe her to sleep. That's what she wanted, that's what she cried for. I tried to do it the way he did, but nothing worked. She just kept crying.

It was Sunday, and since Johnny left, I've only had a few hours of rest. The house is silent when Harley is asleep, and that only happens when she's exhausted from crying. Last night, I called my mother and told her about the birth of my daughter, ignoring the fact that it had been a week ago. I would tell them when they were here, and that would be in a few hours.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Karla said, interrupting my thoughts. I quickly put my index finger to my lips, signaling for her to be quiet so as not to wake my daughter. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but young Lazarus is looking for you," she whispered. I nodded, murmuring a "right away" under my breath, and she left.

I put on my pajama robe and glanced at Harley's small crib before leaving the room. I went downstairs and went straight to the living room, where Lazarus was sitting with a cup of coffee in his hands.

"Motherhood doesn't suit you at all," he laughed, and I flipped him off, causing his laughter to increase. I hadn't slept well in the past two days. What did he expect?

"I'm not in the mood for your jokes, Lazarus. Get to the point. I haven't slept in two days, so don't make me take out my frustration on you," I said sternly. He raised his hands in surrender and invited me to sit.

"Well, first of all... Congratulations, Laura!" he suddenly exclaimed. "The remodeling of the building will be ready in a month and a half." That news lifted my spirits after Johnny had crushed them. A smile formed on my lips, and I hugged him, thanking him. I certainly didn't expect it to be finished so soon when everything indicated otherwise.

"Perfect! We'll start organizing the party, alright?" I quickly said. It seemed like he had trouble understanding me, but he eventually did and nodded. "God! This news makes me so happy."

Lazarus stayed with me for a while longer, and before leaving, he looked at Harley. He had left recently, and I was in the main living room with some documents. I had already found an event organizer, her name was Ximena Callen, and she would start everything today. The doorbell rang, and I got up to open the door.

When I opened it, my entire family was there. Liam and Antonella ran to me and hugged me, and I hugged them back, stepping aside for everyone to enter, and they did.

My little nephews had grown so much. Liam had grown a bit taller, just like Antonella. Both of them were huge and beautiful. I let go of them, taking their hands, and turned my attention to the others. Mom was holding a pink teddy bear in her arms, and many other gift bags were on the floor. I approached her and hugged her, leaving a small kiss on her cheek. She murmured, "Congratulations, baby, you're a mother now," and I laughed.

Ale and Kate were next to hug me and congratulate me. They also brought gifts. Then Louis approached and congratulated me, handing me Sophi, my little niece who had just turned nine months old and was fast asleep. I planted a small kiss on her forehead.

"And where's Liliam?" I asked, not seeing her anywhere.

"She's outside... making sure all the suitcases are being taken out," Alejandro said. I looked towards the door and saw one of the guards bringing the suitcases into the house.

"Auntie! Auntie! Where's my new cousin?" Liam asked eagerly.

"Do you want to see her?" I asked, knowing his answer beforehand.

"Yes!" he exclaimed in unison with Antonella, making everyone laugh.

"Well, but we have to be quiet because if she wakes up, she'll get angry and then cry a lot, okay?" I said. He nodded, and with the hand that wasn't holding Sophi, I took his hand, and we started going upstairs with the rest of my family following us.

Upon entering the room, I opened the door quietly and entered. I laid Sophi on my bed and then walked over to her small crib. My mother, brother, and brothers-in-law surrounded the crib. Mom had Antonella in her arms so she could see Harley properly, and Liam was looking at her perfectly from his spot.

Harley was peacefully asleep, her pacifier slipping slightly from her lips. Mom looked at her with tears in her eyes, murmuring how beautiful she was. Ale looked at me as if he still couldn't believe his little sister was a mother, and I just smiled at him.

"She's beautiful," Alejandro said, gazing at her intently. Suddenly, he furrowed his brow, and my nerves skyrocketed. "She doesn't look like you her face seems familiar," he said, looking at me. My heart pounded even harder, and I smiled at him, trying not to show my nervousness.

"She's beautiful, Laura," Kate added, making me mentally thank her. I smiled and nodded.

"That's right, Laura, although she doesn't look like you," Louis chimed in with a smile on his face.

"She looks like a little princess, Auntie!" this time it was Antonella, who said in a soft but excited tone. I just laughed.

"She certainly looks like a little princess," my mother said, stifling a sob. "God! My baby now has a baby!" she added, making us all laugh, but then her tears fell, and I approached to hug her.

"I'll take care of her like Daddy says I should take care of Anthy and Sophi. I'll take care of her too," Liam said, causing my heart to skip a beat at his innocent words, and I looked at him with even more love than I already had.

"That's right, champ," his father praised him, causing a big smile to appear on his beautiful face.

Afterward, we all left the room. Before leaving, I put Harley's worm toy around Sophia, making sure it wouldn't fall off the bed.

We were all in the main living room of the house. Liam was sitting on my lap, and Liliam hadn't shown up yet, which was starting to pique my curiosity. Knowing her, she wouldn't have waited a single minute after arriving to go up and see Harley.

"Let's go!" Liliam said, appearing through the door. Her voice sounded angry, but she wasn't speaking to any of us; she was talking to someone on the other side of the hallway. "Come on in!" she demanded, pulling the other person by the arm, and they immediately came into my field of vision.